On Nov 22, 2004, at 0:33, Karolina Jeffers wrote:
I would like to tell you about an experiment a lacemaker set up at the AGM
in Sydney. She brought her "lacemaker lamps", I think there were more than one on the stand, lit up the candles, turned the lights off and - the light from the lamps was so poor that one could not make any lace or read or really do anything else than have a good conversation with anybody who was in the room.
I've been waiting and waiting, for someone who was there to chime in, but after 48hrs, I sit up and beg... :)
A different gathering entirely - an IOLI (I think) Convention somewhere (I wasn't there)... The electricity failed, someone brought out a *make-shift* lacemaker's lamp (a bowl filled with water, illuminated, from behind, by a candle? flashlight?) and it worked just fine, if one's to believe the reports...
I heard stories that lacemakers sat in circles a few rows deep around the
lamps,
That one I've not heard :)
In the days when people used candles most people went to bed with chickens
and got up with chickens as the daylight ruled their lives.
Mmm... I grew up "in the city", with electricity for 9 months out of 12. But, for the rest of the year (in incremements - 8-9 weeks in the summer, 2-3 for Christmas, and about one week for Easter), I was packed off to my "family in the village" as often as not, until I was 14.
No running water and no electricity. We did pack it in relatively early, and did get up relatively early too. But, with the chickens? No way... :) The chickens go to bed at sundown, and we'd stay up till 8-9 PM, longer, if someone came to visit.
We didn't use the water-filled globes; I've never heard of/seen those until I joined Arachne... But we used oil lamps in the centre of the room (on the table) and candles in candlestcks (both mounted on the wall and hand-held) with a circle of highly polished metal in the back to reflect and diffuse the light... It's true that neither of those devices was as bright as a 100Watt bulb, but they were more than adequate (possibly brighter than a 40W bulb, which were often used in public places)
Also the candles were very expensive and were used sparingly.
The *wax* candles were, which is why they were kept for church use. The *tallow* ones (very smoky and smelly) were not.
I think that one has to be a bit cautious to believe everything one hears -
Couldn't agree more :)
--- Tamara P Duvall http://lorien.emufarm.org/~tpd Lexington, Virginia, USA (Formerly of Warsaw, Poland)
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