Hi tatters,
I got this excerpt from another tatting
list today and I thought you'd all enjoy
reading it.
Sharon
from The Globe and Mail
Tuesday, November 25, 2003
Social Studies, page A 22
Future Hops. This is St Catherinešs Day.
On the eve of the holiday in old England,
lace makers had to sell the tatting that
they had produced, writes author John Timson.
Having sold their stock, the lace makers would
celebrate in the evening with a Cathern Bowl,
a powerful brew made from hot apple pulp,
cinnamon and cider. Thus fortified, they
faced the trickiest part of the celebrations.
Each girl had to jump over a lighted candle
that had been placed on the floor., swiftly
enough not to singe her petticoats, but not
so quickly that the draft blew out the flame,
or that would bring her bad luck for the rest
of her life. The chanted
Kit be nimble, Kit be quick, Kit jump over the
candlestick. Similar divination was a custom
at medieval weddings, where grog-filled men
tried to execute leaps without blowing out
the candle flame to ensure a yearšs good
luck.
-from Timsonšs Book of Curious Days
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