This is my grandmother’s school certificate for Domestic Subjects for the school year 1928-29. She was 13. I’m particularly interested in the laundrywork aspect. Until I thought about it, I had no idea that you would learn that in particular at school. I knew about the cookery and general housekeeping parts, but had imagined that you would learn about washing clothes at home. But of course, Monday was traditionally wash day and girls would have been at school for much of it.
I dread to think how I would have scored in these subjects, aged 13. How about you?
I’m glad nobody scores me on laundry. That said, I look after my handknits very carefully.
As a topic laundry has been around much later than your grandmother’s time. My sister was at a catering college in the early 1960s and they also studied laundry. I have her textbook (and it’s wonderful reading!) full of glorious information about how different fibres are structured and the effect that different cleaning chemicals have. At the back there are handwritten recipes for different wash mixtures.
Ah yes, my mother did laundry at school as well as part of domestic science (although sadly we don’t have her books from it still).
Have you tried to use any of the handwritten recipes yet?
I’m glad that nobody scores me on laundry either – I fear that I would be marked down for ironing…
Alas not to the recipes – I’m not sure where I’d buy most of the ingredients from these days (not quite as bad as granny’s cough mixture recipe though which called for laudenum).
As for ironing… I have that down to something I do only once or twice a year.