| Our costumes portray the
clothes worn by Welsh country folk at the end of the 18th Cetury. The costume
is based on an original costume from this period, which can now be seen at the National
Museum in Cardiff. Some members are proud owners of original items of clothing which have
been passed down through the generations, but the majority of our costumes have been
hand-made by the members themselves in the traditional fashion. The outer garments are
produced from Welsh flannel, woven at a woollen mill in Felindre (Milltown), and the
undergarments are produced from cotton. The
women’s costume consists of cotton pantaloons and camisole (or one-piece as shown in
the photo), cotton petticoat, flannel sox, outer flannel petticoat, flannel
‘betgwn’ (a combination of jacket and skirt), cotton fischu and sleeves, cotton
bonnet, flannel or paisley shawl and the ‘traditional’ Welsh hat. The men’s
costume is simpler and consists of woollen sox, flannel breeches, cotton shirt and flannel
waistcoat. Again this costume is based on original items which are to be seen at the
National Museum, Cardiff. |
| The pervailing colours of
the peasants’ cosutmes during the 18th & 19th centuries
varied from brown to blue to red, dependant on the which natural resources were available
to dye the yarn (eg browns and greens produced from rock lichen was prevalent in the
costumes of shepherds in the mountainous regions, or purples and blues from wild fruits
such as the blackberry). We decided on red, black and white as the main colours for our
team costumes – the red, originally obtained from the cockle, was a predominant
colour in the coastal areas, and the black and white being natural colours – the
black wool deriving from the hardy Welsh Black Mountain sheep which were farmed in the
mountains of Snowdonia (a short boat-ride from Anglesey). In the olden days the black wool
was mostly used for stockings, because the wool, being its natural colour, had no dye to
loose by frequent washing. The tall hat (or
beaver hat) is a unique feature of the Welsh National Costume. Dawnswyr Môn’s hats
vary in shape and size, and have been carefully hand-made by one of our members, based on
traditional hats of the 18th & 19th centuries.
According to old manuscripts the tradition for
dancing at the country fairs was to discard the flannel and dance in the cotton
undergarments, adorned with coulourful ribbons. |
