Wool production in North Ronaldsay
Culture
Dry Stone Dyking
A rich agricutural heritage across the north isles is marked by dry stone dykes deliniating field patterns and boundaries, and these stone walls have become an important characteristic of the current landscape. A plentiful supply of hard sandstone has supported the traditional dry stone building techniques used for walls and buildings across the isles. With the changes in agricultural practices, increased mechanisation, fewer people, and subsequent increase in field sizes, the significance of the boundary dykes have dwindled, and along with it the skills to maintain and upkeep them.
NILPS funding supported a number of workshops and sessions across the isles to help people learn and develop their skills to build and repair dry stone dykes. Sessions varied from 1/2 day taster sessions to more in-depth 2-day workshops. All proved popular and were well received. Over 80 people took part in sessions in Eday, Papa Westray, Rousay, Sanday, Shapinsay, Stronsay and Westray.
The North Ronaldsay Sheep Dyke
Nowhere is the significance of the traditional dry stone dyke more apparent in the north isles than in North Ronaldsay. The sheep dyke is a distinct and unique part of the island's built heritage and cultural identity. It encircles North Ronaldsay, separating the improved fields in the centre from the foreshore and suppots one of the last large-scale communal farming systems in Orkney. It was built in 1832 as a continuous dry stone wall and keeps the ancient and unique North Ronaldsay breed of sheep, which primarily feeds on seaweed and ruminates according to the tides, from the grass inland. Too much grass and the North Rondsay sheep are at risk of copper poisoning; they've become adapted to their environment and remain on the shore apart from during short spells when ewes and lambs are brought inland to graze and at other times when they're communally managed and brought into drystone enclosures known locally as 'punds'. Traditionally, punding happens 3 times an year - in June or July for shearing, at New Year to select for market and in February to 'score' or carry out a head count.
Facing the dual challenge of climate change and accelerating coastal erosion along with an ageing and declining population the future of the sheep dyke had become increasingly uncertain. NILPS funding supported North Ronaldsay Trust to employ a Sheep Dyke warden between 2019 and 2024, initially on a full time basis, to carry out a programme of repairs to help secure its future and when the first warden resigned the trust then appointed 2 (sometimes 3) individuals on a part time basis to continue work.
The Sheep Dyke Warden role not only successfully implemented a programme of repairs, but it has also become an important supporting role for the successful delivery of the annual North Ronaldsay Sheep Festival. The wardens are able to provide hands-on instruction and supervision during the festival as well as undertake preparatory work before the festival starts to ensure the week long programme of events run smoothly.
As well as the practical element of this project, NILPS also supported a community led element that celebrated the heritage of the North Ronaldsay Sheep Dyke. This part of the project was called 'Thirteen Stone Miles'. Activities included community archaeological surveys with UHI Orkney, Archaeology Institute, community events to record memories, field names / names of sections of the dyke and stories connected to the sheep dyke, oral recordings were captured, aerial footage of the structure has been recored, walks, talks and workshops with heritage specialists, artists and ecologists were delivered. Workshops with North Ronaldsay School were also delivered by artist and ecologist Becs Boyd and an illustrated map was created by school pupils that will hopefully be displayed at the New Kirk.
Cassie (flood defence) Restoration
The focus of this project was Papa Westray. These traditional flood defences have provided an important barrier, protecting the coastline from surrounding seas. The technique has been adapted over the years, but it involves using local stone, positioned along coastal areas suseptible to flooding. Papay Development Trust organised 2 sessions between 2019 and 2024 to enable skills sharing and hands on repair and building experience to take place. NILPS funding supported the trust to deliver the sessions as part of their project 'Restore the Shore' and it subsidised travel costs for people to attend the sessions from further afield. 36 people took part in the skills sharing events in Papay managed by Island Ranger Jonathan Ford (the Papay Ranger) along with artist Saoirse Higgins who created a beautiful film and manual to support the ongoing legacy of the project and potentially share skills to a much wider audience. The film was screened in the Orkney Arts Theatre as part of the 2023 Orkney International Science Festival
A manual to the art of Cassie sea defence wall building on the island of Papay. | The Kelp Store
Hand & Machine Knitting
Knitting is a craft that has been handed down through the generations and many islands have successful knitting and crafting clubs, hubs and groups, not to mention wool and knitwear businesses.
NILPS delivered a project to celebrate and promote machine knitting across the isles in Autumn 2024 with taster sessions in Rousay, Eday, Shapinsay, Westray and Stronsay. Almost 50 people took part in learning how to get started with the machines. Many of the sessions were led and delivered by Rousay resident Murray Stewart and sessions in Westray were delivered by Lizza Bain from Hume Sweet Hume along with Ingrid Stout. Machine knitting is a more recent traditional skill, but the sessions re-ingnited interest and knitting machines were pulled out of attics and spare rooms across the isles.
In total 70 people attended 17 knitting sessions across 7 islands.
The Isle of Sanday Knitters
This was a knitting company based in Sanday from the late 1970s to the late 1990s that successfully designed, produced and sold traditional wool jumpers throughout the UK and further afield. Mary Baker, who was married to the then island headteacher recognised the knitting talent in the island and what started as islanders making crochet squares for a fashion company that advertised in a sewing magazine, grew into a successful cooperative that supplied knitwear to the likes of Saks Fifth Avenue and Bergdorf Goodman in New York and Hackett and Harrods in London. It gave women in Sanday, often for the first time, the opportunity to earn an income for themselves and for Sandra Towrie, who had 3 young children at the time, the chance to travel to trade fairs in Paris, Munich, New York and London.
NILPS funding supported Sandra, who had acquired the Isle of Sanday Knitters archive, to work with Sanday Heritage Centre to properly record, catalogue and store the material and information relating to this important aspect of Sanday's recent history. She also delivered some traditional knitting sessions at the Sanday Community Crafthub and funding supported editing and printing costs associated with a publication written by Sandra to celebrate the Sanday knitting story - The Isle of Sanday Knitters - How to knit a bathroom was published in 2024 and is available in the Sanday Heritage Centre and at the Orcadian bookshop in Kirkwall. All proceeds from sales go to the Sanday Heritage Centre.
Sanday Community Crafthub
NILPS was able to help fund a few different things over the course of the programme at Sanday Community Crafthub. The crafthub showcases local handmade art and crafts, there's also a tea room and a workshop space where craft sessions can be hosted and delivered. Some initial funding in 2020 helped renovate the workshop space to preserve traditional skills and craft training, and then later funding also supported a programme of activities and training both for the community and for workshop leaders at the crafthub. A variety of sessions were supported - making traditional Orkney Creepies from reclaimed wooden fish boxes and driftwood; flock to fibre sessions - working with local raw fleeces and suing natural dyes; soap making; creating a heritage display (connected to the history of Kettletoft village where the crafthub is located), art/printing workshops inspired by the herring fishing at Kettletoft in the past. 26 people in total were involved in workshops and sessions funded by this project. Just towards the end of NILPS a small heritage grant also supported the crafthub to buy 2 knitting machines to support the ongoing legacy of this project.
Traditional Straw Work
Neil Leask from Orkney Museum service took people back to a time before plastic bags and cardboard boxes. Oats grow well in Orkney and the straw was a useful by-product that could be fashioned into ropes, containers and chair backs. Thick, twisted straw ropes called simmans were used to hold down hay stacks and on roofs to hold down straw thatching. Very few people can still make simmans, but they're used to decorate the North Ronaldsay Memorial Hall each year for the Harvest Home. Neil led a simmans session in North Ronaldsay in 2024; 17 people came along to learn the traditional craft and a short film from the day was made to outline the process:
A thinner, less sturdy straw rope is a sookan. This rope was quick to make and was used to tie sheaves. The rope was twisted with a thraw crook and was a simple process that children in North Ronaldsay enjoyed getting invovled in:
Another very popular session that was delivered across 7 islands, also with Neil Leask, was cubbie making taster sessions. Cubbie's are small straw baskets or containers and it's the same sewing technique as used for making the straw backs of traditional Orkney chairs. Over 80 people attended sessions in the north isles and some islands are keeping groups going to continue to learn and develop this skill.
Jewellery Making
With NILPS funding, Stronsay based jeweller and designer, Marion Miller had delivered some jewellery making sessions, inspired by the landscape, with young people at Papdale Halls of Residence through the NILPS education project. The workshops proved really popular and Marion had been asked to deliver sessions for adults in Eday and Stronsay. NILPS was able to support 3 courses in late 2024 where people created a range of hand crafted pieces, again inspired by the land and sea around them. Feedback was excellent and the funded sessions enabled Marion to test the market and discover that jewellery making workshops will be something she can develop and continue to offer in the future. 22 people attended Marion's workshops.
Traditional boat building
In partnership with Shapinsay Heritage, Arts & Crafts (SHAC), a short film was commissioned by Stromness based film maker Mark Jenkins to record Shapinsay resident, John Leslie building, potentially, his last 14ft wooden clinker dinghy using traditional hand skills. John has spent his life at sea and has been building boats for decades and this fabulous, endearing film captures his personality and skilled craftmanship beautifully.
