Monday 16 December 2019

Send It To The Knacklers!

Two definitions
knacker ; a buyer of worn out animals or their carcasses, especially those not fit for domestic consumption
knackler ; a person capable of mending anything with anything. Said as a compliment [this term originates in Yorkshire] 
I knew the first expression [and the associated adjective, for feeling utterly exhausted] but not the second. But I learned it last week whilst watching The Repair Shop. If a series ever 'sparked joy' [and moist eyes] it is that one.
A lady came in with an item made by her grandfather, and it was fully restored - but she described Grandad as "A Knackler" Bob and I both thought it was a wonderful term. "You are a knackler" I told him.
Now we are both very fond of hats, and Bob's leather one was looking very dry and battered. Susie Fletcher, the leather worker on the programme often talks about 'feeding' leather to restore it to its original glory.
Bob looked on the Internet. You can buy the leather cream quite easily. He looked a little harder. You can make your own as well. Mix 1 part turpentine, [NOT TURPS SUBSTITUTE] 1 part boiled linseed oil, and 1 part melted beeswax. Allow to cool, and wait for 24 hours - it will become creamy. Apply with soft cloth and work into the leather. There was turps and oil in the garage, and I had some beeswax pellets [and a small screwtop jar] so Bob made some cream.
The hat is now restored and shiny again. Fixed using what we had in the house, and the only cost was a little time. Wonderful!
Bob is considerably better than he was ten weeks ago, and the TIA Clinic seemed very pleased with him when we visited last week [thank the Lord] The Hospital Car Park Machines were covered in notices of one sort and another. Including this one







8 comments:

  1. No, no, no!!! No apostrophic abuse please!! Bad person who wrote that!
    That's a very good solution for treating his leather hat! My grey leather shoes, which I recently got reheeled, could do with that. I had a jar of traditional Irish shoe polish but it seems to have vanished!

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  2. The apostrophes are loose! Beware!

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  3. Love the phrase knackler. I'm glad to hear Bob is feeling better.

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  4. Vix told me once that she used regular hair conditioner on dry leather. I use it now on our couch. Walsall ( where Vix lives, and where my parents lived) was famous for leather and she knew many people who worked with it. I heard that HM"s handbags still come from there!

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    1. I can see that would work - but it might contain synthetic petrochemicals. Bob's version is all natural stuff

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  5. I am so glad to hear that Bob is feeling better.

    I haven't heard the term "knackered" used here, in the US; I only know it from reading British blogs! As for the notice, I guess it is a case of 'when in doubt, add an apostrophe'?!

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