Most clothing worn in rural QuΘbec by both men and women, and often noted by eighteenth and nineteenth-century travellers, was grey homespun, called Θtoffe du pays. This sturdy fabric was made of natural black and white wool mixed by carding to produce a grey yarn when spun.
The capote of Θtoffe du pays shown here is cut like a frock coat with flap pockets. The hood buttons inside the collar and has a drawstring around the face. The sash, called a ceinture flΘchΘe, gives the outfit a dash of colour. Coats of a similar cut were also made of Hudson's Bay blankets. This coat was made by Beaulieu et Godbout of QuΘbec, probably in the last quarter of the nineteenth century. It was worn on the Island of OrlΘans. The striped homespun and leather boots were worn in QuΘbec. They button down the front.
The man in the coloured engraving from J. Lambert's Travels Through Lower Canada and the United States 1806-1808 wears a suit of Θtoffe du pays. There is a suit in the National Museum of Man with a similar jacket and also waistcoat and trousers, all of Θtoffe du pays and all hand sewn. The capote is machine sewn.
The thrum mittens shown here are from the Vineland district in the Niagara Peninsula and are knitted in stocking stitch and tufted with loops of several strands of yarn. The loops are worked between each row and then clipped to make a close pile. The name thrum mittens derives from the loops which are made from warp-ends, called thrums, left on the loom after weaving was completed. They are an interesting example of thrift which resulted in very warm mittens.
Courtesy: Royal Ontario Museum and National Museum of Man, National Museums of Canada
