Sadu, spinning, and ghee…handicrafts inherited among the women of the northern border

Handicrafts in the Northern Border Region are crafts inherited among women and linked to the nature and environment of the region. Among the most famous of them are the making of Sadu, poetry, textiles, embroidered handicrafts, sewing, and the making of ghazals, some of which take 10 continuous days, and in which northern women have recorded a remarkable presence in national events and festivals inside and outside the region.

The popular market in the city of Arar, which was opened more than 10 years ago, hosts many elderly craftswomen and their granddaughters, and has allocated places for them to display their products and handicrafts, until it has become one of the most important heritage destinations that is characterized by a popular character with a heritage urban style, commensurate with the craft products.
In addition to the “Al-Khuzama” hall, which aims to train craft families, the most prominent of which are courses in “the culture of buying and selling,” the culture of saving, and how to do electronic marketing, in addition to courses in self-development and the like.

Hair salon industry

Making traditional hair houses is one of the inherited women’s professions in the northern borders. The region is famous for its great abundance of sheep from which the wool from which the houses are woven is taken.

In making hair houses, craftswomen use many colors of goat and sheep hair, and the hair houses have different sizes, including: the “triangle”, which consists of 3 columns.

The square is the one that consists of 4 columns, and the square is the one that consists of 6 columns, and there are something larger than that.

Hair salon components

The manufacture of hair houses depends on basic components, including what is known as the “hammer”, which is a stick for cleaning the hair, the “sewn”, which is an iron tool, the “strings”, which are wooden pieces for fastening, spinning and fluffing, the “tubes” for fixing the sides of the house, and strings. For spinning of wool.

The prices of hair salons range according to type and size, starting from 1,000 riyals and reaching more than 6,000 riyals, and it takes between 3 days to 10 days to weave them, depending on the workforce.
During the making of poetry, the craftswomen exchange verses of poems and poems to have fun and have a nice time.

Hair houses are popular with camping enthusiasts in desert areas, as the northern border region is rich in environmental diversity that is attractive to lovers of land trips, especially in spring times.

Spindle

The spindle is a traditional craft and textile in the northern border region. It was considered one of the main wool weaving tools in the past, due to its frequent use and time-consuming use.

It was known that the spindle was used to spin threads, then twist them, stretch them, and finally “seal” them. This took long times, as in the past women worked from early morning until sunset.

Weaving wool using a spindle is one of the ancient and authentic professions of Saudi and northern women in particular.

The abundance of wool raw material was reflected in the manufacture of many textiles, and these hand-made textiles include “rugs,” “quilts,” and other textiles, which are used as bedspreads and covers during the harsh winter days, and high-quality handicrafts, in addition to other works such as sewing and embroidery.

Wild ghee

Extracting wild ghee is one of the women’s handicrafts in the northern border region, as it is active in the winter and is in high demand by the people. It is used as a main ingredient in many popular dishes, including “porridge and khamiya” and others.

Extracting ghee is linked to the nature of the pastoral area. The traditional method of extracting it is the prerogative of women, through preparing it in several stages. After the sheep are milked, the milk is placed in a large pot, heated over the fire until it boils, and then poured into pots or utensils, and left until it cools slightly.
Then yeast is added to the milk, which after hours turns into “khathir” milk. Then the “khathir” is placed inside the “sameel,” which is a leather container made of sheep or goat skins, and treated in a special way.

The process of “churning” then begins, which lasts more than half an hour, until butter is formed from the milk, and quantities of it are collected over the course of several days. After that, the butter is placed in a pot to melt it using fire, and it turns directly into Arabic ghee.
The ghee is also emptied into a leather container called “Al-Nahw” or “Zarf”, and it is made in the same way as “Samil”. It is then stored for household supplies, or sold, and sometimes date honey (molasses) is added to it.

Popular ghee market

The popular ghee market is one of the oldest popular markets in the city of Arar and has been in existence for 70 years, defying modernity and development. Simple shops have been added to the market’s activities in which desert lovers’ necessities, including tents, utensils, etc., are sold.

The name is due to the abundance of wild ghee at that time, as no store was selling it, and many women in the northern border region still extract it for trade, export it to popular markets and productive families, and put it in small packages for sale.