 Folk ceremonies and Folk shirts
The Woodcraft Folk had an extensive culture of its own in the 1930’s. This included not only its own language, but ceremonies, Folk costume, songs, poems, imagery and Folk names.
“I think it is nice to keep some things traditional in the Folk, and I think they are essential to not make it too similar to our non-Folk life.”- Alice
 Ceremonies included those giving members a Folk name (members were called by this name within the Folk, for example Lesley Paul was known as Little Otter, and the founder of the Brighton Woodcraft Folk- Harold Frost was known as Long Elk), fire lighting, woodcraft “christenings, and even Woodcraft weddings.
In the 1930’s Folk costume consisted of a green jerkin, fringed with brown leather along the bottom edge. These shirts had to be made from scratch, without a pattern and were decorated and personalised- this went a long way to explaining why the Folk was costumed rather than uniformed! The contemporary photos of the Woodcraft Folk bear out this observation.
 All these elements bound the Folk together in a strong bond of cultural connectivity, and left a life long impression upon people who took part. This culture reinforced the socialist educational aims of the Folk, and explains the most severe admonishment a member could receive, when told “that’s not woodcraft”.
View a selection of songs and rounds from The Ashen Stave, The Folk's Campfire Song Book of the time.
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