May 1966: Overview

It’s finally Spring!

We had a terribly cold April where I live, with rain and gloom and the sense that spring would never come. I had switched out my winter and summer clothing as part of spring cleaning last week and it all felt wrong. Then, all at once, two days ago, winter ended, the sun came out, and temperatures doubled. Perfect timing for the “Summer Plans” in the May 1966 issue of Stitchcraft!

The May to August issues always have lots of projects for travel and holidays: little summer tops, quick bulky jackets and sweaters for cooler weather or sailing holidays (aka normal summer in a temperate/maritime climate) and easy homewares to make in a deck chair while lounging about. The pullover on the cover is made in DK wool, so relatively warm, but with a lacy front to keep it airy. The photo is also almost an exact copy of the March 1966 cover photo! Apparently yellow is still trending.

Other women’s garments include a ribbed and a plain polo-neck jumper designed on “skinny lines” — the ribbed number is a special design for extra-slim Twiggy figures with a 30, 32 or 34 inch bust. For “figure-plus” sizes, there’s a summer blouse in bouclet wool with a wide, rolled collar and chequerboard lace pattern. There’s a plain DK cardigan in a range of average sizes to round out the tops, and an easy crochet dress with “practically no shapings”. High necks and clean lines are in, and stitch patterning is kept to a minimum in favour of little details of colour and finishing — see the smock-like embroidery on the “skinny” jumper, or the twists of colour on the collar and cuffs of the polo-neck. Colours are light but bold — light blue, white, green, yellow and pink.

The other members of the family are well served in this issue too. There’s a men’s “country pullover” in a zig-zag stitch pattern, as well as a bouclet “tennis shirt”, both in neutral colours of “Alabaster” and “Brandy” — even the names of the colours fit the image of 1960s masculinity. The “young fashion” set can have fun in a striped and belted mini-dress. Stitchcraft informs us that the “Young Colour Choice is mid grey and white”, which is interesting, considering that the adult women’s fashions are all quite a bit more colourful. Younger tots can make “Seaside Plans” in a t-shirt-and-trunks set for a boy or a little knitted dress and head scarf for a girl. (Why no trunks for the girl, whose dress is going to fly up over her as soon as she starts digging in the sand with that bucket?)

There are some nice child-appropriate homeware designs as well, starting with a thick, warm pram blanket in blue and yellow (to match the mother’s jumper!) The pattern is a herringbone tweed alternated with cable panels and the finished blanket is edged with satin ribbon. Then there are some wonderful decorations “for the nursery” featuring friendly animals and flowers. You can work them in felt appliqué on a wall panel, or in wool embroidery on a cushion. The animals are so cute! I love how the cat is both guarding its mouse and disdainfully looking away from the dog on the cushion. Whoever designed this obviously had a cat.

The normal homeware items are, well, normal: two different flower tapestries for a wall panel, the smaller of which can be used for a spectacles case; a tapestry chair seat, a stitched rug and waste-paper bin cover in an easy geometric pattern, a beach bag with beachy motifs (anchor, shell, beach grass) to embroider, or, for people who don’t like to relax on their holiday, a pair of intricately crocheted trolley cloths in a star design.

Saving the best for last, there are designs for two oversized, tall hats. The knitting itself is very easy, but the making-up is complicated, with lots of stiffening in the lining to make the hats stand up off of the head. It feels like Stitchcraft is finally getting into the “fashion fun” era of the 60s, albeit a little late and still pretty conservative.

In the back pages, there’s a teddy-bear motif to knit or embroider and instructions on how to make a pom-pom (two cardboard circles). Eustace the elephant from the children’s comic has eaten delicious buns for tea and helps a mother duck encourage her son to learn how to swim. Finally, “Slip Into Orbit” with these “deliciously private-eye-catching” undergarments from the Scotch Wool Shop! The space age has arrived and we are going to celebrate by wearing pretty underwear.

My project this month will probably be some variant on the animal/flower appliqué or embroidery. Enjoy the Spring!

April 1966: Overview

The April 1966 issue of Stitchcraft has a “continental” flair, with “softer feminine styling from Paris” and this “Swiss” design pullover in a new “Banana Cream” shade of beige. The cover photo is classic mid-60s fashion photo shoot: layered shades of gold, brown and beige, the model with bobbed hair standing in a diagonal pose, sans-serif fonts and a relatively long, high-necked, unshaped pullover with geometric design in the stitch pattern.

The other women’s fashions have the same easy feel and generous fit, but allow more colour: turquoise and blue are trending this Spring. “PARIS keeps the Crochet Look” in a bright turquoise buttoned jacket, or you can knit a short-sleeved “easy-line sweater” in turquoise and pair it with an unbuttoned “casual jacket” in turquoise and navy for a twin-set effect. Both jumper and unbuttoned jacket are made in a simple slip-stitch pattern with a nubbly effect. The green “blister stitch” cardigan achieves the same effect with simple increases and decreases in garter stitch and rib.

The promised designs from Paris are a knitted dress in “The Granny Look”, “demure in lace with draw-string waist”, and a tweed beret (of course, Paris). The beret marks the start of the mid-late 60s fashion for oversized hats, knitted large and stiffened with “Staflex” lining. It is knitted in reverse stocking-stitch in four parts which are lined and stiffened separately and then sewn together. The model looks so sad! Does she not like her beret? (She didn’t seem to like the crocheted jacket either.) Rounding out the regional fashion parade are his-n-hers pullovers in black and white panels for the “London Look”. I love the vintage coffee set and judging from the photo, so do the models. Maybe the sad model just needs some of their coffee.

It’s a good issue for men and boys: in addition to the black-and-white “London” pullover, there’s a thick, warm knitted “car coat” for men, paired with a boy’s cabled lumber-jacket in the wonderful centrefold photo. A father, a son, a car and a boat! Everything colour-coordinated in those manly shades of red and royal blue! Diagonal poses for everyone!

(Side note: these diagonal poses are very uncomfortable. Sometimes the photographer just holds the camera diagonally, but otherwise it twists your spine all out of shape. I would be a sad model too, if I had to do that all day.)

For “younger folk”, there’s a pretty short-sleeved knitted blouse for a schoolgirl, and yes, a “deerstalker” hunters’ coat and hat for a (presumed male) toddler. It gives me a “so much wrong” feeling. Also, won’t somebody get this kid some clothing for the lower half of his body?

There’s more to come in the homewares department, though Stitchcraft seems to get less and less creative with homeware design as the 60s go on. There are little rugs, either stitched or crocheted in rug wool, as well as an unusually-shaped half-circle rug in Florentine stitch to put in front of a bookshelf. The Florentine design can also be stitched on tapestry canvas for a tea cosy.

A similarly versatile flower design can be made in cross-stitch for a chair set of cushion and back-cover or in tapestry on a church “kneeler” hassock. There’s an embroidered mat set for your dressing table and an intriguing embroidered wall panel of different gourd-type vegetables on a black linen background.

Finally, Easter was in April in 1966 and there are some cute Easter-themed gifts and “novelties”: an Easter egg kitchen bag (to hold clothespins) in felt appliqué and embroidery, a “nursery nightcase” (not Easter themed, but advertised as a good Easter gift) in the shape of a bedtime bus (Side note: when did people stop storing their pajamas or nightgowns in a special bag during the day?) or a knitted lamb toy, reprinted from the March 1957 issue.

To round it all off, there’s a great bathing-suit ad from the Scotch Wool Shop and for the first time, a partner promotional offer from Patons and the Kelloggs cereal company — knitting patterns featured on the backs of All-Bran and Bran Buds packets. The natural laxative foods! These types of promotions became more common in the later 1960s and especially the 1970s. Finally, in our children’s comic, Eustace the elephant and Mark the mouse get invited to tea in a house that Eustace can’t fit into very well.

My project from this issue is already finished… is that cheating? I started it last week to get a head start and it went very quickly. It was the knitted lamb, and though it didn’t turn out quite perfect, I had fun making it and it brings joy to anyone who looks at it. I will post about it soon, along with another destash project from a later issue of Stitchcraft. Happy Spring!

February 1966: Overview

“This is the time to look ahead and start knitting for the first Spring days,” writes “editress” Patience Horne in the header notes to the February 1966 issue of Stitchcraft. I get that feeling in February too. Of course, it is still the middle of winter and one may be drowning in snow or battling freezing rain or waiting out the long grey darkness, but every once in a while (like today), the sun will come out and I can imagine that Spring will arrive at some point. The fashions in this month’s issue are appropriately cheerful and fun, with a special emphasis on “Junior Fashion” for small or school-age children.

The cover ensemble brings back houndstooth, which never really goes out of fashion in the 60s, but was last seen in this form in the earlier years of the decade. It’s a clever choice for a skirt, as the fabric is fairly firm, preventing all too much sagging in the back. The set can be complemented by a wonderful pair of matching-pattern knee socks. Or you can achieve the lastest stitch-pattern trend, namely “the Crochet look with Knitting”, with a sweater that is… well, crocheted, for the most part. Only the sleeves are knitted, in plain stocking-stitch; back and front are crocheted in a bobble-treble pattern. The silhouette for both outfits is long and unshaped, but not baggy: the sweaters have set-in sleeves and high necklines and the skirt sits just above the knee.

Fans of the knitted look with knitting can make a fluffy lace shell (what a terrible camera angle for the model’s nose), or a classic V-neck cardigan with bobble panels in larger sizes. With the exception of the angora-mohair shell, all are made in DK or slightly heavier wool — it is still winter, after all. Knitters looking ahead to the spring can make a fabulous lace-panel dress with matching cardigan in “Paris Pink” crepe 4-ply. The cardigan has a similar design to the large-size cardigan, just with a narrower bobble band on the fronts and a high-buttoning neck.

For men, there’s a “sailer with the traditional look” in guernsey style. Instructions are given for “a girl’s a size and a man’s size” (34-36 or 39-41 inch chest) for the partner-look. (Of course, when they say “girl”, they mean a grown woman who doesn’t mind being linguistically infantilised.) The guernsey is nice! There’s a jacket in thick “Capstan” wool for men, as well, which also gives a sort of sailor-y vibe. The interesting stitch pattern is made with twisted stitches set diagonally. Twisted stitches also feature in the men’s “Country Gloves” pattern, where I imagine the stitch pattern makes the gloves particularly warm and hard-wearing.

In addition to all that, this issue has some wonderful “Junior Fashion” children’s patterns. There’s a nice thick blazer for an 8-10 year old girl and a knitted shirt with knitted tie to “make a small boy feel very fashion conscious.” If you say so, Patience Horne! There’s a rare sewing pattern, too, for a simple pinafore dress. Best of all is the coat, leggings and hat set for a 3- or 4-year old. The white collar, cuffs and hat are knitted in the same wool as the rest — Shetland-mix “Fiona” — and then brushed with a teasle brush. Teasle or teasel brushes are used to felt and fluff knitted fabric and were often employed in home knitting at the time to give knitted blankets that furry “blanket” texture. Some earlier patterns in Stitchcraft say you should take the finished item in to the haberdashery store or send it away by post to get it professionally brushed; this one assumes that you can do the brushing yourself.

With all these great fashions, it’s no surprise that the homewares in this issue are a bit standard: embroidery for a tablecloth, tea-tray or cosy, embroidered dressing-table mats, or a runner for a Scandinavian-style long coffee table (in very 1960s colours of Tangerine, Coffee and Green), for example. Spring style shows itself best in the stitched rug in traditional floral design, or the birds-and-blossoms wall panel in cross-stitch.

In the Readers’ Pages, we have reached the conclusion of our delightfully silly story of “Two Brave Bunnies” searching the world for a real live rabbit. (For those who haven’t been keeping up: the brave bunnies are sentient sewn toys.) Not having found a real live rabbit anywhere in town, they make the sensible decision to search the countryside instead. Et voilà! They find a real live rabbit and invite him home to come live with them and their human family. A happy ending for everyone involved.

There are so many fabulous patterns in this issue that it’s hard to not spend the next few months making all of them. I love the houndstooth set on the cover and the lace dress with cardigan, the child’s coat, the knee-high socks, the twisted-stitch gloves… Thinking both aesthetically and pragmatically, my choice was the child’s coat and hat set. I have too many clothes for myself right now and don’t want to start a huge new project, and while there are always great fashions for adults in Stitchcraft, there aren’t always nice projects for children. And I happen to know someone with a daughter of the right age and size, who would like it. And since it is not huge, there is a good chance that it might get finished on time. Perfect!

January 1966: Overview

Happy New Year! It’s January 2024 in real time and January 1966 here at the blog. Get ready for shorter skirts (…finally. Stitchcraft is slow to catch up), horn-rimmed glasses, tweed bouclé and adventurous headwear. The theme of the January 1966 issue is “Colour for a Cold Spell”, with bright greens, redd and turquoise to carry everyone through the greyest month.

Our cover cardigan can be made long to wear as a coat as in the cover photo, or in fashionable hip-length. The trellis pattern is made by winding extra loops around the needle on the first row, then slipping this stitch on the next RS row to create a long loop stitch that is carried up via slip-stitches and knitted back in on row 7. The coat uses a whopping 28-33 ounces (ca. 750-900 g) of heavier-than-DK (modern worsted weight) “Flair”, so I would be wary about knitting this as it would presumably end up quite a bit longer than the 38-39 inches it should measure when finished. Love the pattern, though. I could imagine making the shorter cardigan in brown and embroidering it to look like flowers and plants climbing up a trellis.

Other women’s fashions include a turquoise pullover with both a vertical pattern panel and a horizontal stranded border. The matching hat foreshadows the weird and wild and fun and goofy hat fashions of the next couple of years to come. The trend for bold colour blocks is mirrored in the long-line boatneck pullover with its matching “helmet”-style cap. There’s a plain white pullover in slip-stitch rib and a very cute bedjacket — look at that come-hither smile!

Men’s fashions are oversized and conservative, in spite of the “New Look” advertised for this V-neck half-cardigan. The classic V-neck pullover with cable stripes can be knit in tweedy marled or smooth, plain DK wool. I like that the magazine includes photos of both versions, so that you can see how much of a difference the colour and style of wool can make.

“Junior Fashions” include a wonderful warm dressing-gown with knitted squirrels appliquéd onto the pockets and embroidered — so cute — as well as a winter going-out set of leggings, pullover and hat and an oversized cardigan-jacket. The jacket claims to be windproof, which seems an odd claim to make about something knitted in an all-over eyelet pattern. In any case, all the children’s fashions are colourful and fun, and we will start to see the influence on adult women’s fashion as the 60s get swingier. Older children — or adults with small hands — can get a pair of warm mittens knitted flat and sewn together at the side. The plaid-like pattern is made by embroidering the vertical stripes in chain-stitch onto the finished mittens.

There are lots of homeware projects in this issue, January being a good month to stay inside and do needlework. The stitched rug is warm and sturdy, made in a Florentine stitch pattern that never really went out of fashion. You can knit a doll’s outfit complete with underwear and shoes, crochet a “tangerine” tea cosy with green felt for leaves, or make a cross-stitch border for a cushion or waste-paper basket.

For advanced needleworkers, there are wall pictures of “needle etchings” (black-and-white pictures embroidered in stem-stitch to give the effect of a pen-and-ink drawing) of Sussex churches or colourful flower sprays, as well as a tablecloth in rare “shadow work”, where the thread carried on the back side deliberately shows through the filmy organdie backing fabric. (Personally, I dread the thought of the back side of my embroidery being visible, ever…). For expert crocheters, there’s a lovely lace doily with a linen centre.

On to our children’s comic! The two brave bunnies (both plush toys) are still in search of a real live rabbit. Not having found one at the carousel, cinema or department store, they try the seaside, because why not? They have fun at the beach and think they find a rabbit — alas, it is only an inflatable sea-water toy! Will they ever complete their quest?

I will leave you with the latest wonderful ad from the Scotch Wool Shop, which had just launched its own line of very pretty underwear, “Golden Charm”. Available in 49 lucky towns! I hope your town and your 2024 are equally lucky. My project for this month will be the embroidered mittens.

December 1965: Overview

Here it is — the 1965 “Christmas Number”! December at Stitchcraft is always a month of “quick” holiday trimmings and small gifts, mixed with warm winter clothing and party ideas.

Our cover model is wearing a cable-block pullover (with non-crossing cables) in bright red double-knitting weight wool and matching knee-high socks in a lacy rib pattern. The caption on the pattern page is “Fashion feels Young” — Stitchcraft is finally getting into the children’s-fashions-for-adult-women idea that influenced so much of mid-60s fashion. Note the short skirt on the cover model, along with the knee-high socks, the playful kerchief and the big straw hat accessory in the black and white photo. It’s not quite Twiggy or Mary Quant (spoiler: Stitchcraft was never that fashion-forward), but it’s starting to show their influence. “Young Fashion” fun is reflected in the matching cap and pullover set as well. Look at the enormous pom-pom on the hat, outdone only by the model’s fake eyelashes!

The other women’s fashions in this issue remain conservative: a warm tweed dress made in two parts sewn together at the waist (thus the obligatory belt), a cabled cardigan for larger sizes in thick, undyed “Capstan” wool, a lightweight wool jumper and swingy knee-length skirt in a “gay note” of blue or a “harlequin” pattern jumper in “bold” 1960s colours of white, gold and brown. I feel exactly the same way as the model in the colour photo when I finish a project and find that perfect gift on the same day.

Men can get a cabled pullover in a glorious shade of purple tweed and the reassurance that cables are manly (like our model’s eyelashes, which are almost as impressive as his colleague’s with the pom-pom hat). There’s a boatneck pullover in herringbone stitch as well, meant to be worn over a simple polo- ( aka turtle-)neck jumper, for which a pattern was given in the previous issue.

The manly-cable idea is continued on a lovely warm pullover for boys, and his younger sister can get a button-up cardigan in a frothy textured stitch pattern, made in synthetic-wool “Brilliante” for easy washing. Younger tots can enjoy warm ears with a chin-strap “helmet” hat that is guaranteed not to fall off or get lost.

The real focus of the issue is of course, Christmas preparations. Felt appliqué makes a big appearance this year, with place mats and name cards for the holiday table as well a winter-scene wall hanging. The appliqués are quite simple and designed to be used with scraps, and the instructions give ideas on alternate uses such as glueing the felt pieces onto paper for home-made Christmas cards. The place markers have a butterfly motif, making them appropriate for any time of year. Cutwork and embroidery fans can make a tablecloth with peonies, or a Christmas-tree-themed trolley cloth and napkins embroidered in simple chain-stitch. More religiously-minded readers can make a tapestry wall hanging of a Nativity scene (colour photo on inside back cover).

After dinner, it’s on to the gifts! The knitted tea cosy is supposed to represent a holly plant. The “workbag for a friend” is a fun way to use up leftover wool and I made one a couple of years ago. The “cushion for Granny” is a similar stash-buster. One would think it would be made in two squares either fron the center outwards or the edge inwards with raglan-type shaping, but no, you are supposed to make 4 identical triangle pieces for each side of the cushion and sew them together.

And let us not forget the other cushions: a simple cross-stitch number with a woodland design and a tough woven-tapestry chairback cushion in soumak and herringbone stitch. The colour scheme is brown with brown, with touches of orange and lime green for contrast. In the “just for fun” category, you can knit cosies for golf clubs.

Our two brave bunnies from the Readers Pages are still on their quest to find a real live rabbit. Thinking they might find one in a department store (why not), they get stuck on a moving staircase, try to eat a plastic apple, and find a stuffed rabbit who, unlike our co-protagonist Sale Price (also a stuffed rabbit), sadly cannot talk. Next month, they will try the seaside, which is not known for being home to very many rabbits, but I suppose a better chance than a department store, a movie theatre or a merry-go-round. Of course, around Christmas time, one of the surest places to find a real rabbit would be on the dinner table, ha ha. I guess that storyline might be considered inappropriate for a light-hearted children’s comic. At least our two toy rabbit protagonists aren’t in danger of being eaten.

Finally, there’s another wonderful advertisement from my favourite Stitchcraft-ad store, the Scotch Wool Shop. Here is a nice little article about a knitting book produced by the Fleming, Reid company, proprietors of the chain of shops. The ads always make me want to go out and buy things from the stores… which, sadly, no longer exist. These little gift ideas are marvellous.

That’s all for this issue — and this year! I don’t know what I will make from this issue, or if I will just write a post about the knitted workbag that I already made a while ago. I quite like the ribbed skirt, and could use one, but one look at the gigantic WIP pile discourages me from starting any long and boring project. Hopefully I’ll get a couple of those WIPs finished and can write about that for a 1965 / 2023 wrap-up. Until then, I leave you with this graphic from the December 1965 issue. Happy Holidays!

November 1965: Overview

Colour Radiance for Winter and Christmas Plans! At Stitchcraft, it’s generally either preparing-for-Christmas time or spring-summer holidays. This month, they countered the cold, grey days of November with bright, cheerful colours and easy homewares. Let the festive preparation begin.

The knitted sweater suit on the cover is made in an intriguing pattern stitch designed to give “the look of woven texture.” There’s a helpful close-up photo of the stitch pattern as well. Essentially, it’s made by making a wool-forward (yarn over) on the right-side row and then slipping that stitch over a garter-stitch base to make a horizontal “line”. The placement of the slipped stitch is staggered, to make a diagonal herringbone-type effect. Made in DK wool, I’m guessing the finished result is quite warm. The matching skirt is made in plain stocking-stitch. Note that the mini-skirt, or even anything-above-knee-length skirt, still hasn’t caught on with Stitchcraft’s more conservative readership.

Other women’s fashions include a bobbly-cabley “overpull” in undyed “Capstan” wool, made to be worn over a roll-neck knitted underblouse with or without sleeves. The underblouse keeps up the warm colour trend with the suggested colour of “Old Gold”. I love the model’s hairstyle!

There’s also a jumper for larger sizes with very ill-thought-out decorations going right over the bust, and a collared almost-cardigan with a deep placket and Peter Pan collar. The collared number is made in tweedy “Glenora”, one of the multicolour wools gaining popularity at the time. Men get a corollary set to the women’s “overpull” and “underblouse” with a slightly oversized bobbly-cabley cardigan and a 4-ply polo-neck in the same “Nylox” wool as the ladies’ underblouse. The “colour radiance” theme apparently does not extend to the men’s garments, being made in undyed Capstan and “Oystershell” off-white, respectively. The photo backgrounds colours are nicely chosen, though, to set off the diagonal poses and camera angles.

The photo of the girl’s twin set in the inside front cover photo also does a great job of harmonising the backdrop to the subject. Her set consists of a pullover with unbuttoned waistcoat in cheerful pink and blue. Her little brother or sister can go out in the pram or “toddling” in a warm set of hooded jacket and leggings. The child in the photo looks somewhat apprehensive, but the set looks quite snuggly.

And can we have a moment of appreciation for this “special gift” of a bedjacket? I love it! I would make it without the ribbon at the neck and wear it as a normal cardigan. The two-colour pattern is made by working and then dropping yo’s to make a “long” stitch, which is then carried up through the slip-stitch background. I am guessing it is quite spongy and squishy, and was also nice and warm in those unheated 1960s bedrooms. Love the hairstyle in the colour photo, too!

If the model on the left is looking a little suspicious, it’s probably because she was photo-bombed by Homer the Rabbit, star of our current children’s serial comic, “Two Brave Bunnies.” For the uninitiated: Homer (a home-made stuffed rabbit) and Sale Price (a store-bought stuffed rabbit) are on a quest to find a real live rabbit friend. So far, they have only met a merry-go-round rabbit, who assured them that he was not real, as he could carry children on his back. In this month’s episode, our two brave bunnies head to the Town, where they are eager to see “Miss Rosabelle Rabbit” on the cinema screen. Alas, she is only a film rabbit, so cannot communicate with our friends. No matter — they will persevere! Oh, right — and this month’s issue includes instructions on how to make your very own home-made Homer doll from felts.

Home-made Homer is one of this issue’s many small, fun “colour novelty” gift and decoration ideas, along with a felt Nativity panel mimicking stained glass, a couple of pot holders and a colourful ball to use as decoration or a baby’s toy. Embroidered gift ideas include a whimsical sewing apron and a cross-stitch calendar and chairset. I don’t really understand the calendar — it seems to be just a vertical wall panel that you attach the (tear-off?) small calendar onto. OK, I guess, but maybe not necessary?

You can also knit a stuffed panda bear, a snowman, or a garter-stitch blanket rug, or crochet a round disc to be adapted into either a girl’s beret or a round cushion. There’s a filet crochet table centerpiece and tapestry wall pictures of caravans or Bibury. Last but not least, there’s a counted-embroidery cushion-and-chairback set with a vivid purple flower design.

I don’t know about you, but I feel cosier already. My design for this month will be the bedjacket! The October 1965 cardigan blouse is almost finished, too, and I’ll update that post soon.

October 1965: Overview

Colour and Tweed for Autumn! This is a “bumper” issue full of many beautiful designs for adults, children, homewares and “novelties”, all with an autumn theme. My apologies for the slightly late post — I was traveling last week with no computer.

The cover photo is a “Chanel Style Suit” in Bracken Double Knitting tweed wool. 1965 was the heyday of Coco Chanel’s pioneer boxy, tweedy suit that was all the rage with celebrities and modern women. Her designs combined Scottish tweeds and multi-colour fabric patterns by Bernat Klein with her signature comfort, ease of movement and simple elegance to make a modern, essential wardrobe staple. Here is an excellent short introductory film about it (I’m sure readers of this blog will need no introduction; still, it’s great.) The knitted suit design in this issue of Stitchcraft is very true to the Chanel model, with its thick, tweedy wool, above-knee skirt and functional, square pockets in the jacket. There’s a short-sleeved knitted blouse in turquoise to match.

Other women’s garment designs include a brilliant red dress in Paton’s newest wool, Fiona; a “continental” pullover in a broken-cable design in regular Patons DK wool, a plain pullover with “new styling”, also in Fiona; and a fine-knit cardigan with crochet picot trim.

“Fiona” wool was a mix of Shetland wool and synthetic “Orlon”, made to combine the best qualities of both — warm, and lightweight like the wool, but easy-care and less scratchy. The “new styling” of the plain pullover means it is longer (23-24 inches) and looser-fitting than previous classic designs, and the raglan armholes are deeper, for an all-around casual fit. Colours are bright and snappy with yellows (“Maize”, “Celtic Gold” and “Inca Gold”) complementing the bright red of the dress. There’s a slipover for men as well, in bright “Peacock” shade and made in slightly thicker “Flair” — also a wool-synthetic mix. Cables of all sorts are popular, and the longer length can be seen in the Fiona advertisement as well as the garment photos.

The accessories are limited to one hat — but what a hat! The “tucked” pattern is made by inserting a “life-line” type extra thread every 5 rows and then knitting those stitches together with the current row. I love it, though the model has an unfortunately ridiculous expression on her face in the photo. No designs for babies this issue, but two wonderful and colourful sweaters for children with stranded hem and yoke accents.

In the embroidery and homewares department, we have the usual designs for cushions, chair-backs and chair-seats, plus a granny-square crochet pattern to use up scrap wool that, backed with woven fabric, can be used to make a workbag or cushion. Like the garment designs, colours are bright and bold, with reds and blues prevailing, along with black and white.

More advanced needleworkers can make a very pretty firescreen or a blackwork wall panel. Finally, there are embroidered cushions with flower designs — cornflower, corn not-flower-but-actual-corn, and red poppies. The loose, almost flowing style of the cushion designs looks ahead to later and even simpler patterns — complicated Jacobean work was on its way out. There’s a practical stitched rug in a geometric design as well.

The bizarre-bazaar “novelties” never fail to amuse and wonder, and this month’s issue gives us a knitted tea cosy (festooned with pom-poms) that looks like a giant orange and/or lemon, and a crazy-eyed “Pete Puppy” doll in sewn and embroidered felt fabric that can be used for storing sewing implements — just poke those spare pins right into his belly like a voodoo doll. The “Readers Pages” offer some reprints of popular designs from earlier issues: a doll’s clothing set from November 1940 and a crocheted pram cover from … when was it exactly? It doesn’t say in the instructions and couldn’t find it in my previous posts, but I know I have seen it in another issue — possibly pre-1960.

In the current comic (really, one of the best ones), homemade rabbit doll Homer (because he’s home-made, get it?) and his friend, the store-bought rabbit doll Sale Price (self-explanatory) go on a quest in search of a real, live rabbit. Here’s they find a rabbit on a merry-go-round, who explains to them (logically enough) that he cannot be a real rabbit, as he can take children for rides, which a real rabbit cannot. Pedagogical message for children: do not try to ride on a real rabbit! Alas, Homer and Sale price must look further, and will continue their adventures in next month’s issue.

I will leave you with this ad for the Scotch Wool Shop, purveyors of knitting wool, stockings, underwear, and fashionable clothing for women. Always keeping up with the times, the ad shows a crocheted dress in Mary Quant style, named “Troy” and perfectly photographed for the Swinging Sixties.

That’s all for now! I have so, so many unfinished projects, but cannot resist the temptation to make the fine-knit cardigan blouse with picot crochet trim. It will definitely not be finished on time, but as always, I will update project posts when progress has been made.

September 1965: Overview

Autumn is here, and the September 1965 issue of Stitchcraft is, as promised by its editress, a “bumper” issue with more colour photos (to offset the price increase to 2s. per single issue) and a new yarn from Stitchcraft’s patron wool company, Patons.

Called “Fiona”, it was DK-weight and made of 50% Shetland wool and 50% “Orlon” (one of the very first acrylic yarns). Shetland wool is beautifully warm and lightweight due to its being very lofty and “hairy”, and “Fiona” was marketed as combining these positive aspects with the easy-care, less scratchy and non-tangling qualities of synthetic yarn — a sort of “Shetland lite”, if you will. Real Shetland wool is excellent for traditional “Fair Isle” stranded colourwork patterns, since the hairs lock into each other in the stranding, but the “Fiona” designs in this issue employ smoother, textured stitch patterns. The cover cardigan-jacket has a bobbly lace pattern and the his-and-hers pullovers use a broken cable rib.

The other two designs for adults are made in standard 100% wools: a “young-looking sweater” with really, really unfortunately placed bobbles (directly along the bustline) in Patons Double Knitting or Crepe, and an Aran-patterned jacket in bulkier “Capstan”. An older brother might get this “Husky polo style” pullover in Patons DK and a fun reversed stocking-stitch pattern with more (and better placed) bobbles.

The trend for textured stitch patterns continues with garments for the younger set. The toddlers’ “walking-out set” of pullover, leggings and snug helmet-style cap (with more bobbles on the tie at the neck) is made in easy 2×2 ribbing in blue and white DK wool. Love the pre-Photoshop-era addition of a tree in the photo, to show you that he’s playing outside! His big brother gets a warm slipover in an easy zig-zag pattern, and tomboy sister, (with short hair and trousers) gets a set of cap and sweater in a fisherman’s rib pattern that is more complicated to do than it looks. You purl the RS rows and and on the WS rows, you *k1, purl into next st. but through loop of row below at the same time slipping st. above off left needle; rep from * to last st, k1. The vertical stripes are added later via Swiss darning aka duplicate stitch embroidery.

Above all, this is a bumper issue for homewares. There are multiple pages of easy projects for a “Sale of Work” stall at the church bazaar or what have you, including a “house” and “windmill”-themed apron, mat/cosy set and a “peg bag” for holding laundry pegs. Other quick novelties include a knitted scottie-dog toy and a cosy or cushion made out of odds and ends of wool.

More ambitious needle-workers can decorate an entire room from top to bottom with designs from this issue, starting with a needle-etched picture of a steam engine — a throwback to the Victorian nostalgia of the late 1950s and early 1960s — or a tapestry picture of the seaside village of Clovelly to hang on the wall.

For the furniture, there’s a beautiful “peasant” (their word, not mine) design for a cushion and chairback, made in embroidery wool on linen, and for the floor, a hand-made “Tartan” rug. It uses a latch-hook and the “Turkey knot” to make a soft, three-dimensional pile. Finally, church-goers can make a tapestry “kneeler” cushion in a pattern inspired by Gothic stonework.

And there’s a new children’s comic serial in the Readers Pages! This is a really cute and creative story about Homer the plush rabbit (so called because he was home-made) and Sale Price, the store-bought plush rabbit, who go out into the big wide world to try and find a real rabbit to befriend. Will they find one? Stay tuned! Oh, and I bought this issue on Ebay, so received a special… bonus? picture of an embroidered Christmas tree with no transfer or pattern instructions (and not from Stitchcraft.). If anyone can identify it, I will be very impressed!

My project from this issue will be the knitted cushion, by special request from someone who works on the computer a lot and would like a soft underlay to rest their wrists on.

August 1965: Overview

It’s “late summer” over at Stitchcraft magazine, and this month’s designs are still summery-looking, but warmer, with an eye towards the coming autumn and cooler weather. Also, production costs were apparently increasing, so readers were informed that as of September 1965, the price for individual issues would be raised to 2s. 0d. The increase to the current subscription rate of £1 8 s 0d for one year or 14s for six months, post-free to any part of the world (!) was scheduled to be explained in the September issue, with existing subscriptions running out at the old price.

How much was that in today’s currency? I cannot vouch for the accuracy or lack thereof from either of these sources, but the currency converter website of the National Archives tells me that a year’s subscription at the old price would be the equivalent of £24.67 in 2017 (the latest year the website calculates to), so quite inexpensive for 12 issues. A six-month subscription would cost £12.33, so pretty much exactly half (if you round up a penny, since a six-month subscription certainly wouldn’t have cost less than half of the yearly price.) A single issue at the new price would cost £1.76. According to this inflation calculator (again, take all of this with a grain of salt as such converters are always approximate), in 2023 prices that would come out to £2.21 for a single issue at the new price and £31.01 for a year’s subscription at the old price — again, quite reasonable, if the converters are at all accurate. Stitchcraft was published by Condé Nast as an independent publication, but of course was a co-product of Patons / Patons and Baldwins / at this point the company had been merged with J&P. Coats / yarn company, so served as an advertisement for their wools. As was common for knitting magazines at the time as well as today.

But I digress! The cover photo shows Aran sweaters in the partner-look for him and her, made in slightly-heavier-than-DK “Flair”, a wool-synthetic mix. Other fashions for women strike a balance between “cool to look at… warmer to wear” and include a two-piece DK dress with a short-sleeved top or a DK sweater in “ice-cream” colours of bubblegum pink and white. For the coming autumn days days, there’s a DK cardigan made warmer and heavier by the use of trellis-stitch panels on the front and back, or for a lighter touch, there’s a 4-ply jumper with diagonal stripes, knit diagonally — basically two rectangles for front and back, then picking up stitches for the vertically-knit yoke, and separate sleeves. The colour scheme is definitely still summery, with the striped jumper in navy blue and white and the trellis cardigan in light “Beau Blue”.

For men, in addition to the Aran-pattern sweater on the front cover, there’s a nice 4-ply slipover, made warmer by the use of a sort of broken garter stitch pattern: every 4th stitch is knit through the back on the RS rows and purled on the WS rows to create a pseudo-ribbing effect.

This month, we once again have children’s fashions for all ages. There’s a dolman cardigan for girls up to a 29 inch chest and a cute unisex “play shirt” up to 28 inch chest, all in sunny colours of gold, white, “Gay Turquoise” and “Sunglint”. Baby’s turquoise “extra jacket” is worked in one piece up to the armholes in a stitch pattern that looks a bit like the one for the man’s slipover, but is more complicated:

1st row: WS facing, knit.
2nd row: *k3, k3 tog and leave on needle, then k. 1st st again, then k tog the other 2 sts and slip off needle, k 3*, rpt to last 3 sts, k3 tog and leave on needle, k 1st st again, then k tog the other 2 sts and slip off needle
3rd row: purl
4th row: knit
5th row: knit
6th row: *k3 tog and leave on needle, then k. 1st st again, then k tog the other 2 sts and slip off needle, k 3*, rpt to last 3 sts, k3 tog and leave on needle, k 1st st again, then k tog the other 2 sts and slip off needle
7th row: purl
8th row: knit

I’ve never seen this stitch before — does anyone know it, or know if it has a name?

In the homewares department, we have the usual selection of versatile designs for different items and uses. The cross-stitch ivy border, for example, is suggested for “cushions, table mats and chair-backs, or as a border for curtains” , the wavy “design from Greece” is featured on a chair-back, cushion and rug, and the Swedish-inspired design “for bold counted embroidery” works on table mats as well as cushions. Even the tapestry hydrangeas can be used as a wall picture or fire-screen.

It wouldn’t be a proper issue of Stitchcraft without bizarre-bazaar ideas, though these are not nearly as weird as some of the items that we’ve seen in the past. The theme is clearly “kitchen” this time, with embroidered or appliquéd aprons and pot holders. Sometimes the chef looks happy with the food, and sometimes he definitely has l’air déçu!

The back pages feature a “special request” tatted doily edging, a great “leg lively” ad for nylon stockings from the Scotch Wool Shop. In the final chapter of the current children’s serial comic, “The Lost Stitch”, Jill and her brother James fall back through the magic portal that appeared in a dropped stitch, to find themselves back at home with the stitch magically mended. May all your dropped stitches heal this way!

There isn’t a specific design that I like enough to make from this issue, so my August project will be another non-Stitchcraft “Blast From the Past.” Happy late summer and if it’s still too hot where you live, enjoy that ad for Lightning zips that promises to keep you cool as a cucumber in your summer cottons.

July 1965: Overview

July is still “holiday” season over at Stitchcraft, but this summery issue is already looking towards cooler autumn temperatures and the return to post-holiday life. For women’s fashions, this means a “revival of the more feminine line” (as if there were ever a fashion for “the masculine line” in 1960s women’s fashions.) I guess they mean a slightly closer-fitting silhouette, or a little more shaping of upper-body garments between hem and bust. At the same time, “quick and easy yarns” or “easy-to-wear loose front styling” jackets are still in fashion, emphasising comfort and wearability.

Our cover model sports a white blouse made in 4-ply “Cameo Crepe” wool and twisted stocking-stitch for a little more texture. The navy blue accents on shoulder and pocket match the knitted skirt, which is just below-knee length. That may seem surprising if you associate mid-1960s fashions with miniskirts, but it took a while for the ideas of cutting-edge designers like Mary Quant or André Courrèges to trickle down to the general public, and hand-knitting magazines, even the more fashionable / aspirational ones, were oriented towards designs that “regular people” could wear in everyday life . The dresses and skirts in Vogue Knitting’s 1965 Spring/Summer issue, for example, all fall between just-barely-above and solidly-below knee-length — and Stitchcraft was a more conservative magazine than Vogue Knitting. We won’t be seeing miniskirts here for a while yet.

The upper-body fashions for women show, if not an extreme “revival of the feminine line”, a definite attention to cute colour and pattern details, particularly in the use of twisted stitches or ribbing variants. The pink raglan pullover on the inside front cover combines a sort of twisted rib on the sides with a “v” pattern, also made by twisting stitches, up the front and back midline and on the sleeves, and tops ot off with a black necktie bow. Nice touch to put it on a red-haired model! The combination of colour detail and ribbing variant (here: stranded panel and narrow slip-stitch rib) is also used on the warm blue-and-white cardigan. The “knitting that looks like crochet” trend continues in a short-sleeved blouse for larger sizes in 4-ply wool and a textured-lace pattern.

The men’s fashions use a predictably less dainty, but no less interesting use of colour and pattern: there’s a loose.fitting, sideways-knit and vertically-striped dolman-sleeve shirt for beach wear in “father and son” sizes for adults and children (though the “adult” model in the photo looks hardly older than a teenager himself) and a slipover in an Aran-style pattern of cables, ridges and zig-zags.

The kids’ designs utilise the same fashion features as the adults: the boys’ striped shirt is the exact same pattern as “Father’s”, and there’s a zip-neck pullover for girls with a stranded border reminiscent of the panel in the womens’ jacket. For younger girls, there’s a quick and easy, slightly striped pullover whose pattern details are embroidered on after knitting. Nautical white and blue, pretty pink and sunny yellow make up the summer colour palette.

There’s a good selection of easy homeware and embroidery projects: appliquéd garden cushions in “hardwearing hessian” fabric, single flowers cross-stitched on place mats “for an outdoor supper party”, embroidered “needle etchtings” of village scenes (Godshill and Shanklin Old Village on the Isle of Wight), or an easy stitched rug.

The Danish-design tapestry cushions look more complicated than they are, but are also more complicated than the usual tapestry cushions. Fans of finer work in cotton can make doilies or a traycloth, or pretty trims for bed pillows.

The ads are quite usual: Singer sewing machines, Patons yarns, and a swirly nightgown and negligée from the Scotch Wool Shop. Not to forget: the Turmix knitting machine, Stitchcraft binding cases to store a year’s worth of magazines, and order houses for wools, fabric remnants, etc. The children’s comic follows the adventures of Jill and James searching for a lost stitch and encountering interesting characters such as Spinning Jenny, who shows them how a spinning machine works.

That’s all for this issue! My project will be the appliquéd flower cushion.

June 1965: Overview

“Knit for High Summer”! The June 1965 issue of Stitchcraft “covers practically everything the family needs in the way of holiday knits”, i.e. sporty separates, cardigans to be worn as outerwear, and lots of warm, bulky sweaters for that unpredictable British summer weather. Our cover model sports a loose, unshaped, fine-knit blouse in 4-ply “Nylox” yarn, a combination of wool and nylon not unlike many sock yarns popular today. The matching skirt is below-knee length — it will take a little while for the miniskirt to reach high fashion and longer for it to be popular in a more conservative magazine like Stitchcraft.

The “crochet look” is already quite popular at this time, though. Prior to the 1960s, crochet was more often used to make doilies and fancy lace borders in fine thread, or quick and bulky items like hot pads, teapot cosies and mittens. The mid-1960s saw a transition to blouses, suits and other garments, and this issue features a lightweight blouse in an easy shell patter, worn by a model who looks uncannily like the young Barbra Streisand. Those who prefer knitted summer tops can make a little cap-sleeve blouse in fine bouclet wool, unfashionably short in this year of long, unshaped tops. The fine-knit items are rounded out by a striped cardigan in a mixture of plain wool and fluffy “Fuzzy-Wuzzy” angora blend yarn.

It wouldn’t be a proper summer without some cold wind and rain, so be prepared in your warm “bubbly stitch” cardigan made in bulky, but (comparatively) lightweight “Ariel” wool. The photo is so very 1960s! Diagonal camera angle, tilted head, high-contrast lighting for dramatic shadows, unsmiling but alluring facial expression — it’s all there. There are similar, but not quite matching, his-and-hers DK pullovers in ultramarine blue and white. The colour detailing is embroidered on at the end in cross-stitch. The man of the family can also get a bright blue waistcoat in a mock-cable and welt pattern. You know the model is on holiday, since he’s wearing his casual button-up shirt and tie.

“Youngsters” can stay warm (on their upper bodies at least) as well, in a Norwegian-style round-yoke pullover with a simple stranded pattern at hem and yoke or a “tough Lumber-style” zippered cardigan “for hard play”. You can tell the little boy in the picture is playing hard, since he’s wearing his playtime button-up shirt and tie! The girl model gets to wear shorts for once, instead of a tiny miniskirt that barely covers anything.

There are plenty of easy projects to take along on your holiday, or to prepare for it, or even serve as a memento of it — like the embroidered place mats with maps of France, Italy, Spain and Portugal, or Switzerland and their associated stereotypical motifs. Those who prefer to plan ahead can sew a simple folding bag lined with towelling for a bathing kit, or a cross-stitch hold-all for beach take-along items, as well as a little sundress-smock for a toddler.

A tablecloth is probably too big to pack in the beach bag, but the easy cross-stitch pattern is given for a cushion or chair-back as well. Little embroidered animal pictures in cross-stitch “for the nursery” are also quick and easy to pack along on holiday.

The highlights of the homeware designs in this issue are definitely meant to be made at home, particularly the embroidered “Chinese Garden” wall panel. I cannot vouch for any kind of cultural or historical authenticity in the design, but it is very pretty and delicate in shades of blue, green, lilac and orange. I’m glad they included a colour photo.

Last but not least, I leave you with this amazing “Practical Set for your bathroom” consisting of a bath mat and “Pedestal Set” made in cross-stitch with rug wool on mesh canvas. With penguins and fish! If you can’t get to Antarctica for your next holiday, the penguins can come to you.

My project this month will be a destash adaptation of the “Fuzzy-Wuzzy” cardigan. Happy holidays, or whatever else June brings for you.

May 1965: Overview

Spring and summer are always time for “holidays” at Stitchcraft, with a mixture of light, pretty blouses, warmer, casual jackets and sweaters for that holiday on a North Sea beach, and easy embroidery to pack in your luggage and work on while lounging in your deck chair. Our cover photo shows matching his-and-hers sweaters made in DK wool, and an intriguing photo begging to be captioned. “It’s for you!” “Not interested” “But it’s my mother!” “I am definitely not home” — Anyway, the sweaters are nice and good to “wear by the sea”, as it says in the caption. They are knitted in Patons “Flair”, a combination of Shetland wool and Courtelle nylon in a slightly thicker DK weight.

The remaining adult knitted “holiday” garments are pretty and practical: a men’s tweedy “country” cardigan, a heavy slip-on jacket for women in a sort of bubble pattern made by purling stitches together, wrapping them and purling them again on one row out of a 4-row rib pattern, a lightweight lacy top with a graded colour scheme, or a slipover in mohair blend “Fuzzy-Wuzzy” wool. There’s also a fashionable dress in bramble-stitch, made to look like crochet, but knitted. Colours are soft, cool pastels — white, natural, sky blue or light pink.

The “crochet look” in knitting, as exemplified by the dress, is the latest trend. If you can’t crochet, you can knit to make it look like crochet, and if you can, you can make a matching mother-daughter blouse set in wool-nylon blend “Nylox” yarn. There’s also a full-page “Learn to Crochet” illustration with clear and helpful instructions for the basic stitches. I keep it around for easy reference.

There’s nothing for very young babies in this issue, but toddlers can get a nice beach set of knitted pants and short-sleeved cardigan. The cable panels supposedly make it hold its shape, but it’s not intended to go in the water. The toddler’s tween sister gets a sunny and colourful “young style” blazer in DK wool and a “continental” design. I still don’t know what is meant by “continental” design — obviously referring to the European continent as opposed to the British isles, but I wouldn’t be able to say what design elements make something “continental.” If you know, do tell.

The summer housewares are fairly standard, with a floral cross-stitch design for either a cushion or tablecloth, and a knitting workbag featuring dancing “gay Tyrolean” figures. I know some gay Tyrolean dancers, but that’s a different story. There’s also an embroidery pattern for an easy tablecloth or “dressing-table set”.

And then there are some genuinely interesting place mats with figures of birds and fish adapted from Peruvian work. The “wingless bird” in the close-up photo looks like a rhea and the black and white one probably a guan. I don’t know about the third bird in the first photo, the squished-up one with a long neck, how about you?

There’s also a rug, for not taking along on holiday, as well as a fancy knitted lace cloth “for a summer table” (It is knitted in cotton and therefore wash- and bleachable, but still, I would be afraid to spill something on it.) And of course, cosies! Both egg- and teapot-, to knit from scraps of tapestry wool held double (not knitting wool as one would expect).

That’s all for this issue. I’m going to close with this wonderful Scotch Wool Shop advertisement for Bri-Nylon swimsuits. I would wear either of these in a heartbeat. Enjoy the Spring!

March 1965: Overview

It’s springtime! And the March 1965 issue of Stitchcraft is celebrating it with a bright, cheerful issue full of fun designs, great photography and very mid-60s hairdos. Our wonderful couple in the cover photo has just returned from the farmers’ and or flea market, proud of their purchases and sporting two of this season’s trends: textured stitch patterns and crochet.

“The interest in Crochet continues” writes “editress” Patience Horne in the first-page notes, reminding readers that crochet is not nearly as difficult as some readers think, as it is “all founded on the simple chain stitch” and one “only requires a little practice and patience” to make a simple item. The cover dress is basically unshaped, and made in a relatively simple cluster stitch with a dashing fringed hem and neckline. Beginning crocheters can start with an easy bathroom mat in rug wool, or a crocheted chicken toy for a toddler.

Men’s fashions, like the cardigan on the cover, have a loose, casual fit and interesting stitch patterns, like the traveling stitches on the cover cardigan or the easy diamond-pattern stitch on the V-neck pullover. The traveling stitches are basically very narrow cables, except the cables never cross, and the diamond pattern is made entirely of knit and purl stitches. Colours are either warm and bold, like the red cardigan, or 1960s natural, like the “Golden Beige” pullover, and buttons are big and round.

The knitted women’s garments show a similar interest in flat, textured stitches, warm or neutral colours and bold buttons and trim. The skirt suit on the inside front cover integrates all three trends. There’s a similarly patterned, buttoned and collared beige-and-orange cardigan in DK weight Brilliante wool/nylon mix, a red belted pullover with a polo (turtle) neck and a more subtle skirt suit with choice of pullover or cardigan and pleated skirt, made in finder Bouclet wool. In all the photos, the warm colours of the outfit — green, red, or gold-beige — are intensified by the warm-toned photo background, and the bolder designs feature models with impressive bouffant hairdos. All of the garments are long, loose and unshaped, with the tops reaching to the hips and a skirt length of 25 to 26 inches.

There are some great designs for school-age children in this issue, with a “continental” cardigan-blazer in “Riviera Blue” for girls and a unisex jersey with a stranded yoke design. Here too, we see the large collar and bold, round buttons on the cardigan, and warm colour palette and textured stitch pattern on the pullover. For babies, there’s a pram blanket with (purchased separately, not home-made) bunny motifs.

The homeware items are mostly practical and versatile. In addition to the crocheted bathmat, there’s a stitched rug/mat “for the bedroom” in an elegant arrowhead stitch and some cushion and/or stool-top designs in counted cross-stitch. A floral embroidery pattern can be adapted to make a door panel, frame a cushion, or decorate the edge of a pillowcase.

I wrote “mostly” practical items, but there is one unusual exception: these “Brass Rubbings to work with your needle.” They are two fairly large (7×16 inches) wall panels with icons of medieval people in the style of “brass rubbings“, which are made by laying heavy paper over one of those brass plaques often seen in medieval churches . The designs were inspired by “the interest in Church embroidery” per the description of the project, but I don’t know if the figures are meant to be specific, recognisable historical people or just representative of a typical medieval brass burial plaque. (Do any of you recognise them? It’s interesting that both of them are portrayed with small dogs at their feet, which seems like it should be a clue.)

Last but not least, Easter is coming soon (well, not that soon — Easter 1965 was on April 19th, which is actually fairly late) and it’s time to get started on those Easter gifts and novelties! Continuing the chicken (and egg) theme from the crocheted toddlers’ toy, there’s a stuffed felt “egg nest” in the form of a chicken with tiny accompanying chicks, and a gloriously huge knitted “Humpty Dumpty”, guaranteed not to break into pieces should he fall off a wall, and featured in colour in the inside back cover photo along with the child’s stranded-yoke pullover.

As much as I love this issue for its general aesthetic and fun, happy vibe, there isn’t a project in it that really grabs me. The mid-60s fashion for long, loose, unshaped upper-body garments is a terrible look for me and the homewares are generally not spectacular. I would love to make either of the children’s garments and am asking around if any friends with kids that age would like me to knit one, but I haven’t had any takers yet. If any of you are interested in a custom order, let me know! Otherwise, I’ll probably embroider the flower design onto something practical, like a little bag or a tablet/iPad cosy.

February 1965: Overview

Whew! January is over. I don’t know about all of you, but it’s my least favourite month. The holidays are a dim memory, it’s still cold and dark and damp in my northern climate, and spring feels far away.

Stitchcraft seems to know how I feel, since this month’s issue features outdoor photos in pretty, colourful outfits and interesting settings “to get away from the last of that tired January feeling.” There are lots of warm indoor-outdoor garments, like the boxy jacket on the cover with cable details on the pockets and collar. It matches a short-sleeved cable jumper to make a casual twin-set or to be worn separately, and both are showcased in the centrefold photo montage with another “country cardigan” in a twisted-stitch wheat-ear pattern. The cover cardigan and cabled jumper are both made in warm, normal Patons DK, the country cardigan in slightly thicker Flair. All have the typical mid-60s shape: long, loose-fitting and unshaped, and are made in natural, outdoorsy colours of off-white, gold and caramel brown.

The other adult women’s garments include an intriguing sweater in a “crunchy bramble knit … to look like crochet.” The bramble pattern is made by making a k1, yo, k1 all into the same stitch, then purling these 3 stitches together on the next row. It’s presumably very warm, uses a lot of wool and while it doesn’t exactly look like crochet, it has the same sort of nubbly texture you could get with crochet stitches. There’s no colour photo, but in white, “Golden Willow” and “Oakapple”, it fits nicely into the outdoor-casual colour scheme. For something a little less casual and a little more colourful, there’s a tweedy bright-purple cardigan suit in heavy-weight “Glenora”and two more elegant, fine-knit designs: a smooth, collared turquoise jumper with front-panel detail in Cameo Crepe and a bouclet suit with a dramatic blue-and-white colour-block design.

The men’s garments are casual and outdoorsy in form, but colourful and creative in design: a casual (though he’s probably secretly wearing a tie under it…) boat-neck pullover in a two-colour pattern made by knitting the RS rows in “Cool Lime” green and working the WS rows as k1, p1 in “Tahiti” brown. Even more impressive is the pullover in a remarkable “woven texture from Vienna”, featured in colour in the back cover. This “new Continental stitch” is made by combining normal two-colour stranded knitting with “long” stitches (wool wrapped three times around the needle) which are then slipped for a few rows before being knitted back in. It’s ingenious and produces a very striking effect without being very difficult to knit. Here too, natural colours of brown, beige and green are trending.

My photos aren’t crooked, by the way. It seems to be a trend to have the models stand at an angle, or have the models stand straight and take the photo at an angle, to get that dynamic diagonal effect.

And speaking of dynamic, check out this fantastic “play sweater for the space age”! It’s got a “cheerful mechanical man” motif on the front and is matched with a “jolly robot” hat (same motif, but with bobbles on top that make the robot look like a cheerleader.) This is as 1965 as it gets! The other children’s fashions are practical and easy: a back-buttoning “pinafore” and matching jumper for little girls (could she please wear more clothing on her lower body, though?) and a broken-rib button-up for school-age tots made with “Brilliante” synthetic-blend yarn.

The embroidery and housewares department is less exciting, with a few standard items in different craft categories. There’s a cross-stitch “ABC” rug for the children’s playroom, an apron and traycloth set in huckaback embroidery and easy counted- and cross-stitch items for the table.The inside back cover has a nice colour photo of a cross-stitch picture panel of the church spire in Chester.

There are so many fantastic designs in this issue, and yet I don’t have a practical use for any of them. Big, casual sweaters with no shaping are not really my style (even in that fabulous Viennese stitch) and I can’t think of any children I know of the right age and size who would want a space-age, robot-motif sweater (more’s the pity). If anyone wants to commission me to make one for their kid (to fit 28/30/32 inch chest), send me an email! Otherwise, I’ll use this month to finish a long-term WIP from a slightly later issue of Stitchcraft.

December 1964: Overview

Stitchcraft sends good wishes for Christmas 1964! Yes, another year has gone by in a flash. Luckily, this issue is full of ideas for quick last-minute gifts, as well as warm clothing for the family.

The bulky partner-look cardigans on the front cover are timeless and modern – apart from the 1960s styling and lighting, and the man wearing a shirt and tie, this could be a modern advertisement for ready-to-wear knitwear. The jackets are made in „Big Ben“ bulky wool at 3.5 stitches to the inch, so they might just be finished in time for a winter cold snap. Similarly bulky, but lighter-weight „Ariel“ wool is featured in a vertically-striped („adds to the slimming look“) cardigan for somewhat larger women‘s sizes up to 42 inch bust, and there‘s a warm cabled „Cardigan for Driving“ for him with practical pockets and a big collar.

The women‘s fashions are more sleek, with classic straight lines and unfussy crew necks. A simple ridge-welt pattern can be knit from the bottom up with dolman sleeves for a horizontal stripe, or as a cardigan knitted sideways edge-to-edge for a vertical stripe effect. There‘s also a classic jumper with a twisted-stitch rib panel and a lacy sheath dress for parties.

„Juniors and Tots“ will stay warm in a fun stranded half-cardigan (zip opening from neck to waist – this is called a „Troya“ style where I live but Stitchcraft just calls it a jersey) with matching cap. Therre‘s another cap with cables running around horizontally, as well. „Tots“ from ages 1-4 get a sewn pinafore romper with a cross-stitch squirrel motif or a knitted tunic to wear over a jumper and tights (thank goodness, our child model can have warm legs for once.) Colours are warm and earthy — orange, brown and „Inca Gold“ for the adult and children’s garments and emerald green for the toddler‘s tunic.

The most important, and sometimes most entertaining, part of the December issue is the gifts, of course, and this one is full of „Last minute ideas“ — you can allegedly „make them all in an evening or two.“ Well, evenings are longer in the winter… There‘s a startled- looking owl to sew from felt pieces, and felt table mars with appliquéd butterflies. Felt is used for the draught-stopping caterpillar snake (with pipe cleaner feelers) as well, and cotton embroidered baby bibs shaped like a kitten and bunny rabbit complete the craft menagerie.

Other quick gifts include a knitted ball for a baby, a knitted and a tapestry tea cosy, and a knitted cushion — all good ways to use up scraps of wool. The „Ping the Peke“ stuffed dog looks a bit more time-consuming, and it’s probably difficult to achieve a really professional look with it.

Experienced embroideresses who have efficiently provided all of their Christmas gifts already and are not scrambling to get last-minute gifts finished can make a beautiful and very Christmas-y blue and green cross-stitch tablecloth based on a Rumanian motif. (For once, they didn‘t call a design from Eastern Europe „peasant“ embroidery! Progress.) Those looking for a simpler project can make a pretty dressing table set with flower motifs, or for the whimsically minded, there‘s a cross-stitch cushion „gift for a motorist“ with a picture of a prototype automobile on it.

The Readers Pages are full of ideas of things to buy (Stitchcraft subscriptions et. al.) plus an entire knitting pattern for a child‘s hoodie (2nd time reprint from 1954 — this must have been a very popular pattern) and instructions for an easy appliquéd spectacle case that a child could make „for Granny.“

My project will be the classic jumper with the twisted-stitch panel, in the same fun orange colour as the photo. Happy Holidays!

November 1964: Overview

“Winter Fashions and Christmas Plans” is the theme of Stitchcraft‘s November 1964 issue, with practical clothing for the family as well as gift ideas and a couple of glamorous items for parties.

You will be “set for winter” in the cardigan on the cover, knitted in bulky “Big Ben” wool at 3 1/2 stitches to the inch, with all-over mock-cables, a warm collar and practical pockets. The mock-cable pattern involves “losing” a stitch in the 3rd row with a sl1-k2-psso, then getting it back with a yo on row 4, making a “bar” and then a little hole for the mock-cable effect. There’s a handy close-up photo of the stitch pattern, so you can make sure you did it right.

The caption continues the use of a bit of word-play on the word “set”, which we saw in the October 1964 issue. There, the theme was “set to flatter”, whereby some of the items were part of an actual set, and some weren’t. Some of the other garments in the November issue really are a set, in that sense: this waistcoat suit in glowing fuchsia, for example. Rounding out the everyday women’s garments are a plain 4-ply jumper, a bright colour-motif sweater and a comfortable tweed jacket for larger sizes. I love that brooch on the jumper — it looks like Star Trek insignia.

The trend for textured patterns, big collars, zig-zag designs and bold colours continues with the men’s garments: he too will be “set for winter” in a textured pullover for larger sizes or a sport-weight “sweater-shirt” (they didn’t use the word “henley” at the time) that utilises many fashionable features. You get a glimpse of the women’s colour-motif sweater in the back cover photo, as well.

In the “Teens and Babies” department, there’s a wonderful winter “wind-cheater outfit” set (actually a set, this time) of sweater, leggings and hat, as well as a thick, warm jersey for a young girl (our model is quite possibly not a teenager yet, but the pattern is in three sizes up to 32 inch chest to fit older girls as well), and a continuation of the baby set (also an actual set) that was started a few issues ago with matinee coat, dress, etc.: this last instalment is a lacy one-size-fits-all hooded cape to go over all the other garments. I love the photo of the girl standing on the dock next to her boat, looking like a proud sailor! Last month’s issue, if we remember, touted “the Feminine Look”, meaning girls had to look pretty and not really do very much, so it’s nice to see our young sailor looking active and happy in her autumn sport set. The diagonally-striped hem and cuffs are knitted separately and sewn on later.

The non-Christmas-themed housewares continue the zig-zag / geometric trend with a crocheted rug, diamond-pattern cushion and wacky zig-zag chairback and cushion set (yay, another set).

There are tapestry and “needle etching” embroidered pictures that draw inspiration from Shakespeare’s family: “Anne Hathaway’s cottage” (Shakespeare’s wife, not the modern actress…) and “Mary Arden’s House” (Shakespeare’s mother, not Lady Arden of Heswall.)

But finally… it’s time for the pre-Christmas decorations! The wacky “novelties” and bizarre-bazaar items! I know you have been waiting for this and I promise you will not be disappointed. You may, however be scared out of your wits, if you happen to have a clown phobia, in which case I caution you to skip over the next few photos.

Starting with the melancholic stuffed animals, you can knit a “friendly” Jumbo the elephant, who seems to be rolling his eyes at the happy child who just pulled him out of their Christmas stocking, or a sad “bunny with a twinkle”. The table decorations are quite cute and easy to make: felt place-mats, napkin-holders and an Advent wall panel with wintery and Christmas-y appliqué motifs.

But that clown! The “Musical clown for a tot”! What in the world is going on with that clown? Even the bunny is giving it the side-eye. The construction is actually pretty interesting and a fun way to use up fabric scraps: you cut 4-inch diameter circles of fabric, gather them up with a gathering thread to make little poufs and then sew them on top of each other to make the arms, legs and body. Then all you need to do is sew and stuff a pointy head and cap and embroider a terrifying face onto it. Don’t worry, it has bells instead of hands and feet, so you can hear it coming.

EDIT November 12, 2022: I was browsing around on UK Ebay and someone is selling an FO of this clown! Unbelievable! I am not going to buy it but maybe one of you will…

To clear your mind of those images, here is a lovely lacy party top and fluffy “luxury stole” knitted with Lurex for holiday party glamour. The top can be lined with gold lamé for extra sparkle.

Rounding out this bumper issue are the “Readers Pages”, featuring Stitchcraft and Patons-inspred gift ideas (a yearly subscription, binding cases for past issues, knitting patterns…) and a fun way to use up wool scraps: a coat hanger cover to keep delicate items from creasing or stretching at the shoulders. The ads use babies to sell Lux soap flakes and Patons wool.

The only project that really called to me from this issue was (laugh if you want) the coat hanger cover, which could make a cute little gift for a friend or be useful in my own closet, as well as being quick and easy and a way to use up some of those mystery scraps in the stash drawer. The October 1964 dress is almost finished, so I’ll update that post soon as well.