January Excursion: Clarel

This month’s project (finished just on time!) is somewhat different from usual, as it is neither from Stitchcraft, nor from the 1960s. It’s a sleek little knitted blouse from 1937, from a pattern originally published by the Spool Cotton Company and now available on the wonderful Free Vintage Knitting website.

Unlike Stitchcraft, which I have been collecting in paper form for some time now, this was my first acquaintance with the Spool Cotton Company, and I have to admit that I hadn’t heard of it before. A Wikipedia search turned up the Clark Athletic Association, an American soccer team from New Jersey that was sponsored by the Clark Mile End Spool Cotton Company. I don’t know if this was the same Spool Cotton Company that published the pattern, but I suspect it could be. In any case, the Clark name and company are of course well known in the knitting/crochet world, having existed for centuries in various forms and mergers (Clark Thread Company –> Coats and Clark –> Coats Patons, which in a roundabout way even leads us back to Stitchcraft…).

From what I can see in the Ravelry database, Spool Cotton Company patterns were primarily for accessories and homewares crocheted in cotton (as one might expect with a brand named “cotton”). The leaflet which contained “Clarel” was entitled “New Knitted Fashions”, with coats, dresses and suits as well as knitted blouses, and was inspired by British fashion of the time (though “fun to knit because of their easy-to-follow American instructions”.) Apparently they were written to be used with Red Heart yarn.

If anyone knows more about this company or publication, or if my guesswork in the last two paragraphs was incorrect, please let me know!

“Clarel” is written for fingering-weight wool at 7 stitches to the inch, and I had some lovely (why oh why was it discontinued?) Lana Grossa Slow Wool Lino on hand, which was perfect for it. The 15% linen makes a very smooth yarn that hold cables well, but the overall texture is quite soft and stretchy.

As most patterns of this era, there is only one size given, for 34 inch bust. I calculated out a somewhat larger size using a percentage multiplier (no. of sts x 1.05) and just added the extra stitches onto the reverse stocking-stitch base that extends on the sides. I also added 2 patterns to the length and 2 patterns to the sleeve length.

I particularly love the little design details of this pattern: the mini-rib lines (just ktbl on a reverse st st background) dividing the cables, the funny tabs at the neck and the double buttons (attached together with a crochet chain.) I could make the chains a little shorter to make the placket line up straight.

All in all, I am very, very happy with this project. It fits perfectly, is lightweight, warm and soft, and makes me look like I have much more of a figure than I actually have. It even matches a tam I just knitted, as well as my fading dyed-pink hair. What more could a person want?

Next month will be a return to Stitchcraft and the 60s!

November 1963: Overview

The autumn months are always the best for knitting magazines, with a mixture of heavy garments for colder days, easy-to-make holiday gifts, warm accessories and a few glamorous items for parties. Stitchcraft‘s November 1963 issue puts the focus on “warm family fashions… with the emphasis on colour and attractive textures that are interesting to knit and very becoming to wear”. There’s something for family members of every age and “for the petite to the not-so-slim.” The homewares and little projects are quick and fun to be finished in time for holiday decorating and/or gift-giving.

The “country jacket” on the cover continues the tweedy, variegated colour effect in fashion this fall, using Bracken Tweed wool for the main body and Totem DK for the collar and cuffs. I finally know what colour Totem “Oakapple” is! The other women’s outdoor-wear fashions include a zip-neck sweater with textured pattern bands in turquoise, an “overpull” with cabled neckline in flecked “Cantaloupe” colour (sadly, no colour photo, I have no idea how it looked in real life) and a simple brown top made glamorous by knitting the wool (Cameo Crepe 4-ply) together with a strand of sparkly Lurex thread. There’s also a warm, soft cape for winter reading in bed, knitted sideways in an easy zig-zag pattern. Aside from the green and white bedcape, shades of autumn brown as well as bold blues and red are the season’s trendy colours. Stripes, zig-zags and textures complete the Autumn 1963 look.

Men’s fashions are just as colourful as the women’s, or even more so (less use of plain brown…) and show more of the zig-zag trend. Here are some bold designs for “him and her” using bulky Big Ben wool (and photographed in front of…). The construction is the same for both, with the smaller design for bust sizes 33-35 inches and the larger for 39-41 inches, with the advice that “Plumper girls could follow his size”. The man’s pullover in “Italian colouring” uses stripes and textures, toned down by the use of more neutral colours. The blue-and-white cabled sweater in the photo next to it is for teenagers.

School-age children get their own “tough, tomboy sweaters” in Bracken Tweed wool. The suggested colours are “Black Olive” or “Gorse Heath”, which I assume is a sort of green-yellow tweed (no colour photo). Babies get a lovely shawl to match the layette from the September and October issues. It’s easy to knit, as the centre and borders are made separately. The other baby/nursery-age items are crocheted, sewn or stitched: a pram cover with a teddy-bear motif, a little nightcase with fluffy appliquéd kittens, a knitted doll, an embroidered “feeder”, sewn and appliquéd pinafore smocks…

There are fewer designs for accessories, but the utter fabulousness of this loop-stitch crocheted hat makes up for anything else that could be missing. The model in the photo features in many issues from this time period and always looks either quite sad or has that alluring Mona Lisa smile that’s she’s sporting here. (Am I mean, or wrong, to assume that she probably had bad teeth?) I would smile widely if wearing that hat, and I hope everyone who saw me in it would too. Also, knit your man a tie!

With all this bounty, the homewares are mostly standard: embroidered table mats and a Christmas-design tablecloth, a decorative panel with the Star of Bethlehem for more religiously-minded households, and a very impressive tatted doily and crocheted trolley-mat. The show-stopper is a lovely decorative panel “taken from a book of Oriental designs” embroidered in Filoselle silk on linen. (The design is allegedly of Persian origin, though of course neither Stitchcraft nor its typical readers of the time gave much thought to questions of authenticity, nomenclature, exoticism or any related issues that we would regard and discuss today.) It is a pretty picture in any case, and was probably not too difficult to embroider, consisting mostly of standard seed and straight stitches, French knots, and so on.

That’s all for this issue! I am going to make that wonderfully ridiculous hat.

August 1963: Man’s Cable Cardigan

Man modeling a cardigan, from Stitchcraft magazine, August 1963 issue

UPDATE November 2021: Finished!

The August 1963 issue had some nice projects in it, most of them pretty labor-intensive. None of the women’s garments spoke to me and while I liked some of the embroidery projects, I still hadn’t finished my blackwork butterfly cushion (From April. April !!) and was not going to start on a huge tablecloth. I loved this cabled men’s cardigan, though! It has a nice classic form and just enough detailing to keep the knitting interesting. And it’s made in DK weight wool, so it should go fast… right?

Incompletely knitted sleeve of a cardigan in blue wool

Ha ha. No, of course it did not go that fast. I had been trying to finish up a lot of other wips (not necessarily vintage or Stitchcraft-related) and the pandemic had eased enough in my corner of the world that my work started up again, so the cardigan was not nearly finished at the time of the first draft of this post. As of August, I had knitted one sleeve completely and was quite a ways on the other sleeve and that was all.

I would be happy to wear this design myself and could have juggled the proportions and made it in a smaller size for me. At the same time, I have so many clothes and a close family member who would love to have a nice hand-knitted cardigan has a “big” birthday coming up later this year. At his request, I made making the cardigan in a lovely shade of deep blue in lovely Drops Garnstudio Lima (65% wool, 35% alpaca.) He hasn’t seen the design (that part will be the surprise).

The sleeves are quite straightforward stocking stitch, so not much to report. I really loved the wool.

I made the body in one piece to avoid having to seam more than necessary (likewise, I made the sleeves in the round). The cable pattern is quite standard, but used here in an effective and interesting way to narrow the top yoke. The hem at the bottom is neat and tidy and does not flip up.

The intended recipient is slightly bigger than the largest size given in the pattern, so I made the cardigan on 4 mm needles for a bit looser gauge. Recipient is also more square-shaped than the “rectangular” model in the photo, but it will fit him with the same amount of ease.

That’s pretty much all there is to say! It came out perfectly and will be delivered on time for the big birthday. I’ll also definitely keep this pattern around to maybe make another one for myself some time.

July 1963: Overview

Cover photo of Stitchcraft magazine, July 1963

“In the Holiday Limelight” is the theme of this month’s issue, covering sporty, casual garments for holiday wear, a few slightly more dressy options and — with one incredible exception — quick and easy homeware projects.

Most of the adult garments seem quite warm and heavy for summer wear, but most are meant to be worn as outerwear in an unpredictable northern-maritime climate. Our partner-look cover duo, for example weighs in at 22-24 (hers) or 28-30 ounces of heavily cabled DK wool and is expressly touted as “in colour for sailing” (hers) or “white for tennis” (his). I imagine it would be quite warm for tennis but probably very good for sailing, as the textured stitch pattern would ward off splashes and insulate from cold winds. Unusual cables are also featured on the bright yellow button-up cardigan, while the design (“from Vienna”) of the mens’ black-and-white pullover suggests a cable-like vertical movement in the sideways-knitted colourwork front piece. A short-sleeved collared jumper and houndstooth-pattern jacket round out the warmer, double-knitting-weight garments.

For more dressy occasions, there are two lightweight jumpers made of Patons Cameo Crepe (fingering-weight wool with a tight twist for a smooth texture in stocking stitch). Both have a slightly nautical theme, at least in the names and colour choices. The “sailor collar” jumper is excellently photographed with matching red hairband and telephone! The diamond-pattern jumper in white with marine blue has a similar round collar to the heavier short-sleeved jumper, as well as a similar idea of using little dots or diamonds as decoration. (I imagine the diamonds must be placed very carefully to fall above the bustline.)

There’s a charming striped cardigan for a young girl, who could be encouraged to practice her budding handcraft skills on two miniature cross-stitch pictures — a deer and a koala bear. Embroidered on Bincarette mesh fabric (an older word for Binca fabric, roughly the same as Aida but slightly fewer threads per inch), the background is not filled in, so there are very few stitches to actually make and they could be easily done by a young child to hang in her room. More experienced “embroideresses” can make this densely-worked cushion, which combines cross-stitch with Holbein or double running stitch in a tessellated design.

Continuing the homeware designs are two hard-wearing, but very easy to make, applique/embroidery cushions for the garden. Perfect for a staycation, they are made with strong sailcloth material and stuffed with foam clippings to repel moisture. Readers could set their garden table with interesting placemats made in blackwork or with appliquéd crocheted bands. Especially pious readers who prefer to spend their holiday doing church work can even make a kneeler, a Bible marker and/or a secular footstool cover in tapestry.

Oh yes, and in the is it-for-a-bazaar-or-is-it-just-bizarre category, here are some “amusing” coffee-pot and egg cosies in the form of sad, legless, eyes-follow-you-around-the room-quilted cats! Add them to your collection of murderous crocheted clowns, evil felt Father Christmases and disembodied-head egg cosies, or demand that your church sell them at their next bazaar in return for the lovely Bible marker you made for them.

But wait, there’s more, and as always, the best comes last… Did I say that the homewares were easy, with one incredible exception? I am in awe of this large (16×22 inches) yet finely detailed appliqué wall hanging depicting the Mad Hatter’s Tea Party from Alice in Wonderland. It is the companion piece to the “Alice” wall hanging showing the Queen of Hearts and the gardeners from the August 1962 issue, and is designed so that both pictures can be fitted together to make a single panel. The stitch detail and precision required to make all those tiny felt pieces fit perfectly is amazing.

That wraps it up for our July 1963 issue! I will probably make the diamond-pattern jumper, since I have some more of the annoying un-plied cotton from the Hamburger Wollfabrik that I might as well use to make something with, and the long-line style will suit me well. I might, just might, also finish the blackwork butterfly cushion sometime soon. Happy Summer!

April 1963: Overview

Cover photo, Stitchcraft magazine, April 1963

First Fashions for Holidays! It’s almost always some sort of holiday season in these vintage knitting magazines — in this case, Easter and preparations for the summer. As the British climate makes it possible to wear thick, warm wool sweaters pretty much any month of the year, “holiday / not holiday” is less a matter of warmth or season and more about casual, easy-care garments to wear while “strolling” and sight-seeing, or projects that are small and simple enough that you can work on them while lounging in your deck chair. Or, as the facing page title puts it, “Sweaters off-duty.”

Thick, collared pullovers and cardigan jackets that can be worn as outerwear make up the bulk (-y) of the garments in the first category, many of them made in Patons Big Ben wool at 3 1/2 stitches to the inch. The tweedy, dark green jacket on the inner front cover is a good example of this and features an intriguing wavy slip-stitch pattern. The “Italian” tunic on the inner back cover has a knitted-in border pattern made of beads. DK-weight wool is used for the women’s round-yoke sweater on the front cover. Hip-length is the fashion for everyone, wide collars continue to be in style and decorative borders near the hem are the new spring trend.

There are fashions in finer-weight wool as well, “for elegant summer wear”. The red men’s pullover on the inside cover and the women’s Nylox pullover both have interesting stitch patterns, though I feel like the placement of the inserts on the women’s pullover could go horribly wrong a little too easily. If your man finds cables too exciting, you can knit him a plain V-neck pullover in bouclet wool and match it to your own fluffy mohair-mix jacket, made in Patons’ best-ever-named wool, “Fuzzy-Wuzzy.” Colours are strong and bright, including some very springlike salmon and turquoise.

Fashions for the younger members of the family cover all age groups: a dolman cross-front cardigan for the baby, a play-set for the toddler, a “miniature Paris blazer” for small and medium-sized children (she’s painting a picture on a easel, so you know it’s Parisian!) and a quick-to-make “chunky” pullover for “sub-teens” which is easy enough for a bigger girl to make for herself. (I don’t think the young model in the photo actually knows how to knit, though.)

With all that pre-holiday prep knitting, the homewares in this issue are generally unspectacular. There are chair sets in counted cross-stitch, a crocheted cushion and rug for the older daughter to make for her room, and a tapestry tea-cosy. The two more interesting projects are these corded crochet mats and a wonderful cushion with a design of butterflies, made in blackwork embroidery. Unfortunately I’m not good enough at crocheting to really understand how the “corded” look on the mats is achieved, besides the fact that there are a lot of picots and crocheting many stitches into a ring. Oh, and there are embroidered table mats, too, featuring line drawings of famous parks. I like the white-on-black effect — something different.

That’s it for this issue! The ads are pretty normal and in the comic, Miss Muffet continues her adventures, getting magically shrunk down to the size of an insect in order to go flying with a nice beetle-lady. I’m afraid the dragonfly might have dropped her into the lake, though! Oh no! How will it end?

My project for this month will be the embroidered butterfly cushion. Happy Spring!

August 1960: Twin-set returns

I loved this twinset at first sight. I loved the short raglan sleeves on the pullover, the cable-and-mesh panel on the front and the very original mock-turtleneck-meets-peter-pan collar. It’s one of the reasons I started this whole long-term Stitchcraft blog project, so I’m thrilled to have it come to life.

The yarn I used was ideal in terms of wearability: Lang Merino Bébé which is extremely soft and smooth and can be worn next to the skin with no problems at all. It is a little thicker than Patons Beehive Fingering, for which the pattern is written, so I had to work with a modified gauge (6 1/2 stitches per inch instead of 7) and ended up making a combination of the small (34-35 inch bust) and medium (36-37 inch bust) sizes to get a slightly larger size in the end. I guess in terms of actual measurements, I ended up with the second size, which fits fine.

Of course, the pattern is written to make in pieces and sew together, but I love making raglan-sleeve garments in one piece and working them together without seaming. It was a fun challenge to integrate the different decrease speeds of this compound raglan (the sleeves decrease every 4 rounds for quite a long time whilst the front and back decrease every other round), as the instructions are on different pages.

The cables have an interesting twist — literally. You put four stitches on the cable needle, knit the other four and then give the cable needle an extra 360 degree clockwise twist before knitting the stitches off of it. This gives them a cool extra definition. I forgot to do it once and it was almost unnoticeable — almost — but I didn’t want to rip back that far, so when everything was done I looped a little tiny thread around one of the cable stitches and just pulled it over more to the side and tacked it down by tying the thread ends in a knot on the wrong side. Look at the close-up picture above — can you tell which cable it was? I can’t on the finished garment. Good to know.

The collar is knitted separately in two pieces that are then knitted onto the picked-up stitches around the neckline, sort of like a three-needle bind off only without the binding off. Then you continue for an inch of mock turtleneck. The back of the pullover is open and you are supposed to put in a zipper, but I went for the keyhole effect and just added a button with a little crochet chain loop for a buttonhole. The final result is comfortable and pretty.

The cardigan is somewhat more plain, as it doesn’t have the cables, but it makes such a lovely set with the pullover — not to mention it’s an excellent “everyday” cardigan to go with lots of other outfits. The sleeves came out a bit long — I was obviously over-compensating for my long arms and the fact that I always have to lengthen the arms a bit — but it looks just as good with the cuffs turned back, and I can turn them down for extra warmth under a coat and gloves. I hadn’t expected the raglan sleeves to have so much armhole depth. I thought about adding facing ribbon to the button bands, but it turned out to not be necessary, as the cardigan fits fine whether buttoned or unbuttoned. In short, I am thrilled with my new twin-set and it will surely get a lot of use this winter.