And more about the magazines, leaflets and books

A few more images from the books. No, I won't photocopy these for someone, but I thought I'd present the covers and a few 'not quite close enough' inside photographs.

Phildar - this was given to me by a very kind co-student in my lace class. It has crochet stitch diagrams/charts for all the pieces in here. It does not, however, have any knitting charts.


The Harmony Guide books I got at the same time as the Weldons and Needlework booklets. I am collecting these as I like that they're lightweight and the pictures, instructions and charts are easy to understand. I have trouble with knitting charts, though, they just don't make sense like crochet ones do.

The Mon Tricot Knitting Dictionary I scored last year in a charity shop. Originally priced at GBP10/-, I paid a bit more, but it's still very useful. The stitch patterns are pretty clearly illustrated in black and white, except for the colourwork patterns. Also includes crochet, tunisian crochet and... what my fellow Americans call 'FSC' (foundation sc). However, it has a different name in this book.

From inside the Weldons booklet:

And from inside the Needlecraft booklets:

More vintage... this time in magazine form

And we have...



Weldon's Crochet No. 493, Vol. 42 - Weldon's Practical Needlework. Inside is an advertisement with a letter from a customer vouching for their product which is dated 1925. So I'm going to label this one as c.1925 as there's a pattern for "The Swastika and Bow Triangle", it's obviously before WW2. Now, before you get all hysterical, the swastika is an ancient symbol used by cultures (even Jewish) all over the planet, universally as a luck/peace/happiness/good fortune/auspicious.

Anyway, the next two magazines are...



Needlecraft - Practical Journal No. 70 ~ Crochet D'Oyleys. I got very excited with this one as it has patterns using hairpin and netting techniques besides standard crochet to create these. Photography is used to illustrate all the patterns, but the advertisements are illustrated (drawn) or just plain words. The illustrations make me think of 1890s-1910s, but there is an advertisement for London Wool 'should henceforth with all Patriotic Workers take the place of the German made article known as BERLIN WOOL'. This leads me to think that it's from 1914, WW1 era. And another advert saying 'buy only British or you could be buying straight from the Enemy'.



Needlecraft - Practical Journal No. 137 ~ Crochet Edgings, Corners & Triangles. Lovely filet patterns in this one, no other kind of crochet is used in these. Adverts are interesting, some are still stouty on the 'Use only British', but no mention of war. Dress styles and hairstyles make me think c 1920s, long silhouettes thanks to corsets from the bust down to the thigh, short hair, and hobble skirts.

About those DMC books...

After asking around in the Historic Knit group on Yahoo and being directed to the Antique Pattern Library, I find that their educated estimate of the age of the two DMC books is 1922-1923.

Thanks again to the help from the Historic Knit group to date the Twilleys Lyscord book, we believe it is late 1930s.

And the booksellers called me today, I'll be getting more books from them and will probably pay them a visit in Enfield very soon to try to find more of the DMC and perhaps, the Rutt books. I'm expecting a vintage Wheldon book too. Yay!

The other books

The other two books I picked up at the Essex Lace Fair are on torchon lace ('for girls in India to make') and decorative knotting. I didn't realise when I purchased the book that the torchon lace pattern book was from India or for instructing the girls of India with, but I find it amusing.

Why?

Because the previous day was the Thameside Lacemakers lace day and the speaker for the event discussed lace, but also spent a fair few minutes about an English woman missionary who went to India to do missionary work and start a school there teaching lace to help orphan and impoverished girls learn a vocation (this was in the early 1800s). And according to the publication date in my book, was still going in 1909.

The decorative knotting is, just to be different, a brand new publication. I think I got it because I wanted to find a supplier for fine nylon braided cord... oh and the pictures and instructions for a dragonfly pin also had something to do with it, heh.

Found some treasures at the Essex Lace Fair

Oh I found some wonderful books at the Essex Lace Fair! I am so very glad I attended this event. I discovered that Bead Fairs also exist here in Britain. *happy dance*

Anyway, on to the books, the vintage books. It will be quite a task to 'translate' these vintage crochet books into modern terms, oh and diagram them as well, so that it would be useful to those in the USA and the rest of the planet, should they want it. The instructions are written in an archaic form of British crochet terms, figuring out what the 'plain stitch' is amongst all the rest of the very wordy instructions will be fun. Still, the items photographed in these books are very pretty and could be converted to for use in today's world.

I've included a sample of the instructions and a plate from one of the books. They incorporate needle lace in their crochet patterns and also include braids amongst the crochet. One braid that instantly caught my eye was the 'Bigoudis braid'. The crochet patterns using implementing this braid are quite beautiful. I know we believe our lives to be so rushed and hurried, that we use fat yarns and don't have time to make things beautiful and comforting, but it would be a wonderful event if we could slow down and create (and use) such lovely objects once more.