Brim full of vintage fashion

I've just returned from an exciting visit to the Brimfield Antique Fair near historical Sturbridge Mass. This is only the second time I've visited this enormous antique-market in the fields, and my main goal was to visit with my friend M, who had come from Australia specifically for Brimfield.



My friend, E, and I drove down on a beautiful early spring day - you know the kind that has that incredible haze of green haloing the tops of trees and the leaves open with their new colour. E called them "leaves the size of mouse's ears".

After a few unexpected detours and wrongs turns, we found our way to our hotel and met M in the lobby. We were excited to begin our visit with a trip to the Vintage Fashion and Textile Show. Here is what their website says about the kinds of things that can be found there:

TAPESTRIES, COSTUMES, QUILTS, HOMESPUN SAMPLERS, SEWING ITEMS, HOOKED RUGS, NEEDLEPOINT, EARLY WALLPAPER, CLOTH ANIMALS, ANTIQUE FANS, DRAPES, BUTTONS, PURSES, SADDLEBAGS, ESTATE JEWELRY, VINTAGE CLOTHING, BOOK OR PAPER RELATED GOODS, PHOTOGRAPHY, MILITARY ITEMS, HATS, SHOES, THEATRICAL BACKDROPS, LACES, LINENS, BROCADES, DOLLS OF ANY KIND, OLD FASHION MAGAZINES, RELATED ADVERTISING, ETC.

It was held in a Hotel, where every room on the ground floor was filled with dealers in antique textiles of every imaginable kind!



There were especially rows and rows of antique clothing from the 50's through the 1800's. Well-known fashion designers could be seen poring through the stacks, looking for inspiration:

"The Aisles of the Vintage Fashion and Textile Show may offer a window into the past, but it also can be a look at the sartorial future. It's here that major design houses come to find inspiration for "new" looks which sometimes become the next big trend.

The last time I was at Brimfield, I ran into John Malcovitch shopping for antique buttons. I would not be surprised to see Michael Kors or Betsy Johnson turning over the antique petticoats!

This year, I didn't find the many vintage button sellers at the Textile Fair, but did find one person and was able to score these glass pictorial buttons, which will no doubt feature on some summer sweater for the little guy!



You know how when you go antiquing and one thing always seems to be on trend? You find a million of this certain item, but none of the things you're actually looking for? Well, for me, this seemed to be the knitted bathing suit! Almost every stall had it's example of a man's knitted suit. Most of these where from the 20's or 30's, with the early versions sporting a modest tank top.



It was very difficult to take photos at the shows - most stall owners did not allow it. I was able to Kinnear a few, such as the one above of the red and white knitted bathing suit.

And in this photo, you can see just the barest hint of what - to me - was a pretty exciting find:



I wasn't able to get a clear photo of it, but in the center of the picture you can see the navy length of a pair of Amish Wedding Stockings - the same type as were highlighted by Piecework Magazine a few months ago. This pair was dark navy blue, knit from rather heavy worsted, but the tops, which would have been just above the knee, were a brilliant feather-and-fan design in red and white! They were beautifully knitted, about 8 - 10 st per inch, so were very study as you would expect from handspun worsted knitted on small needles.

At this same stall was a home-made wool swift constructed of wire and mounted on an elaborate cast iron footed stand. Some clever person made this swift for the knitter in their life (or themselves)!



One thing I was not able to get any photos of, but that were numerous and outstanding were the antique silk stockings. Each pair was tagged more than $100, so none came home with me, but I did love them! Hand knit on tiny silk needles with 20 sts per inch, these long thigh high stockings from the late 1800s and early 1900s were decorated with panels of knitted lace on the instep, or up the front, and often had elaborate and tiny silk embroidery designs nthe front or the side. The hours of work that went into each pair must have been blinding! Many of these pairs were unused or very lightly used. I wonder if they were mainly old store stock that went out of fashion when the industrial age brought in the fine silk thread that created flesh-coloured diaphanous stockings and these lovely knitted versions - delicate but opaque in white, cream, peach, ice blue, and navy - became less desirable. I can't imagine anyone passing these up, but there they were boxes and boxes and boxes and boxes of them! Oh, how I wanted them!!

What I was able to find was a 1923 Bear Brand Bucilla and Glossilla knitting booklet called Lightweight Sweaters of Novelty Yarns, Volume 43.



In the introduction, the authors state:

"Gayly colored sweaters made of soft, lightweight yarns have assumed a greater importance in the wardrobe of the smartly clad woman, particularly during the Spring and Summer months. For sport wear or for general use, a brightly colored garment of this sort adds just that touch of individuality required to complete one's informal costume."

Sporty! A decade before, it was 'not the thing' for a woman to go out without a male escort and sporting was seen as a man's and college boy's activity. In the 20's, fashions were emphasizing women's independence and energy:



The yarns used in this booklet are called "Magicfloss", "Twinkle Yarn", and "the latest artificial silk novelty - Glossilla Krinky-Twist"!



This example, "The Norma" is "an easily made lacy blouse, particularly charming because it is made in the new Twinkle Yarn which combines Worsted and Artsilk in such a way as to produce radiantly lustrous garments." The pattern recommends using "unbreakable" Amber knitting needles - these are the amber-coloured celluloid ones that we often find in the knitting boxes in antique stores - Broken - because amber coloured celluloid breaks down and becomes brittle over time in a way that white celluloid does not.



This example is knitted with Bear Brand Silky Iceland yarn and embroidered with worsted threads on a simple filet crochet inset band.



This second booklet is an incredible silk knitting booklet from 1882 - a gift from my friend M which he had found in a shop the day before. This is from the Nonotuck Silk Co. and is called: How to Use Florence Knitting Silk No. 4.

The introduction reads (in part):

"...knitting is positively a restful and pleasing occupation, requiring but little physical exertion or mental application. For this reason it has become a fashion to carry Florance Knitting Silk to the summer resorts, there to be knit into stockings, while the knitter chats with friends on the hotel veranda. Under such circumstances it will be found that this accomplishment has an additional value in case of a stormy day."

Oh - so true!

There are drawings, not photographs, in this 64-page booklet just packed full with patterns - for knitted lace and insets, for lacy stitch patterns that may be used for shawls and coverlets, and for small accessories, like silk mitts and silk purses.





There is also an ad, which cast some light on the manufacture of the long silk embroidered stockings that I saw at the Fair, which described them being "hand knit from Florence Knitting Silk on Hand Frames."

These stockings were them embroidered with silk threads by women on staff and sold as completed "in the best full-fashioned shapes known to the trade."

I so want a pair of these lovely long stockings! Maybe I'll have to make my own.

Knitting up a Storm

A few years ago, when I was learning to knit socks, I started a pair for myself in that curious cotton and elastic yarn that comes as Cascade Fixation or Elann Esprit. My skeins were the Elann yarn in pink, rose, and greenish-grey and brought to mind faded roses. I found the perfect pattern:Antique Rose Socks by Dianne Mulholland.

The pattern knit up so quickly and easily and the first sock fit perfectly! But other socks were calling to me, and I set this pair aside while I worked on "practice socks" for 8 friends. By the time I finished I wanted to move on to other garments, and did - lace shawls, which held my interest for a long time.

Years passed, until this weekend when I found this first sock in my old knitting bag and, needing a transitional project, decided to complete the pair!

It's hard enough getting tension from one day to the next, but over several years? Very tough! It turned out just right, though, (this elastic sock yarn is very forgiving) and I've been wearing them happily.



Elann Esprit - 2 balls
Needles - Dyakcraft DPNs Size 3
Stitch pattern - feather and fan - toe up, short row heels

The sock took me 4 hours over 4 days from beginning to end. Why did I wait?

I'm ready for the rain storm that's coming now. And ready for a new project for the rest of the week.

Tea and Flora

Good morning! Would you like to have tea with me and peruse a vintage book? We're having cinnamon toast with maple sugar sprinkles and Lupicia sugar-cookie tea. Too much sugar? It's very tasty, though! And it's the first day of May and - finally - the sun is pouring down like honey into this town in the valley.

You may remember that in the winter I reviewed one of my favorite antique volumes - The Girls Own Annual and talked about the editor and author, Flora Klickmann. Piecework Magazine's most recent issue carried an article about Klickmann and her numerous needlework pursuits and the very nice and knowledgeable author of the article has engaged in some conversation about it on Ravelry. You'll see in the article that the author has a lovely stack of Flora Klickmann's individual needlework booklets - very enviable!

This inspired me to search out one of my own Klickmann volumes - Distinctive Crochet, edited by Flora Klickmann, showing Edgings, Insertions, Inlets, Corner Triangles & Camisole Tops, in English, Irish, Venetian & Filet Crochet with Beautiful Designs of Natural Birds and Flowers.



Flora K considered herself an editor rather than a designer. She searched out and refined local needlework patterns, some written down for the first time, but she didn't consider herself the creator. I consider her a creator of designs, though. Without her, these beautiful patterns would have been lost to time. I honor everyone who collects and preserves vintage and antique knit and crochet, and creates patterns from them.

Distinctive Crochet is one of the Home Art Series, edited by Flora K. Others in the series are listed on the fly-leaf:

Needlework Economies

Hardanger and Cross-Stitch

Beautiful Crochet on Household Linens

The Modern Knitting Book

Artistic Crochet

The Cult of the Needle

The Modern Crochet Book

The Craft of the Crochet Hook

The Home Art Book of Fancy Stitchery

The Home Art Crochet Book

There may be others in this series, but this is what is listed in this volume. As with most of Flora K's publications, the majority of the advertisements within are for her own books. She also shows "Three 'Jolly Little Books' for Little Girls" - The Little Girl's Fancy Work, The Little Girl's Knitting and Crochet Book, and The Little Girl's Sewing Book. (I have the last two and they are wonderful) But there are other great ads in here too - 2 for knitting and crochet and their descriptions are so delightful I think you would enjoy reading them:

There is Peri-Lusta threads for Crochet, Knitting, Art, and Fancy Needlework in Filo, Convent, Floss, Pearl-Knit, and Crochet from Queen Victoria Street in London. "You will be more satisfied with your finished work, and it will be much more admired if you use the PERI-LUSTA Threads. The silky lustre of the threads and the beautiful new shades produce a perfectly charming effect."

and there is Faudel's... "It is essential suitable material should be used for the work selected. The undermentioned wools are highly recommended and will not cause disappointment, All the brands should be procurable at any Needlework Repository. In the event of any difficulty in obtaining a supply please write to Faudel's LTD., Newgate Street, London." I think from now on I'm going to call my LYS a "Needlework Repository:, or NR!

Faudel's produced

A.A. Peacock Fingering - The long length wool. 2,000 yards more in the 6lb spindle than in ordinary yarns

Peacock Shetland Wool - Best English make for Opera Hoods, Wraps, Fascinators, etc.

Peacock Andalusian - Best English make for socks, stockings, mittens, gloves, cuffs, gaiters, wraps, bonnets, and shawls

Peacock Double Knitting - For some years we have been trying to introduce a Yarn with the Wearable characteristics of the best Worsted combined with the Soft, Strong, and Elastic qualities of the best Fingering. We claim the "Peacock Double Knitting" to have been eminently successful. For golf jerseys, hats and Norfolk jackets, Shooting and Cycling stockings, Tams, scarves, sweaters, Football and Golf stockings

Peacock Vest Wool - Unshrinkable; specially prepared for Underwear

Peacock Lady Betty - A Pure Wool; used largely for baby's first vests, shawls, etc.

Peacock Ostrich Wool - In 1 oz Balls for making Boas, Capes, Hoods, Muffs, Ruffles

Peacock Spangled Wool with mercerized thread - A very pretty wool for shawls, vests, hoods, children's gloves, bonnets

Peacock Aberdeen Fingering - Made in 2, 3, 4 ply

Peacock Homespun - or Wheeling Yarn. A yarn for Deep Sea Mission and Charity purposes.

Peacock Royal Shetland Floss or Boa Wool - for Boas, ruffles, and shawls and working on the Boa Frame.

So interesting and very useful when you have the vintage yarns and are wondering what their best use would be! But there are a couple of other ads, too - and they give a glimpse into Victorian life, especially if you have seen that fascinating show on BBC - Victorian Pharmacy:

Here is one:
A GOOD HOME RULE: "Give Your Children PERRY'S POWDERS" The finest MEDICINE in the world for all Children's Ailments. Sold everywhere at 1/3 per box of 3 dozen or post free from Perry's Powders, Ld., Leeds. I tried to find out what was in Perry's Powders and read a notice in the Leed's paper that a yearly dividend of 10 cents was paid to the shareholders in 1886! I wasn't able to find the ingredients of Perry's Powders but many patent children's powders of this time contained opium, chloral hydrate, and/or cannabis. Not saying Perry's did - it could have been just Bicarbonate of Soda or something simple.

Here's another:



This advertisement reflects the children's diet of the times. It's for cocoa powder that was to be dissolved - a teaspoonful in half a pint of boiling milk and water (equal parts). It was a breakfast food but was also recommended as part of a curative diet for catarrh in children. Fry's Cocoa was also used in the hand manufacture of pharmacist's "pills" in order to make them more palatable to both children and adults. Some newspapers of the time credit this with the accidental overdose of children who thought the cocoa pills were candy. In any case, this ad for breakfast cocoa describes the health benefits:

"This bonny little chap is a Fry's Cocoa boy, plump and strong, with rosy cheeks: sunny, healthy, mischievous, full of life and energy. Have you any little pale faces at home? Build them up with FRY's."

Okay, you're probably ready for the needlework content of this book, right? Here is a beautiful curtain edging in Lily of the Valley. I so wish I had the time and patience to make this for the kitchen window.



The book, being crochet, shows several different techniques, as the front cover says, but is mostly Filet Crochet. Here are some of my favorites, with their graphs so you can reproduce them in your designs.

The Convolvulus - morning glory style flower - in both corner and insertion:



A Bird Cosy-Cover:





"The tea-cosy cover is exceedingly simple in construction. It consist of one straight piece of linen, about 20 inches by 10 inches wide, with the crochet insertion inlet across each end. This straight piece folds over from front lower edge to back lower edge, which does away with the need for any seam at the top.

Two narrow pieces of side linen are let in, about 3 inches at the bottom, and slightly gathered in at the top; these allow the cosy cover to expand to the requisite amount of roominess inside."

Flora recommends a UK size 6 crochet hook, which she says should produce an insertion of the right size for the average cosy.

The narrow crochet edging around the seams is described this way:
1st row - 9 ch, put crochet hook through edge of linen, pull loop of chain through, 3 dc over ch; repeat around.
2nd row - 6 dc over sp, 1 picot of 6 ch; repeat around.

And here is one of my favorite patterns form this booklet, the cute woodland mushroom and fern:





The 3rd section of the book contains a few patterns for "things for personal wear" including baby bonnets and women's underwear sets.





The Baby Bonnet is particularly adorable. It uses a British size 8 crochet hook and "Beehive Scotch Fingering Wool", though any soft baby wool will do, I think. Do remember that these are British directions, so a DC is a US SC... I remind you of this at the beginning but don't continue with these reminders.

The Front Band:
Make a chain of 11. Work backwards and forwards in DC, with 9 st in each row, always taking up both threads throughout and turning with 2 ch. When 14 inches are worked, fasten off.

The Neck Band:
Make 7 ch. Work like the front band but with 5 sts in each row, and finish when 7 inches are worked.

The Crown:
Commencing at the centre of the crown, make 4 ch. Join into a ring with 1 sc (this would be a US slip stitch in crochet).

1st round - Make 2 ch to stand for the first half tr stitch (US DC), then work 7 more half tr (half DC) into the ring. Continue in rounds taking up both threads and without turning or joining as follows: -

2nd round - work 2 half tr (half DC) into the top of the 2ch (which commenced the previous round), *2 half tr in the next st, repeat from *until three are 8 groups, each containing 2 half tr.

3rd round - Work 2 half tr intot he first stitch, 1 half tr in the next, *2 half tr in the following stitch and 1 half tr in the next. Repeat from * to the end of the round.

4th round - * Work 2 half tr in the first st, 1 half tr in each of the next 2 st, repeat from * to the end of the round.

5th round - * Work 2 half tr in the first st, 1 half tr in each of the next 3 sts, repeat from * to the end of the round.

Continue these rounds with one extra st between each, increasing until 16 rounds are worked., Finish with an increasing over the first st of the next round. Fasten off, Pass the next two increasings and commence again on the third increased point. * Continue, shaping as before until the end of the previous row is reached. Finish with an increasing and fasten off. Commence again over the 1st stitch of the previous row and repeat from * until 9 of these rows have been worked.

Make 1 dc in every alternate st all around the crown, working lightly to draw in the fabric.

Take the ends of the narrow band and sew them in place at each end of one of the long sides of the wide band. Pin the 2 points of the crown to each corner formed by sewing together of the bands, then pin the shaped edge of the crown to the neck band and the rounded edge to the front band. Hem the two pieces neatly together. Take a length of wool and using it double, thread two rows round the crown near the band, slightly drawing in the crown. Thread two similar rows through the band near the crown, but without drawing in the band.

Make rosettes at each side of the ribbon and fasten them to the band.

And there you have it!

And speaking of those marvelous people who collect and preserve the wonderful vintage patterns and designs, Susan Crawford is producing a second volume of A Stitch in Time. I was a sample knitter on the first volume and enjoyed it immensely, and she has just asked me to work on this second book too! I can't wait to see what wonderful designs she will ask me for, and I'll enjoy it so much! Her description of this A Stitch in Time Vol 2 is already up and available for pre-order at her website, Knit on the Net.

The designs are SecretSecret until the book comes out, but you can be sure that Susan will produce a book that is as beautiful as the first one is!

The Tea in Us

I think it is the tea in us that makes us love all things British. There was such a surfeit of Anglophilia around here yesterday that one could hardly imagine any news that didn't replay the Royal Wedding. I watched it in the small early hours when I couldn't sleep, I watched it on the first news with my morning tea, I found it on the web when I checked my email at work, I contributed to the multitudinous topics on it on Ravelry, when I got home my boyfriend joyfully informed me that he had taped the whole thing because he knew I'd "want to see all the fashions and hats!", and we watched it again on the evening news.

I even had purchased some special Royal Wedding Tea, which I brought to work and passed around. Then we all raised our tea cups in a celebratory toast to the royal newly-weds.

But you know, none of this was in excess for me because.... well, because of the handmade Carrickmacross lace on the wedding gown!




Carrickmacross lace is named after the market town in Co Monaghan where it originated. Carrickmacross is described as a pretty market town which developed around a Castle built by the Earl of Essex in 1630. The Convent of the St. Louis Nuns now stands on the original castle site. According to the County Monaghan tourist website, Carrickmacross Lace was first established in the 1820s by Mrs Grey Porter, wife of the rector of Donaghmoyne, who brought the lace back from her honeymoon in Italy. Carrickmacross lace-makingwent into decline in the 1840s but later revived as a local art. History on the region credits the nuns for being largely responsible for the revival of lace-making skills in the region, as they taught it to their students. The Carrickmacross Lace Co-operative continues to make the fine lace and has been instrumental in keeping the tradition alive today. This lace may be purchased through their Lace Gallery, in the Market Square where they give demonstrations of this remarkable lace-making art by prior request.

Piecework Magazine, in the May/June 2011 issue, has an article (and pattern!) on Carrickmacross lace and talks about the early origins... How did they know that this would be such a feature of the Royal Wedding? What remarkable coincidence and good fortune for us, the readers!

And here is an adapted excerpt from the official Royal Wedding website:



The lace appliqué for the bodice and skirt was hand-made by the Royal School of Needlework, based at Hampton Court Palace. The lace design was hand-engineered (appliquéd) using the Carrickmacross lace-making technique, which originated in Ireland in the 1820s.

Individual flowers have been hand-cut from lace and hand-engineered onto ivory silk tulle to create a unique and organic design, which incorporates the rose, thistle, daffodil and shamrock.

Hand-cut English lace and French Chantilly lace has been used throughout the bodice and skirt, and has been used for the underskirt trim. With laces coming from different sources, much care was taken to ensure that each flower was the same colour. The whole process was overseen and put together by hand by Ms Burton and her team.

The Royal School of Needlework (RSN), based at Hampton Court Palace, assisted the Alexander McQueen team in accurately cutting out the delicate motifs from the lace fabrics and positioning the lace motifs with precision into the new design. The lace motifs were pinned, ‘framed up’ and applied with stab stitching every two to three millimetres around each lace motif. The workers washed their hands every thirty minutes to keep the lace and threads pristine, and the needles were renewed every three hours, to keep them sharp and clean.

The RSN workers included existing staff, former staff, tutors, graduates and students, with the youngest aged 19.

There are still some Carrickmacross lace-makers available, too: The Lace Gallery is one and on her website she not only offers this remarkable lace on commission, but gives the history and lace-making books.

I do have some Carrickmacross lace in my own collection - notably a wide collar from my great grandmother's wedding gown. I did a quick look for it, so I could show you but it is in some deeper place than I can readily get to right now. But it does have traditional Carrickmacross motifs of shamrock, thistle, and wild rose...

Invisible buttons

See? I told you the little beige buttons wouldn't show much!

Daisies on the Inside

The final Spring baby sweater for the little guy is finished and I'm pretty pleased with the result!



This is the Lazy Daisy Jacket from Pickles.no, a great knitting blog for anyone with little ones. I know I've given this link more than once before, but it's just full of really cute and colourful patterns for kids and babies so I go back to it again and again.

Sweater Stats:
Size: 18 months - 22 inches under the arms; arm length from neck 14 inches; sweater length from neck to bottom 12 inches
Needle size: US 6 circular
Yarn: E. Lavold Baby Llama (109 yds) from the Lamb Shoppe in Denver, Colorado
A) Colour 024 Sand 4 balls (and I used every bit)
B) Colour 027 Flaming Red 1 ball
C) Colour 025 Dark Brown 1 ball
D) Colour 031 Warm Blue 1 ball
E) Colour 028 Cloudberry 1 ball (this is the yellow colour)


One thing I've found about Pickle's patterns is that the sleeve constructions are often pretty complicated and usually require lots of piecing together and/or seaming. I plan to make this sweater again, but I'll modify it to be top-down and seamless, which is pretty easy to do. I'll post the modifications when that happens.

You'll notice right away that the design of the coloured part of my version doesn't look like the original pattern. That's because I put my daisies on the inside! I like the inside of the pattern stitch better but the sweater is perfectly reversible and this is what it looks like with Daisy Stitch the way it's meant to be seen:



My other modifications include more rows around the neck to make the shawl collar more prominent - and I used short rows instead of cutting the yarn and piecing the collar as called for in the pattern; and ribbing on the cuffs and the waist. I wanted this sweater to have a long useful life - and sleeve cuffs can be rolled up and then down as the little guy grows.

My buttons:



The little guy loves dogs! As you can see, I only put two buttons at the top, thinking this would be the way he'd wear it most times - just a quick fasten and we're good to go! But now I'm thinking that maybe I should use some little beige buttons down the front; they won't show, but the sweater could be completely closed. I don't know, what do you think?

Finally, I'd like to send a BIG thank you to the ladies at the Lamb Shoppe in Denver who were knitting beautiful patterned mittens from Piecework magazine while I was there and took the time to help me think through my sweater yarn and colours and generally encouraged me! Kindness to knitting strangers is a gift that just keeps paying forward.

A sparrow nests...

A sparrow came to nest at my house today... a lovely, humble, yet elegant and quiet sparrow..... of the yarn type:



Yes, a package from Quince and Co. winged its way from Maine to my door. See how preciously it's wrapped in little brown bag with the artistic seal? I love these touches that announce that the contents are something to be treasured and anticipated.

and inside.... inside nestled four little skeins of Sparrow, a 100% organic linen yarn in its natural neutral feathers:



The incandescent bulbs in this old house don't do justice to the biscuity pale tone of this linen, but it gives an idea. My plan is to knit the little lacy shoulder shawl designed for this yarn, Emma. even the name is perfect for me, calling up images of Jane Austen's heroine.

It will make a very fine shawl, soft as a vintage handkerchief once it is washed. I think I will love it. and as we all know...

...Nobody minds having what is too good for them.
~Jane Austen