Knitting E-Book

Alison Ellen

• Herausgeber: Crowood
• Kategorie: Lebensstil
• Sprache: Englisch

Seitenzahl: 293

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2013

Beschreibung

Knitting: colour, structure and design takes a fresh approach to knitting, examining not just the look of a knitted pattern, but how the knitted fabric can be altered with different stitches to change its stretch, drape and thickness. Once understood, the design and application potential of this textile technique is thrilling and endless.

Leseprobe

Knitting

Colour, structure and design

Alison Ellen

First published in 2011 by The Crowood Press Ltd Ramsbury, Marlborough Wiltshire SN8 2HR

www.crowood.com

This e-book first published in 2014

This impression 2014

© Alison Ellen 2011

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publishers.

British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication DataA catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.

ISBN 978 1 84797 728 1

Photographs by Colin Mills

CONTENTS

Acknowledgements

Introduction

1 Knitting from pre-history to present

2 Stitches and how they work

3 Techniques

4 Colour

5 Materials

6 Joining, finishing, edges and extras

7 Knitting patterns

Project 1: Modular squares jacket

Project 2: Modular ribbed squares jacket

Project 3: ‘Flares and squares’ jacket

Project 4: Stripy modular jacke

Project 5: Harlequin jacket

Project 6: Classic squares jacket

Project 7: Shell jacket

Project 8: Entrelac jumper, ribbed

Project 9: Wrap jacket – short version

Project 9: Wrap jacket – long version

Project 10: Zig-zag rib waistcoat

Project 11: Baby’s waistcoat

Project 12: Child’s modular jumper

Project 13: Baby’s smock-dress

Glossary

Bibliography

Further Information

Index

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

Going back in time, my textile training at Dartington and Farnham Colleges of Art and their philosophy of teaching material- and technique-led design still remain an important influence. Thanks go to students from my knitting workshops, where I have learnt at least as much as taught. To my knitters: thanks for their skill and patience over the years, their input and enthusiasm, and their willingness to try something new. Particular thanks to Christabel Hedges and Janet Hawkins for checking patterns and helping with instructions and mathematics. Appreciation and thanks to those who knitted pieces for this book and also advised on instructions: Joan Brown, Betty Dobson, Betty Cottle, Tina Fenwick Smith, Christabel Hedges, Angie Harris, Janet Hawkins, Margaret Maher, Margaret Malony, Kneale Palmer, Clare Sampson, Yvonne Tatters. Thanks to Colin Mills for the photos and his inspiration in ways of displaying the work. Last but not least, thanks to my family and to Dan for their enduring support.

Knitting in entrelac and undulating textured stitches.

INTRODUCTION

Properly practised, knitting soothes the troubled spirit, and it doesn’t hurt the untroubled spirit either. When I say properly practised, I mean executed in a relaxed manner, without anxiety, strain or tension, but with confidence, inventiveness, pleasure, and ultimate pride.

Elizabeth Zimmermann, Knitting Without Tears (1971)

This book will look at hand knitting as a way of constructing fabric and three-dimensional shapes in a creative way, rather than following the conventional knitting pattern formula of describing flat, patterned shapes to be joined together by sewing. One of the attractions of knitting by hand is the flexibility and scope of the technique to produce fabric made in any direction from any starting point.

Using knitting needles, it is possible to create almost any shape, either two- or three-dimensional. Knitting can make a fabric beginning from a straight edge, a centre point or a corner, and can create something flat, textured, distorted, patterned, rough or smooth. By increasing and decreasing the number of stitches it can become sculptural, with the freedom to shape as you go. If you knit ‘in the round’, using a set of double-ended needles or a circular needle, all these effects can be made in a tubular form, again shaping within the spiral, tubular construction. Developing the idea of free shaping further, stitches can be picked up from any edge or surface, and off you go again in a different direction, with no sewn seams needed. There are limitless possibilities.

Samples of bobbles, stripes, zigzags, entrelac and slip stitches.

Pieces knitted with no seaming, using sets of double-ended needles when necessary. All the techniques are listed in Chapters 2 and 6.

Pod

i) Sideways segments, short rows both ends.

ii) Pick up around one end.

iii) Knit and increase in the round.

iv) Cast off with wiggles (exaggerated picot).

Pointed cube shape

i) Mitred garter st square base.

ii) Pick up sts all round, knit.

iii) Divide sts into 4, decreasing at corners to pointed top.

Blue cube

i) Mitred square.

ii) Pick up round edges and purl in the round, twisted knit st at corners.

iii) Mitred square, working in sts at sides for seamless top.

White shape, 3 legs

i) Knit 3-sided shapes, decreasing to I-cords, then picking up sts from bases to attach together.

ii) Pick up all round remaining sts and K2, P2 rib in the round.

iii) Knit, increasing out, then purl ridges.

iv) Decrease inwards to point.

Dancing shape

i) Short-row segments circle.

ii) Pick up stitches and knit border.

iii) Pick up centre and rib a tube.

iv) I-cords.

v) Decrease circle every round.

vi) Frill.

vii) Picot cast-off.

This book will also look at how to use different combinations of stitches to alter the knitted fabric: the drape and weight of it, how it hangs, how stretchy it is, how thick or thin, open or solid. It will encourage thinking of new ways of constructing 3D shapes for clothing, accessories, items for interiors, or simply exploring the possibilities for making larger, sculptural pieces, small intricate pieces, or perhaps knitted jewellery.

My approach is to let the technique and materials lead the way, to experiment and see what happens naturally, even if the results are unexpected. Taking familiar materials and methods in new directions only needs an open mind, so that things going ‘wrong’, or making ‘mistakes’, turn into positive ways forward. If the knitting wants to behave in a certain way, how can we use it to our advantage? If it wants to curl up at the edges, then let that be developed into something that can be used. If a planned combination of stitches doesn’t lie flat, or comes out with one edge shorter than the other, this is discovery that can be used creatively in a design and can then be planned and controlled. The only doubtful element in a knitting ‘surprise’ is whether it looks accidental or deliberate, a mistake or a statement made with conviction.

Although the world we live in now has become much freer in its approach and there are fewer rules where fashion, clothing and interior design are concerned, so that things that would once have been considered unfinished and raw, or badly made, or old and worn out, are now accepted as a style or ‘look’, this does not mean that designing is redundant. It is still the case that a design has to look right and to be carried out with confidence: a dropped stitch, an unravelled edge, asymmetric shaping – it all needs to look convincing and intended in order to work as a successful design.

Experimenting with knitting is not something many of us have time for; it is simpler to follow a knitting pattern. However, if you enjoy being creative, it is worth putting aside some time to play and see what happens. As well as time, this takes a fair amount of confidence and courage if you haven’t tried it before, and you may need a push to get started. It might help to attend a knitting workshop, go on a course, or join a knitting group. In this way, ideas and skills are shared, you may learn new or more efficient techniques, and there is the excitement of seeing how work has progressed, and the benefit of troubleshooting problems with others. The Internet has become a huge source of information for knitters, from websites to blogs, and with some excellent, clear, well-paced video instruction available on line (bearing in mind that it is not edited, so some is not so excellent): you can get instruction and information on everything from how to begin to more complicated techniques or information on different traditions in knitting.

Fair Isle patterns, short-row shaping and edgings.

Instead of following someone else’s knitting pattern, experimenting can lead to ideas that are ‘the direct result of the method of production’. (This phrase was written by Peter Collingwood, weaver, who studied different constructive textiles techniques in great detail, and wrote about them in an inspiringly clear and demystifying way in The Makers’ Hand (1987).) In other words, you learn what knitting will do best naturally, and then develop your own ideas with it.

This book will suggest some ways of playing and experimenting, and will illustrate how stitches work and how using different stitch combinations can alter knitted fabric. It will encourage knitting without seams; why knit with seams when it’s not necessary? The knitting patterns included in this book can be knitted as written, or you can use them as a starting point for your own ideas, improvising or changing aspects to suit yourself.

Knitting Instructions

Communicating knitting instructions can be confusing. Originally skills would have been passed on by word of mouth and by demonstration until patterns began to be written down. Now we have a mixture of written instructions using confusingly abbreviated words, with different terms and abbreviations coming from different English-speaking countries, and we also have charts. Charts, using squared paper with each square representing a stitch, are an obvious tool in conveying colour patterns, but what about textures, knits and purls, slip stitches, cables and all the rest? There is the added complication in that squared paper doesn’t give an accurate interpretation of the knitted stitch, which is wider than it is tall (in basic stocking stitch, at least), but knitting graph paper has been designed to overcome this problem, and symbols developed to represent the different stitches, including cross-overs, cables, slip stitches, increases and decreases.

Abbreviations

altalternateBbackbegbeginningbetbetweencmcentimetre(s)colcolourcontcontinuedecdecreaseFfrontggram(s)garter stgarter stitch: knit every rowininch(es)incincreaseKknitK1bKnit 1 through back of stitchK2 togknit 2 stitches togetherkssknit slip stkssbknit slip stitch through back of loopLHleft handM1make 1mmmillimetre(s)nonumberO, or yoyarn over needleozounce(s)PpurlP1Bpurl 1 through back of stitchp2ssopass 2 slip sts overpattpatternpsspurl slip stpssopass slip stitch overp-wisepurlwisereprepeatRHright handSslipSl1bslip 1 to backSl1fslip 1 to frontsskslip, slip, knitst(s)stitch(es)stocking ststocking stitch: knit 1 row, purl 1 rowtblthrough back of looptogtogetheryabyarn at backyafyarn at frontybyarn backyfyarn forwardyoyarn over

To my way of thinking, a chart is a visual representation of the knitted fabric. The symbols clearly represent the different stitches and looking at a chart gives an immediate impression of the surface texture. This is a clearer introduction to the knitting pattern than a page of abbreviated words, and a more intelligible one, giving immediate visual access to the finished item, and inviting an intelligent reaction and a creative response; it is almost as good as a visual image of the finished fabric, making it possible to imagine altering and personalising the pattern as well as simply following it.

If charts and symbols were to be accepted as universal, it would also do away with the words, making patterns comprehensible internationally. As this stage has not arrived universally, this book uses both charts and words, in the hope that people will be able to approach the patterns creatively and make their own designs from the ideas illustrated.

Using Charts

The charts represent looking at the knitted fabric from the front, so the right-hand edge is where you begin the right-side rows, following the chart in the same direction as you are knitting, beginning at the bottom and finishing at the top. The symbols on the right-side rows are bold, and those on the wrong-side rows (which read from the left edge) are in plain, lighter print.

Each chart shows one repeat of the pattern, sometimes framed with heavier vertical lines. Any chart outside these lines shows edge stitches, not part of the pattern.

The symbols for knit and purl reflect the shape of the stitch as you look at it, with the knit being a vertical line, the simplest representation of how it appears on the front, and the purl as a horizontal bar. The charts show the right side of the knitting, so with the knit or purl symbol reflecting what it looks like on the front of the knitting; to reproduce a knit stitch on the front, you purl it on the wrong-side row. If you want to knit in the round following text instructions for knitting back and forth, there is a complication as you would need to make the opposite action on the wrong-side rows, reversing all the knits and purls in the instructions. If you use a chart, this problem does not arise; you can follow it for either back and forth or circular knitting. For example, we know that to make stocking stitch you need to knit and purl alternate rows when working back and forth, but the effect on the front is all knit, as shown by the vertical symbols on the chart. If you knit stocking stitch in the round, you knit continuously (no purling) because the right side is always facing you – again, as shown on the chart. Charts make you aware of the effect of each stitch rather than blindly following words.

Stocking stitch.

Where charts become a bit more complicated is when working a pattern where the number of stitches changes and the shape is not rectangular; then it is difficult to represent the shaping clearly. For the modular knitting patterns in this book, charts are used for the stitches only, not the shaping.

Nineteenth- and twentieth-century cotton lace.

CHAPTER 1

KNITTING FROM PRE-HISTORY TO PRESENT

Is knitting art or craft?

Knitting is best called a craft. It serves life and is relatively ephemeral. It gets worn and wears out . . . It can be expensive, but is almost never precious … Therefore knitting is widely practised by non-professionals and tends to be a people’s craft. Therein lies much of its interest and the fascination of knitting history.

Richard Rutt, A History of Hand Knitting (1987)

The history of knitting tells an incredible story. Studying it helps us to understand the technique more thoroughly and appreciate its potential in designing and moving forward. The different methods of producing a knitted fabric through time and in different parts of the world open our eyes and provoke questions. Looking at history also puts knitting in a social context and spotlights some extraordinary, as well as everyday, examples of skilled knitting.

Earliest Examples of Knitting

Knitting is obviously a very old craft, but as is the case with all textiles, not much has survived the test of time for us to study. Most clothing and textiles were worn until worn out, often recycled or patched and worn out again, and of course fabric does not survive as well as other artefacts in hard materials such as pottery, metal or wood.

The craft of hand knitting is thought to have begun in Egypt, where a pair of socks from the fifth century have survived. Whether these socks were made on knitting needles is doubtful. They are of a similar structure to knitting but the stitches are twisted: a technique that could also have been made with a sewing needle, working in rounds a stitch at a time into the row below, known as Nalbinding (see illustration in Chapter 2. There are other constructive textile techniques that look superficially like knitting but are different in structure, and again these are probably produced with needles of a different kind. Examples and diagrams of some of these knitting-like fabrics are shown in both Richard Rutt’s A History of Hand Knitting (1987) and in Peter Collingwood’s The Maker’s Hand (1987), which has examples and diagrams of a huge range of different textile techniques. However the Egyptian socks were made, we can be sure that the technique was easily transportable, and did not need space or equipment to carry out. To weave cloth you need a loom, and although many primitive looms were portable, knitting, sewing, knotting, crochet and other techniques that needed no bulky equipment each had their uses for making different kinds of fabric and were therefore adaptable and ideally suited to a nomadic lifestyle.

Knitted doll, probably from Central or South America.

There seems to be general agreement that knitting spread from Egypt throughout Europe in the Middle Ages, with examples of sophisticated Egyptian patterned knitting in the eleventh and twelfth centuries, and fine two-colour silk knitting in Spain in the thirteenth century. Pattern using colour seems to have been produced in knitting earlier than the development of different textural patterns with use of knit and purl stitches.

Knitting reached Britain in about the fifteenth century, and travelled on through Eastern Europe, and north into Scandinavia. Trade routes took knitting in greater leaps to the Far East, and emigrants from Europe took it to the Americas and eventually to other colonies. Does this mean that men knitted? Certainly they did. Its portability made it ideal for carrying while walking: evidently shepherds in Spain and Portugal knitted, and probably sailors too.

Tools and Methods

At some point, knitting began to be produced on knitting needles, and these too have been through various changes. Some early needles had hooked ends like today’s crochet hook.

There are interesting links in styles of knitting and the tools used that indicate how the technique might have spread, such as the distinctive way of knitting with the yarn tensioned around the neck and manipulated with the left hand that is seen in Portugal and other European countries to the east and also some of the South American countries, suggesting that this method emigrated across the Pacific with the Spanish and Portuguese explorers. Hooked needles were used in these areas, and are still used now both for knitting and in the technique called ‘Tunisian Crochet’, where rows of knitting alternate with rows of crochet to produce a very firm fabric. Another obvious variation in style of knitting is whether the yarn is held in the right or left hand. This seems to have a regional bias. Although the UK has adopted a right-handed way of knitting, a large part of Europe and Scandinavia knit with yarn in the left hand, often described as the ‘Continental’ method. There are variations within these types of knitting, with many different names, often used in America where many different styles have come together. The differences lie in the way the yarn is held, and whether the main movement is in the fingers holding the yarn or the needles. The advantages of holding the yarn in each hand will be looked at in Chapter 3.

It seems that in many crafts a particular method of carrying out a process could become a habit over generations even if it was not the most efficient way of doing something. Was this because people had a different concept of time and were not actively searching for more proficient methods? Now we question everything and are constantly searching for more time-saving processes, but in the past skills were passed on in a natural and unquestioning way, sometimes resulting in techniques that seem labour-intensive and complicated rather than efficient.

What was Knitted

To begin with, everyday undergarments, socks and hats or caps were knitted. Sock construction provides another example that makes a traceable link in the spread of knitting. There are several ways of shaping the heel of a sock, but there are examples of one noteworthy simple sock-shape still being produced, described in Mary Thomas’s Knitting Book of the 1930s as the ‘peasant sock’, that is similar in several countries, particularly in Greece and throughout Eastern Europe and as far as the Himalayas.

Socks from Eastern Europe to the Himalayas, showing pointed heel shaping as well as short-row shaping.

This sock is knitted as a tube from either the toe up or the top down, but instead of knitting the heel when you get to it by working short rows, half the stitches are put on a stitch holder for the heel, new stitches cast on leaving a slit, and the rest of the foot knitted, decreasing on each side to a pointed toe. The heel stitches are then picked up from both sides of the slit and, working in the round, another decreased pointed shape is made for the heel, the same as the toe shaping. This unlikely design works primarily because you can rely on the stretchiness of knitted fabric to adjust to the internal shape it is housing. Examples I have of this type of sock (which is still made) are mostly knitted in a two-colour or ‘Fair Isle’ type of patterning which restricts the stretch, so they are not as fitted or comfortable as socks in a single yarn with contemporary turned heels, and there is more strain on the sides of the heelshape than on a turned heel, but they work well enough to have been used over many centuries.

It must have been a huge step forward to have knitted stockings when before that time leg coverings were of woven cloth, needing to be ‘cross gartered’ or something similar to hold them up. The stretchiness of knitting is ideal for socks and stockings, and was the first indication of how beautifully knitted fabric works on the human body, moving and stretching with it, although it took several hundred years to cover the rest of the body and be developed as the ‘jersey fabric’ we know and love for so much clothing today.

Knitted Underwear

Knitted woollen undergarments must have been immensely warm, and essential in northern climates in winter. Recent examples exist in museums: for instance, there are plain woollen petticoats in museums in Norway, knitted with fullness to provide welcome heat-trapping layers under skirts, and the famous ‘Everest vest’ in Shetland, Scotland, which became a popular export after the 1953 Everest expedition when one was made for Sir Edmund Hillary. Many knitted undergarments were decorative as well as functional, even if they were not on view. In the collection at the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, there is a Dutch petticoat knitted in fine white wool with ornate patterns of birds, animals and foliage, all in knit and purl patterning: an intricate piece of work needing hours of planning. Also in the same collection is a ‘vest’ from the time of King Charles I in fine silk, with both textured and coloured patterns, a knit and purl chequerboard edging, and gold thread used to make jacquard patterns. This vest is knitted in a simple T-shape with sleeves, but according to Richard Rutt, it may have been made on a knitting ‘frame’ (a primitive type of knitting machine) rather than on knitting needles.

Knitted Outerwear

It was only in the late nineteenth century that knitted garments began to appear as outerwear in Europe, with ‘the Spencer’ and ‘the Polka’ (both fitted jackets for women) becoming popular. By this time knitting machines were developing fast, but alongside this industrialisation there were cottage industries that produced knitted socks and stockings throughout the nineteenth and into the twentieth centuries involving men, women and children; and as in other industries there was conflict between the two methods of production. With this parting of the ways, reasons for hand knitting began to change; it may still have been practical to knit by hand for wages in rural areas where it could be fitted in around other work, but it was also ideal for making one’s own clothes at home with no need for extra space or equipment. By the beginning of the twentieth century, knitted garments were worn as outer garments for different purposes in different strands of society.

For labourers and working men, one type of functional knitted garment belonged to the community of fishermen living around the coast of Britain, and a tradition grew up of firmly knitted jumpers known as ‘guernseys’ or ‘gansas’, made without seams in a simple T-shape: a tube for the body, two tubes for sleeves, and extra gussets under the arms and at the neck to give more freedom of movement. The evolution of this shape can be traced from King Charles I’s shirt. They were knitted in wool, with patterns in purl stitches on a knit ground, and in some regions with cabling as well, the patterns evolving individually in different families and hardly changing over many years. Fishermen’s wives could knit while they waited for the fish to be brought in; they could knit as they walked. There are early photographs of women in northern Britain knitting while carrying baskets of peat on their backs, so no time was wasted. Knitting was portable, sociable and an accepted part of this way of life.

Shetland women carrying kishies and knitting. (Shetland Museum and Archives)

The Scottish islands had developed coloured patterns in knitting, with beautiful examples of early pieces existing now in museums, while the tradition still continues. Often only two colours were used per row, but many colours were used throughout the garments in mostly small, repetitive geometric patterns.

A big change of direction came when traditional knitting was brought into high fashion by Edward, Prince of Wales, who had his portrait painted wearing a colourful Fair Isle sweater in the 1920s. The fame this brought to Scottish knitting did not affect the design of the garments, which continued to follow the traditional patterns, but it brought colourful knitting into acceptance as fashionable leisurewear.

Knitting Books, Patterns and Trends

As well as a wealth of knitted garments still existing now from these more recent times, our other sources of information are knitting patterns and books, which not only illustrate the styles that were popular, but tell us a lot about how knitting was perceived, who knitted and something about life at the time.

The earliest books had knitting ‘recipes’ with line drawings or etchings as illustrations, and it is amazing to us now to see how finely people worked: knitting needles as small as size 17 and 18 (today’s equivalent would be 1.5mm or 1.25mm/ US size 000 and 4/0) were used with fine silk for socks and ties. If this is put into the context of other needlework such as lacemaking, embroidery and sewing of the time, it was not unusual – just breathtaking for us now to see how finely it is possible to work when our present world is geared to instant access, must-have and quick results, and it is hard to imagine the hours spent on such detailed work. Early knitting books that are still around have a gentility about them, with illustrations of dainty hands holding the needles in rather refined manner; presumably these were for literate ladies knitting at home, whereas country folk passed their patterns on by example rather than following written instructions, so extending the tradition rather than looking to fashion.

Gloves in traditional patterns from Shetland, Estonia, Russia and a hat from Peru, all in ‘Fair Isle’ technique with two or three colours per row.

Although there is a mass of opinion and information on the Internet, it is still quite easy to find period knitting books and research history at first hand. Here are a few books worth looking out for, written by people who have made a real difference to our knowledge of knitting and to the way knitting has developed socially, and who have also contributed significantly to pushing the technique forward.

Looking at books written in the 1930s and 1940s, a knitter who contributed enormously to the understanding and use of knitting was Mary Thomas, who wrote clearly and systematically about knitting technique in two books: Mary Thomas’s Knitting Book (1938) and Mary Thomas’s Book of Knitting Patterns (1943). She designed her chapters logically, step by step through from the simplest stitches to the more ornate. As well as a few grainy photographs, her books are illustrated with plenty of very clear diagrams, but also with strangely quirky, humorous drawings, which as well as adding to the enjoyment and spirit of the books, make points which clarify how a stitch works and how it can be used creatively. At this time there was a limited choice of commercial yarns for knitting, and hardly any fancy yarns, so there was much more emphasis on stitches and technique to create pattern and interest. Mary Thomas’s books do not give patterns but explain how stitches work.

Knitting books on traditions, history and technique.

Knitting patterns in other books from the early part of the twentieth century show a growing interest in fashion, and use stitches to create pattern and interest much more than later in the century when a wider range of yarns was available. Several of the more interesting early twentieth-century patterns have been collected together recently in books by Jane Waller and Susan Crawford with advice on using them with contemporary yarns (see Knitting Fashions of the 1940s (2006) by Jane Waller, and A Stitch in Time: Vintage Knitting and Crochet Patterns 1920–1949, Vol. 1 (2008) by Jane Waller and Susan Crawford, which is a republication of the 1972 classic A Stitch In Time by Jane Waller).

Also writing about knitting in the first part of the twentieth century, Gladys Thompson’s interest came from a different perspective to that of Mary Thomas. She did not discuss technique in detail, but recorded a small piece of knitting history by writing a book about the traditional knitted jerseys and guernseys produced in the fishing communities around the British coast in the early part of the twentieth century (as mentioned above). Here, the illustrations of the patterns that can be achieved with different knit and purl combinations are inspiring. Without changing colour, rich textured patterns are possible, firmly knitted in strong, smooth wool which shows up the contrast clearly between smooth stocking stitch, rough purl, rope-like cables and gravelly moss stitch, all used to make thick, weatherproof garments with extra warmth over the chest and back to protect men working at sea.

Early twentieth century cotton lace edgings, often made to edge household linen.

Early books were not only instructional with basic ‘how to knit’ diagrams, but also increasingly contained patterns for garments ranging from the utilitarian such as underwear, bathing suits, socks and stockings, to smart classics. The authors were not always named as designers are today; many of the publications came from yarn companies such as Jaeger, Sirdar or Patons (later Patons and Baldwins). They were not aiming to design anything startling, remarkable or individual, but were more like the Marks & Spencer of the knitting world, producing patterns so that anyone could knit everyday clothes to suit all occasions, including some that are such classics that they could be successfully adapted years later to fit almost any fashion. The use of stitches to create interest was a vital element in the designs, and they were usually shaped with increases and decreases to mimic tailoring and darts in dressmaking.

Attitudes to Knitting

After the Second World War it was still a cheaper option to make your own clothes, but eventually the time came when this was no longer the case (in dressmaking as well as knitting); and it became more economic and smarter (in the sense of dressing fashionably) to buy ready-made clothes. Perhaps it was at this point that knitting began to fall into low esteem, being perceived as frumpy. This attitude has continued for a long time, especially in Britain: hand-knitted clothing came to be considered dull, shapeless and amateur. The action of knitting was something for people who had nothing better to do, and for older women who weren’t capable of getting out and about. It has taken an extraordinary long time for this attitude to shift. It still exists in Britain and can be heard still in the twenty-first century in the media, in jokes and in disparaging remarks about knitting, even though so much has changed over the turn of the millennium, with the USA leading the way for new excitement in knitting.

It is extraordinary that knitting is still regarded by some people as such a lowly craft when the start of the new movement in knitting that has propelled it from drabness to a medium for highly respected art and design began in the late twentieth century. The change can be traced back to the 1970s when fashion designers were beginning to make their names in knitting by showing knitted garments in their collections, and producing books of contemporary fashionable knitting patterns. These usually concentrated on using colour in new and exciting ways: the beginning of a completely different approach to knitting, moving away from the traditional and the classic to a sudden injection of strong statements from modern designers. Although knitting patterns had of course kept in line with fashion, bringing in the appropriate style such as the tailored look, the big shoulders, blouson jackets and so on through the early part of the twentieth century, now the ‘hand-knitted look’ moved to the forefront, becoming fashionable in itself.

Designers

Whereas in the 1950s and 60s women would have carried their knitting with them at all times, knitting on public transport, at the cinema and at coffee with friends, by the 1970s its popularity had waned and young people were no longer learning the skills. Knitting began to represent old age and had become dull and boring, but at the same time new ‘designer knitwear’ became desirable.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s there were different ways of marketing hand knitting, and ‘designer knitwear’ was available for sale at top-of-the-range prices. Finished garments were being sold both in the fashion industry and in the mushrooming world of craft fairs, but there was also a growing market for people who wanted to knit their own, in the form of kits and books. These fell into a bit of a vacuum, as the doldrums in knitting meant that there had been a slow decline in teaching children to knit and in the passingon of knitting skills over three generations (more evident in southern Britain than in the north, Scotland and Ireland). An interest in knitting as an activity began to be rekindled, especially as this category of ‘designer’ garments were very much cheaper to knit yourself than to buy ready-made. Gradually more opportunities arose for learning to knit through courses and knitting groups and knitting began to spread again, with (thankfully) young people also catching the bug.

Technical Books

Amongst all the books about knitting that have appeared over the past century, some stand out as major contributions to new thinking for designing, pushing things forward and sometimes sideways in a slightly different direction.