Issue 4, Wild About Yarn Magazine out now PLUS bonus free magazine

WILD ABOUT YARN MAGAZINE, ISSUE 4 - VINTAGE

I was so happy to finally get Issue 4 of Wild About Yarn Magazine out on the PDF 'shelves' and sent off to subscribers all over the world!  Have you seen it yet?  Even better that I could offer a bonus FREE magazine that traces the history of knitting from the 1920s to the 1960s. (When postage in Australia increased by 40 percent between two of my issues, I had to make the sad decision to publish the magazine as a PDF download but the feedback has been positive.)   

Casey Maura 

it was with delight that Casey Maura and Amy Appel both accepted  my invitation to be our feature maker and designer respectively. This was another bonus as I've admired their work for a while now.  Casey epitomises vintage in almost every way from her 1940s and 50s inspired dresses to the sweaters she knits, often acting as a test knitter for other designers including Amy Appel. Casey has a regular podcast  on which she discusses her knitting, sewing and spinning, and Amy  can be found on Ravelry with several design ranges and a swag of fellow knitter/ followers who love her sweater and turban designs. 

The next addition to the Rockabilly Queen Collection
The Money Honey Turban
Find it here: Money Honey Turban

New sock pattern from Casey
Find them here:
Mischief Maker Socks

And...
I couldn't wait to announce their new  designs.  Casey has just published her first sock pattern, Mischief Maker Socks  (I hope to start mine soon when the KAL commences in 2018), and Amy is adding to her Rockabilly Queen Collection with the versatile Money Honey Turban- the KAL has just finished but you can still find it on Ravelry.  

A little knitting history... 

Knitting and crochet have had a bad rap  for a long time and I'm not so sure that they've gained more status despite how hard creators and makers have worked to bring them into the 21st century.  they are still considered an activity for older women and perhaps we'll never re-educate everyone on how incredible designers are now.  I'm heartened to see women of all ages  reviving it in huge sweeps with innovative and vibrant designs.  It's ironic that it's now considered more a 'woman's activity' when it is believed that the first knitters were fishermen.  In the  Middle Ages, knitting was done exclusively by men who had to pass a series of exams and tests which took some 6 years to complete, in order to  be considered qualified professional knitters. By the 1400s, guilds were established but again, these were only for men. 

1920s- Flapper, masculine shapes

1930s feminine style, nipped in waists,
 fairisle

The true shift of knitting by women came in the Victorian era. In 1589, William Lee invented the first stocking frame knitting machine which is still in use today.  With the advent of this and subsequent knitting machines, there wasn't the necessity for  men to spend years doing their apprenticeships to become qualified knitters.  Knitting machines did this for them, thereby diminishing the number of men who knit.  Knitting then shifted to a craft that women took up  in the home, but the activity of knitting was only considered 'a wifely one' not a professional one as it had for men.  Far from feeling that way, Amy Appel, in our  second interview, discusses how empowered she feels as a young woman, knitting in modern times, knitting anywhere and knitting with other women.   

Vintage supplement - bonus free issue  (24 pages)

Wild ABout Yarn magazine traces the collision of knitting and culture, of how politics, combat between countries and advances in technology shaped not only how we proceeded as a society but how knitting progressed. 

The main issue consists of two interviews, two articles-tips for adjusting Vintage Patterns in the 21st Century and the Make, Do and Mend Era of the 1940s.  And finally, in Kitchen Bites there's a recipe for Delicious Strawberry Swirl Vanilla cake. 

(Try it, I think you'll like it! Make it for your next knitting group gathering!)

The BONUS FREE issue is  24 pages jam-packed full of the history of knitting through the years.  It's been so much fun creating the mood boards for this issue.  I learned so much and I hope you do too.  

Find the link to my Etsy store here Wild About Yarn  This is a PDF download delivered directly to your email.  

Happy Yarning,
Lu x


If you make any of the  patterns, please tag your projects on Instagram with:

#wildaboutyarnvintage  #wildaboutyarn #vintagestyle 

You can find me here:

Instagram: @wildaboutyarn

Email:          wildaboutyarn@outlook.com