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
    

  

OUT NOW!!!!!!!!! It took a while but here is the FOURTH issue of Wild ABout Yarn Magazine and I love it.  The theme is:

VINTAGE and we all love vintage knitting! 

Issue 4, Wild About Yarn, VINTAGE - BONUS FREE  magazine
included on knitting fashion through the decades
  PDF only available here:
Etsy: Wild About Yarn Magazine, Issue 4, VINTAGE PLUS bonus magazine free! 

Find more sneak peaks on Instagram: @wildaboutyarn 

Read about the era of 'Make, Do and Mend' 

The delightful Casey Maura - our featured maker who sews and knits
and finds time to podcast
 'Creative Musings' Casey's blog
Creative Musings Podcast

Amy Appel, our featured knitwear designer, loves Rockabilly style
and designs amazing, sassy garments.
Find Amy on Ravelry

 In this issue you will find two interviews, articles about vintage knitwear and how it differs from today's designs.  
Included for those looking for a project are: 
three patterns - a cute pair ofknitted bobby sox
                          - a knitted turban using simple lace and
                          - a crocheted collar - the inexpensive way for women to reinvent an outfit when rationing was enforced.  Women are so resourceful! 

PLUS...there is a bonus magazine included free!! J

This supplement focuses specifically on the decades
1920 - 1960 and takes a look into what was the knitted fashion, how events of the world shaped the garments that were made, what colours were used and what styles were created! (Did you know that bobby pins stopped being manufactured so women needed a way to hold back their hair. Welcome TURBANS!!!! Apart from being a chic addition to a wardrobe, they were practical and appeared in all manner of designs!) 

Lu Dougas, Publisher

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

#wildaboutyarnvintage  #wildaboutyarn #vintage 

You can find me here:

Instagram: @wildaboutyarn

Email:          wildaboutyarn@outlook.com
Find the magazine here: Wild About Yarn, Vintage Issue 4                   

And when I'm not up there, I am knitting..

Happy Yarning, 

Lu x

Vintage Floral motif 4

Motif 4 - Vintage Floral 

I just love the centre!  My only lament about motifs/doilies is that often, the most beautiful design is in the middle and gets covered up.  Now and then I just sit an arrangement of doilies on a table to show them off!  I might have to do that with this one. :-) 

FACTS

Yarn – 4ply

3.5mm hook
Finished diameter - 20cm (7 3/4") 

Abbreviations -  UK terms

Ch – chain                  tr - treble

Dc – double crochet    2 stitch dtrcl -  2 stitch double treble cluster
3 stitch dtrcl - 3 double treble cluster - made over three stitches **

**   2-stitch dtrcl -  2-stitch double treble cluster

Omit the last step of each double tr – to begin: go into the first stitch and do a double treble to the last step, go into the next stitch and do a double treble to the last step, then yo and pull through the  three loops on the hook.

3-stitch dtrcl : 

Omit the last step of each double tr, go into the first stitch and do a double treble to the last step, go into the next stitch and do a double treble to the last step, go into the third stitch and do a double treble to the last step,  then yo and pull through  two loops, yo and pull through the three loops on the hook.. 

 4dtrcl: 

Omit the last step of each double tr and instead of going into the stitch, go into the chain space of the row before.  Repeat  in the same manner as for 3stdtrcl  but do one more repeat before pulling through all the 5 loops on the hook. 

Magic circle  

1. Ch1, 24dc into ring.  Join with a slst into the first dc.

2. Ch4 (counts as 1tr), 2dtrcl, (the ch4 and the 2dtrcl is equal to a 3treble cluster)  *ch7, make a 3dtr cluster over the next 3 dc  . Repeat from * around joining the last ch7 with a slst in the top of the 1^st cluster. 

3.  Slst into each of the next 3ch, ch1, dc in the same loop, *ch8, dc in next loop.  Repeat from * around, joining the last ch8 with a slst in the 1^st dc.  

4. Slst into the loop, ch4, make three 4dtr clusters with a ch5 in between, *ch5, three 4dtr clusters  with 5ch in between in the next loop. Repeat from * around.  

5.  Slst into  1^st 2 ch of the 5ch space,  dc in the same loop, *ch5, dc in next loop.  Repeat from * around. Join with a slst to the dc. 

6.  Dc in same place as the slst, 7dc in 5ch space, *dc in dc of previous row, 7dc in 5ch space. Repeat * around.   Fasten off.

 Block using your preferred method.

This reminded me of a handkerchief from the old days...

There...a fresh bright Spring  floral motif.  (It's Autumn here in Australia.  The nights are a bit cooler but the days are divine!)

Look...already Vintage Floral has been made by Imagine Knits, Alicia. (Follow her on IG @knits_with_husky)   Thank you, Alicia!  I love it! 

FLYING NORTH -  a little trip away from home for a change

I had a trip recently to an artist friend's place in the hinterland of Rockhampton, Queensland.  I love flying over this landscape, the meandering river, the patchwork designs on the ground and the ever changing palette depending on the weather changes.

The Fitzroy River, Rockhampton, Queensland, Australia

So green after the recent rain...the area has been in drought for a long while.

Coming in to land over a tributary of the river

Now I'm working on a special  crochet project for Easter . ;-) Of course working on a project means I need fuel by way of a muffin and a coffee!  

I bought a new mug. I don't like the plastic or styrofoam kind so I generally take my own.  Today I forgot so I bought this one on the way...lovely, isn't it?

Happy crocheting,

Lu x