Another vintage knitting project…

As any of you who follow my rather sporadic blogging will know, I do like to try to knit.
I can knit but very, very, slowly. I am not great at knitting anything with a pattern – it takes all of my concentration to get the increasing and decreasing correct in plain garter or stocking stitch.
My choice of pattern is therefore restricted to anything simple with no pattern. Bizarrely I can knit socks but in reality I think sock knitting it actually very simple (except for the heel shaping which does call for concentration)
This is my latest creation. The pattern is Weldons B1454 which I purchased online from The Vintage Knitting Lady for the princely sum of £1.50 for a pdf download.

weldons B1454

hand made 50s cardigan

I also don’t like to knit in anything lighter than Double Knit. Mainly because as I said I knit very slowly and it takes too long and I don’t have the patience. I like things that happen quickly (which is invariable never when I’m knitting)
This ‘Shortie jacket’ is knitted in 100% cotton. I’ve never knitted with cotton before and I’m uncertain as to how it will behave. I have read that cotton garments tend to ‘grow’ since unlike wool cotton has no ‘memory’ and so rather than springing back to shape as wool does it just keeps growing. 

I guess only time will tell with this, but despite me knitting a tension swatch and following the correct size on the pattern this cardigan has ended up a little on the snug side so maybe if it grows a bit that won’t be a problem. Unless it also grows downwards….

Red 1950s cardigan

hand knitted vintage cardigan

I’ll leave you with a couple of photos front and back. The buttons are actually red but look a bit pinkish where they catch the light.

I would encourage anyone who wants to try knitting to grab some needles and have a go. It is very satisfying to actually make something that you can wear – even if you only start off with a scarf, which is what I did. Maybe one day I will be able to make something with more of a pattern but for now I’m happy to just keep practicing and hopefully slowly improving.

Similar Posts

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *