Vintage Quick Crochet Suit

 

What is the oldest item in your wardrobe?

Perhaps it's your first pair of shoes or an inherited wedding dress. What ever it is, I bet it carries with it memories and history. When we view faded finery in a museum we often don't know the history that comes with that garment. Who made it, why was it made and when was it made?

 

I want to share with you a piece of crochet history and a bit of personal history. I have just been gifted a 1970's crochet suit. Not only do I know who made it, but I also know when and why it was made. And, best of all, I have the original pattern from which it was made.

 

Me and my big sister!

Sometime between 1970 and 1972 my family and I were living in Skipton, West Yorkshire. I mention this, because besides being part of this story, Skipton is important in the history and current story of yarn. Even if you are not British you may very well have heard of the yarn festival, Yarndale, which takes place every September in the town.

 

The name Skipton comes from the Anglo Saxon words 'sceap', meaning sheep, and 'tun', meaning town. West Yorkshire was an important area in the history of wool, becoming very wealthy until modern fabrics, foreign competition, and Australian Merino wool supplanted it's importance.

The secret to the towns success probably stems from the fact that a Norman castle was built in the town sometime after 1090. You'll find it at the top of the High street. In 1204 the King granted a charter for a weekly market in sheep and woollen goods. Later the arrival of the Leeds to Liverpool canal helped trade to flourish during the Industrial Revolution. 

If you could take a time machine back to sometime around 1970, to that very same High street, you might spot my Mum and Godmother, Anita, admiring a crochet jacket and skirt in the window of a wool shop. Later that same year Anita had a wedding to attend and thought the crochet suit would be perfect. To hear Anita tell it, they bought the pattern and yarn, my Mum taught her to crochet and on returning home Anita finished it in time for the wedding! When I think of all the patterns that are available today for a beginner, I can't imagine anyone making this suit as their very first project.

Shall we look at the pattern? This is the original copy Anita used to make the outfit. It is a little the worse for wear, but the fact it still exists is amazing, don't you think? Ravelry tells me that this pattern was first published in 1966, although this copy is a later edition. Look who that is modelling the outfit. It's Twiggy, arguably Britain's very first supermodel. When was the last time you saw a supermodel on the cover of your crochet pattern? It tells us something about crochet in the sixties and seventies. Gone is all that fiddly Victorian crochet, gone the Irish crochet doilies, gone the Filet panels. We have thrown off the utilitarian war time knitting. Now crochet is bold and modern and for the young.

 

The pattern is by Twilleys of Stamford, Lincolnshire. Founded by the yarn manufacturer H.G.Twilley in 1936. Later the company was bought by Thomas B. Ramsdens of Guiseley near Leeds. I mention this because Guiseley is a mere 20 miles away from Skipton and so it brings our story neatly back to where it began!

 

We can make this pattern in Twilley's Crysette No3 Cotton, or as Anita chose, in their Stalite No3 Soft Cotton. The hooks we need are Nos. 14 and 12 which I believe are 2mm and 2.5mm in modern sizes. Interestingly the pattern can be made for a 32, 34, or 36 inch bust (81,86,or 91cm). There is no size inclusion here! I notice the pattern is priced at one shilling (1/-) or 5 pence. Britain took up the decimal currency on the 15th February 1971 so even the price of the pattern tells us something about the social history of this era!

The jacket is constructed from panels worked from the top down, which gives the hems their scalloped edge. It begins with the smaller hook until the 8th row when the larger hook size is used and the stitch pattern is increased at the end of the rows. This makes the panels flare towards the bottom and shapes the sleeves and arm hole. The sleeves are made in a similar way but with additional increases. Even the collar is made separately. The button band is crocheted directly to the jacket front edges with six buttons.

 

Unlike a modern pattern there is no mention of blocking, instead we are told to; 'Press work lightly on the wrong side with a warm iron over a damp cloth.' This is what we did before steam irons! I remember my Mum ironing in this way using either a damp tea-towel or a damp muslin cloth.

 

The skirt is also made the same way, from a single panel worked from the top down, changing hook size at row 8. Along with the increases, this creates that classic 1960's A-line skirt. It is seamed along the back. The waistband is simply rows of Dc (Sc-US) and finished with elastic on the inside of the band.

 

This little swatch shows the first rows of the sleeve and shows how the increases are made.

 

All in all the instructions are brief, to say the least. They require us to have plenty of confidence and knowledge. We are not even told what size buttons are needed. I am not sure that the designer would be able to sell patterns in this modern era! Would we tolerate these meagre instructions? I tore my hair out trying to work out the stitch pattern and find how the increases were made. In the end I had to refer to Anita's work to find out what she did!

 

I am very proud to now own this piece of our crochet history and my own family history. I was surprised at how comfortable the jacket was to wear and how modern it still looks. Anita has kept it in such a good condition that it looks as if she finished making it only yesterday! Once again I am in awe of those who crocheted before us!

 

... Fastening off