knitting

I don’t know about you, but I’m hooked on vintage knitting patterns. I’ve found some from the 1930s through the 1960s that are just great, and many of them could be right back in style today. The biggest problem with some of these patterns is figuring out what modern yarn will work in them. Many of the yarns they use simply aren’t available any more, and there are so many more options today, it’s sometimes confusing if patterns aren’t specific about the ply or weight of the yarn.

They didn’t use the numbers we use today to designate yarns, so sometimes the easiest thing to do is to knit up a swatch of the pattern (which you should do anyway!) and see how close you come to the gauge the pattern calls for. Because we have so many new and different yarns today, you can often take a vintage pattern and really make it new just by changing the yarn, it creates an entirely new look in many cases.

It’s amazing to see how many knitted dresses and suits there were in the 1930s and 1940s, and how stylish they were. A lot of things that are popular now, like shrugs and shawls, were really stylish then, too, and of course, things like baby clothes never seem to go out of style. Check out some of the vintage patterns online, and you may be surprised by what you find!

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