A 1960's knitted beret

What an outfit! What a colour!

However, for the purpose of this post all we are interested in is the beret. I have been after a knitted beret for a good while, and am going through a phase of finding all the beret patterns that I have and knitting them up one by one to find my favourite. Berets are so versatile in their look and in their period correctness and I have a gap in my hat wardrobe.

I have knitted the Sunday Pictorial Beret from A Stitch in Time by Susan Crawford but I can't get it to look right on me, though I have seen it look fabulous on others. It has a separately knitted and stitched on bow and I think it might be the placement of that which is causing me problems. I need to remove the bow so the weight doesn't pull the beret down and then I can position it on my head more to my liking. So whilst that is on the 'to fix' pile I am trying other patterns out.

I bought this fabulously soft, beautifully coloured yarn from Temporary Measure when I saw them at Yarndale in September. It is 100% baby alpaca DK and it knits up beautifully with a lovely drape and good stitch definition. It is most lovely and warm too.

The colour is a bit lighter than this really but I can't get a good photo of it in this winter gloom! I love the radiating decreases.

This is quite a big beret; I would say it is larger than the pattern suggests. I rarely check my tension if I'm knitting an accessory for myself and the yarn is pretty drapey. I rather like the extra slouch; I can wear this like a tam which is a style I am comfy wearing. I'm going to go down a needle size for the next one for myself for comparison. The headband is just garter stitch so I probably would like that on a smaller needle for a closer fit.

This is it hot off the needles and straight on to my head, hence the bad lighting and the sofa selfie. I liked wearing it straight away.

It has continued to get lots of wear. This is me early in the morning on a freezing station platform waiting for yet another late train to work! It keeps my ears nice and cosy. This is a better idea of the colour too.

I have knitted another one as a commission knit. Here it is:

This one is knitted in black Drops Merino DK and it feels lovely.

Finishing touches - woven labels and vintage thread.

I have a beret from another pattern knitted up which just needs seaming so that should be getting tested out in a few days.

Do you have a favourite beret pattern?

Tweed, tartan and tapestry

A few Saturdays ago I went on a little outing to a neighbouring town with a friend who gets as much joy from all the crafty things as I do. We get a bit squeaky with excitement. We were most excited to be going along to the Beyond Measure Open Day. If you haven't come across Beyond Measure yet and you like beautiful things to help you in your making and doing then you really are in for a treat. Grace, the owner, was opening her studio for the day and the opportunity to handle some of the lovely goodies, plus the chance to spend our leftover spending money from Edinburgh Yarn Festival, could not be missed!

Beyond Measure is housed in a fabulous old mill type building with lots of industrial architectural details and interiors to look at.

Lovely old staircase

I love a bit of peeling paint

Light switch

We had a really good look at everything in the studio, a really good look and a little fondle and a stroke here and there. There was a lovely atmosphere and it was good to chat with fellow craft fans and make new friends. There was a cafe set up in one corner and we took full advantage of that (who said we had two of the oh so delicious cakes?!), whilst pondering what our purchases were to be.

Pretty Tulip needles

Fantastic storage jars

Trimmings and bindings

Pretty tins of haberdashery

Love these little chaps by Eleanor Bostrom. My friend may have taken one home!

All the colours in the embroidery threads.

Gorgeous tweed just waiting to be made into lovely things.

More tweedy goodness.

One of these fab knitting bags came home with me.

You can probably see that it was time for tough decisions. I got a very cute thimble necklace and a wooden sewing needle holder to keep my yarn needles safe in my knitting bag. I just realised I don't have a photo of them as yet.

If you are wondering where the tapestry and tartan of the title are - they formed the main part of my outfit.

One of my Welsh tapestry handbags. This one has lots of mustard and teal in it which meant I really couldn't resist it.

My tartan skirt is from good old M&S and is a) orange, b) wool, c) lined and d)warm. It has had a lot of wear since I bought it in the sale in January. My local charity shops have had a dearth of old lady tartan skirts so this filled a gap in my wardrobe.

My preciousss

My fabulous sewing machine brooch was a gift from my in laws and it and others like it are stocked by Beyond Measure. I should say here that this is not a sponsored post, I just love lovely stuff.

Thanks for taking my outfit pictures Karen.

2017 knitting wish list - 1960's-1970's

Clearly this year's knitting wish list is not nearly long enough so after going through my 1930's-1950's patterns I thought that I had better round things off and pull out my wish list from the 1960's and 1970's too. These are not always my preferred eras but I do find things that I would really like to knit from them. In particular, the 1960's knits have a good range of summer appropriate tops, something that I have discussed with another 1960's knits fan Crinoline Robot.

I really like the styling on this pattern before we even get to the knitwear and look at her glorious hair. This lovely little lacy top would be perfect for a summer's day.

We might as well look at all the lacy summer tops first. I haven't narrowed down my favourites yet which is why there are quite a few in the list. I like the way the lace carries on into the hem on these two.

This is called a harebell shell which sounds fabulous and I do like the harebell stitch pattern. The neckline is good too. It has styling potential for the 1950's so that would make it a versatile wardrobe addition.

Lee Target were obviously on a lace shell top roll in this year as this is very similar to pattern number two, just a different lace pattern. I still like it though.

I love this one. Who doesn't need a knitted poodle jumper in their wardrobe?!

I'm particularly taken with the orange jumper on the right. I really like the deep rib and the interesting stitch pattern. I think with careful styling this jumper could work in a 1940's outfit too.

I must deal with my hankering for a tank top soon and just knit myself some. I like the slip stitch pattern of this one and can see it working in many colour combinations as well as this fantastic monochrome one. Check out those blouse sleeves too.

I am after making myself the perfect Aran jumper or cardigan and I have a number of patterns to choose from. The one on the left is a strong contender. I even have two bags of Millamia aran in ochre stashed away ready to knit the perfect Aran when it is found!

I don't have very many (any?) jumpers as I am usually all about the cardigans. I think there may be a jumper shaped hole in my knitwear drawer and this might be just the thing to fill it. It finishes nicely on the waist, has interest in the lace panels and has a raglan sleeve.

I could also do with a fairly plain cardigan but I never put that very high up the list when there are all the fancy stitch cardigans to be knitted. Then I found this lovely ribbed Mary Quant number and suddenly a plain cardigan is looking quite likely.

One thing I love about 1960's knitwear are these fabulous skirt and jumper outfits. I think knitting a skirt might a) try my patience and b) not be flattering but I really like the look and would like to try it out. The cables on this skirt would relieve the tedium of miles and miles of stocking stitch too. Though I'm not knocking miles and miles of stocking stitch, that is good for watching films, inducing a calm state and knitting and talking/drinking/eating cake/all three at the same time.

A variation on the set above. I like the striped skirt but am not sure it would look so flattering. I do like the fact that you can have a matching hat and scarf to go with your jumper though.

So many fabulous patterns and not enough knitting time! I wonder what I will have made by the end of the year, if any?!

Next weekend I am off to Edinburgh Yarn Festival with a lovely group of friends. It is massively exciting and there will be many yarn shopping opportunities. I have been saving up and now I have kind of narrowed down my pattern choices I will know what to look out for! I am supposed to not get sidetracked by yarn that I don't have a plan for so I will see how that goes! Wish me luck!

Top Ten his and hers knits

Last night at midnight you would have found me rummaging through my pattern collection as an idea for a post had struck at a most inconvenient moment and I had to act on it right then to find out if it was going to work out. This led me to finding the relevant patterns in my collection and then setting up a temporary photo studio in the bathroom as it had the best light I could find at night! I knew I couldn't go to sleep until I had it all sorted out so I just cracked on with it!

For some reason, the idea of matching set knits, often known as his and her knits (though they could also be his and his or hers and hers) appeared in my head as quite a vintage thing. Especially a vintage outdoor activity thing. I was sure I had quite a few his and her matching knits and it got me wondering as to why the whole matching clothes thing was a thing? How did that come about? Did people actually knit and wear the matching sets? Would you? Do you have matching outdoors wear jumpers? Is it still a thing? I would say not, except for in an ironic way, or for a specific event but what made the change? I don't know the answers to this but if anyone does do share.

Let me present the Top Ten his and her knits in my pattern collection. My choices were made purely on liking the patterns and feeling that if I were to be in a matching knit mood any one of these could make it onto my needles.

If I was knitting this I would make the one the man is wearing for me. I like the chunkiness of the knit and the shawl collar design, as well as the motifs.

I do like a yoked jumper and I am yet to make one so these have definite appeal. I like the roll neck too.

If I was going to perch a heavy old typewriter on my knee and sit on an uncomfortable stool this is the jumper I would like to do it in. A lovely look for vintage casual inspiration.

I love this one, this is what I want to look like whilst walking my dog. The matching hat is an added bonus.

My other outdoor outfit of choice would feature this lumber jacket. I like the raglan sleeve and the cable detail surrounding the zip.

You can't beat a traditional Aran cardigan. I like the fit of this one, the longer length for casual cosiness and of course, the pockets.

I prefer his button up version to her zip up one and I like the contrast of the plain body with the ribbed sleeves. Please take a minute to notice that massive saw. This one ticks both the his and hers and the worrying props categories of my pattern collection.

This 1940's knit is very similar in style to the 1950's one above except for the shawl collar and the tighter, shorter fit. This one is a double pattern category entry (men smoking) too as the man has a pipe.

Not only do they have matching jumpers they have matching hats. Fabulous yokes and the pattern continue round above the cuffs and the bottom of the jumper. All good.

Karaoke and motif knitwear? Go on then. I like both designs.

Which would you choose?

A beautiful bungalow

As it has been another hot day today, reminiscent of late July weather, and as it isn't officially Autumn until later this week, I thought that right now is the last chance to talk about my summer holiday. I shared some snapshots of the Isle of Wight here and I now want to show some pictures of where I stayed.

I booked a bungalow on a 1960's built small holiday park through Vintage Vacations. It is located about 20 minutes walk outside Ventnor. I can't see the bungalow on their website at the moment, I hope that doesn't mean that they no longer own it. Vintage Vacations own several holiday properties on the island, all of which look interesting, and they have a field of Airstream caravans (which might need to be another holiday!).

The bungalow doesn't look like all that much from the outside, but inside it is decorated in a blend of vintage/retro/secondhand/granny chic splendour. I just loved it! I somehow neglected to photograph the bathroom or the third bedroom but here are all the best bits!

You enter straight into the lounge.

The sofas are covered in a patchwork of old fabrics and are so very comfortable.

This is on the other side of the front door.

Retro phone!

Cosy spot and a place to eat.

Pretty little details.

Looking through to the kitchen.

Fantastic 1950's style kitchen units. I think one was original and the others reproduction.

Wall cabinet in the kitchen.

Cabinet details.

In the main bedroom.

Great curtains.

Dressing table companion!

The second bedroom.

More great fabrics.

Patchwork runner close up.

Very smart dressing table!

Decorative touches.

The outside. A little shabby around the edges and not much hint of the fabulousness within! Happy memories! It was a really super holiday home.