Mostly Knitting Blog » Page 7 of 71

Sew a Nightie Without a Pattern and Design Embroidery with Paper

March 26, 2019 Embroidery

This week in our “And so To Sew” series, leaflet 11a will teach you how to sew a nightie without using a pattern and how to sew pyjamas from a commercial pattern. We also build on your library of techniques with frills, casings, machine sewn felled seams and sewing a collar and facing in one step.

In “And So To Embroider” leaflet 11b, we learn how to design and edit embroideries using cut paper. How to vary the look of the same design by using different stitches, appliqué with a couched edge and make a notebook holder.

As always, I have added modern video or photo tutorials to each page for my fellow visual learners.

We still have a long way to go with the “And So To” series of bulletins! Make sure to visit every Tuesday (Australian Eastern) for new sewing and embroidery content, every Thursday for the week’s “Favourite Thing” (it could be anything, this week it’s a whole tutorial!), and every Saturday for a new knitting pattern.

New Knitted Lace Edging

March 23, 2019 Knitting

Five repeats of narracoorte knitted lace edging

This week’s knitting pattern is a lace edging I have named “Narracoorte Lace“, after the newspaper it was first published in, in 1890.

As always, I have updated the pattern into modern knitting terms, charted it and tested it for errors. Despite it’s complex looking design, narracoorte lace is only 17 stitches wide and 10 rows long, making it really good value for your effort!

There are now over 183 edging and insertion patterns on Knitting-and.com and they can all be found on the “Lace Collars, Edgings and Insertions” pages. (I include collars because they often make great edgings too). If you’re ever looking for a perfect finish to your project, check them out!

The National Library of Australia Online Archives

March 21, 2019 Websites

A screenshot of the Australian National Library's online archives, Trove.

Today’s “favourite things Thursday” is all about Trove, the online Archives of the Australian National Library.

You can search many of their collections, but for me the great forgotten treasures lie in the newspaper and magazine archives, the pictures, photos and objects archive and the diaries and letters archives.

Whether you want to learn about the jazz knitting craze of the 1920’s, embroider a bin chicken, or read thank you letters from wounded soldiers in World War 1, to the girls who knit them socks (and a knitting pattern). You’ll find what you’re looking for.

Some favourites of mine include:

this knitting pattern for Tommy the Terrier (I find Douglas the Duckling somewhat frightening)
a recipe for Mugly from 1890, which I cooked, ate and updated the measurements for modern cooks. If you’d like it updated for modern tastes as well, here’s a recipe for Lebanese meghli (also known as mughli or moghli) which has a lot more flavours that I wish I could eat right now.
The knitted “Mod Menagerie” from the Australian Women’s Weekly in 1968
The embroidered bin chicken I mentioned earlier and
This knitting pattern for a fair-isle coat from 1924. 1920’s jazz knitting at it’s finest, I think!

I hope you’ve enjoyed this little look into just some of the treasures you can find in the Trove archives. Let me know what you find in the comments, or if there’s something you’d like to find, let me know!

Week 10 of And So To Sew and Embroider

March 19, 2019 Embroidery

This week’s installments of “And So To Sew” and “And So To Embroider” bring us to week 10. This week we’ll learn all about the techniques used to sew a woollen dress from a commercial pattern, how to sew a tailored collar and cuffs (pattern included), and how to use simple embroidery stitches to create motifs and borders.

Tailored collar and cuffs from "And SO To Sew" bulletin 10a

Check out “And So To Sew” leaflet 10a, sewing with wool.

An embroidered border from "And So To Embroider" bulletin 10b

Find out all about “And So To Embroider” bulletin 10b. Designing with Stitches.

As always, I have included modern video or photo tutorials for everyone who enjoys learning by example.

If you’d like to stay up to date with every new item I add to the website, subscribe to the email list over on the left (on desktop), or under this post on tablet or mobile. You’ll receive a quick email every time I add something new.

New Lace Edging from 1911!

March 16, 2019 Knitting

A knitted lace edging featuring lace diamonds with a large eyelet in the centre of each

This week’s new knitting pattern is a lovely lace edging from 1911, The Dorothy Knitted Lace.

This lace edging is a nice addition to what I call the “English Laces” here on Knitting-and.com (since the first lace edging of this style that I found was called English Lace). You’ll find the others in the ever-growing Lace Collars, Edgings and Insertions collection, which I update regularly.

As always, I have updated the knitting terms used in the pattern, charted it and checked it for errors.

If you are enjoying the new knitting patterns, don’t forget to subscribe to the site over on the left (on desktop), or underneath this post if you’re on tablet or mobile. You’ll receive an email whenever I post something new.