The Penguin Knitting Book: A Reissue of the Original Book

List of Plates

Stitches

1a. Elongated check pattern

1b. Broken check pattern

1c. Triangular stitch

2a. Vandyke pattern

2b. Vandyke and check pattern

2c. Diagonal striped pattern

3a. Embossed diamond stitch

3b. Embossed ribbed pattern

3c. Embossed bell pattern

4a. Diamond eyelet pattern

4b. Crown of glory pattern

4c. Feather pattern

5a. Beech leaf pattern

5b. Purl 1 twist 2 pattern

5c. Purl 1 twist 3 pattern

6a. Single cable pattern

6b. Wave cable pattern

6c. Double rope cable pattern

7a. Branch cable pattern

7b. Medallion cable pattern

8a. Wheat ear cable pattern

8b. Cable check pattern

8c. Diagonal wave pattern

9a. Simple bobble pattern

9b. Trefoil bobble pattern

9c. Fancy cable pattern

Garments

10. Baby’s layette: Coat, bonnet, mitts, and bootees

11a. Baby’s layette: Dress, vest, and pilch

11b. Child’s cardigan in three sizes, Child’s jersey, Girl’s cable and all-over patterned cardigan

12a. Polo neck sweater, Lumber jacket, Pullover with V neck, for boys or girls

12b. Child’s Fair Isle beret and gloves, Man’s Fair Isle scarf and gloves

13a. Lady’s vest, Lady’s knickers in rib and lace, Lady’s lace knickers

13b. Two-ply jumper with square neck

14a. Classic twin set

14b. Classic cardigan with low V neckline

15a. Jacket

15b. Lady’s Shetland jumper-cardigan

16a. Lady’s outsize twin set

16b. Basic suit in three sizes, Dog’s coat

17a. Three-ply dress

17b. Two bedjackets

18. Shawl

19a. Matching scarf and gloves, Pom-pom trimmed hat

19b. Man’s cardigan, Man’s sleeveless pullover

20a. Polo sweater in three sizes

20b. Man’s waistcoat in three sizes

21a. Evening blouse with draped décolletage

21b. Man’s continental slipover

22a. Golf stockings, Fancy rib socks, Boy’s stockings, Man’s plain socks

22b. Child’s socks

23a. Small lace doily

23b. Four knitted lace edgings

24. Tea cosy

Fashion Supplement

25. Lady’s evening jumper, Evening stole

26. Evening shawl, Evening stoles

27a. Lady’s striped coat, Hat

27b. Brushed wool coat

28a. Two-ply separates

28b. Four-ply Tyrolean coat

29a. Lace-front cardigan, Hat

29b. Man’s continental sweater

30a. Lady’s two-ply button-through blouse

30b. Lady’s Lucelle jumper, cap sleeve, V neck

31. Three lady’s hats

32. Lady’s jumper with V-shaped panel and yoke

The photographs of the different stitches were taken by John Dyson, those of the garments by Peter Clark and John Dyson, and those for the Fashion Supplement by Michael Dunne. The line drawings were made by Pamela Cox.

Abbreviations

K – knit

P – purl

KB – Knit into back of stitch

PB – Purl into back of stitch

st – stitch

sl – slip

wf – wool forward

yf – yarn forward

wft – wool front, bring wool to front of needle

wb – wool back, take wool to back of needle

wrn – wool round needle

won – wool on needle

psso – pass slipped stitch over

tog – together

tbl – through back of loop

inc – increase by working into front and back of stitch

dec – decrease by working 2 stitches together

beg – beginning

alt – alternate

rep – repeat

patt – pattern

incl – inclusive

ins – inches

dc – double crochet

o – no sts

M1	–	Make 1, by picking up loop that lies between st just worked and following st, and working into back of it.
M1K	–	Make 1 knitwise by picking up loop that lies between st just worked and following st and knitting into back of it.
M1P	–	Make 1 purlwise by picking up loop that lies between st just worked and following st and purling into back of it.
MB	–	Make Bobble by P1, K1, P1, K1, P1 into next st thus making 5 sts out of next st, turn, K5, turn, P5, slip 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th sts over first st.
C2F	–	Cable 2 Front by working across next 4 sts as follows: Slip next 2 sts on to cable needle and leave at front of work, knit next 2 sts, then knit 2 sts from cable needle.
C2B	–	Cable 2 Back as C2F, but leave sts at back of work in place of front.
C3F	–	Cable 3 Front by working across next 6 sts as follows: Slip next 3 sts on to cable needle and leave at front of work, knit across next 3 sts then knit 3 sts from cable needle.
C3B	–	Cable 3 Back as C3F, but leave sts at back of work in place of front.
C4F	–	Cable 4 front by working across next 8 sts as follows: Slip next 4 sts on to cable needle and leave at front of work, knit across next 4 sts then knit 4 sts from cable needle.
Tw2	–	Twist 2 by knitting the next 2 sts together, but do not slip off left-hand needle, knit into the first of these sts again, then slip both sts off needle.
Tw2P	–	Twist 2 purlwise by purling the next 2 sts together but do not slip off left-hand needle, purl into the first of these sts again, then slip both sts off needle.
Tw3	–	Twist 3 by inserting point of right-hand needle knitwise into front of 3rd st keeping point of this needle at front of work, knit the st in the ordinary way; work the 2nd st in the same manner, now knit into front of the 1st st then slip all 3 sts off left-hand needle together.

LP – Lace panel

B – Blue

BG – Bottle green

C – Contrast

D – Dark

G – Ground shade

L – Light

LN – Light natural

M – Medium

PY – Pale yellow

S – Scarlet

Y – Yellow

W – White

CHAPTER 1 Once Upon a Time

Knitting fills a fascinating page in the human story. It is one of those by-ways of social history that, although lying off the main track along which man has travelled down the ages, has still contributed a great deal to the economic, social, and aesthetic life of civilization. In spite of many years’ research it has been impossible to track down this ancient craft to its earliest beginnings.

In ancient times a nomadic people wandered about the desert places, living in small communities in the oasis where they had their habitations. Thus some of the nomads became village dwellers. These people were the first knitters. The craft was carried out entirely by the men-folk. The women spun the flax into linen thread and the various animal fibres into woollen yarns. The men took the threads and knitted them into garments.

During this first phase of knitting the work was probably carried out on simple frames. These consisted of long narrow pieces of wood into which wooden or bone pegs had been driven to form a simple rake frame on which the knitting was done. The working method was much the same as in the bobbin work that many of us did when we were children.

The earliest examples of knitted fabric were done in a twisted stocking stitch and when worked on these frames created a firm and durable fabric.*

The origin of knitting needles is completely unknown. Netting, using a long bone tool, was one of man’s very early crafts and hooks have been discovered that suggest that our earliest ancestors had some knowledge of looped fabrics made with hooks. Some Egyptologists claim that they have found in the tombs of the Pharaohs long bone pins that may have been used for knitting. There is another piece of evidence. That is a knitted doll in the Victoria and Albert Museum. This was found in one of the tombs, proving that knitting was an established craft at the time of Cleopatra.

Among the earliest examples of knitting preserved for us to-day are sandal socks. These have been found in various parts of the desert places in Arabia, and specimens of them can be seen in museums in all parts of the world.

The most exciting fragment of fabric was a piece of Arabic knitting in several colours in the collection of Dr Fritz Ikle, who was a German authority on all kinds of textile fabrics. His world-famous collection disappeared before the war under the Nazi régime. The date of this fragment is somewhere between the fifth and seventh centuries. Its interest for us to-day is in the fact that it is a piece of stranded colour knitting in stocking stitch, a technique that was to inspire the craftsmen of the later Middle Ages and early Renaissance to develop knitting during the golden age of the Craft Guilds. These men were the friends of Kings and Courtiers, and designed and knitted elaborate coats in silk fibres and gold and silver threads of which there are several specimens in the Victoria and Albert Museum.

The importance of knitting to the economic life of the community cannot be over-estimated. For centuries it was one of the basic industries not only in England but also in France and Italy. The Florentine knitters have left us a legacy of heavily brocaded knitting, while the Guild of Stocking Knitters in Paris has bequeathed to us lovely lace hose. A pair of stockings of French workmanship were copied by Mrs Montague and presented by her to the first Queen Elizabeth.

When the craft was in its heyday the apprentices to the Knitting Guilds served an arduous apprenticeship that lasted six years. For the first three years they were taught the rudiments of the craft, and for the second three years they travelled extensively all over the continent studying the work of the master knitters there. At the end of the six years the apprentice was ready to apply for entry into the Guild, when he could proudly call himself a master craftsman and set up in business on his own account. Before this privilege was granted to him the young man who had served his apprenticeship honestly had to complete in thirteen weeks a knitted carpet in a coloured design containing flowers, foliage, birds, and animals, approximately six feet by five feet; to knit and felt a woollen beret; to knit himself a woollen shirt and a pair of hose with Spanish Clocks.

It is interesting to note that in some of the Guilds the stockings were to be made after the English style, proving that in those days the people of this country were well known for their knitted hosiery.

The carpet, however, was the masterpiece. The apprentice first submitted a colour design, swearing that the design was entirely his own work. He was then placed in the workroom of one of the master craftsmen where he had to knit the carpet himself.

When all his test pieces were completed they had to be submitted to the Council of the Guild and if they received the approval of the Council the title of Master Knitter was bestowed upon him.

The silk shirt worn by King Charles I on the day of his execution, and to-day in the London Museum, is a fine example of the work of a Master Knitter of that period and has another point of interest for us in that it reflects in the design the influence of Dutch embossed knitting.

It is difficult to discover the types of knitted garments worn in those early days. There are one or two pointers in England’s story. An Act of Parliament passed in 1488 during the reign of King Henry VII mentions knitted caps; while another Act of 1553, passed during the reign of King Edward VI, mentions knitted petticoats, gloves, sleeves, and hose. The significance of these Acts of Parliament is that they prove that knitting had already established itself as an industry that was important enough to be protected by law.

The year 1589 saw a revolution in knitting. William Lee, a Cambridgeshire clergyman, invented the first stocking frame machine, thus laying the foundations of the hosiery industry that was to grow and thrive in Nottinghamshire and Leicestershire where it is one of the basic industries of to-day. Mistress Lee, William Lee’s wife, was herself an ardent knitter and plied her needles day by day, thus helping to maintain the family with her earnings. It was watching his wife working all hours from daylight to rushlight that inspired William Lee to invent a machine which was to breathe new life into knitting, not only in this country but also all over the continent. So we see that a couple of centuries before the Industrial Revolution took place its first faint rumblings were heard during the Elizabethan Age.

In England the knitting of hosiery had become a staple industry. In France and Belgium lace knitting flourished. In Germany and Austria heavy cable and bobble fabrics were produced. In Holland embossed knitted fabrics created wonderful effects, animals, birds, and flowers being worked in reverse stocking stitch on a stocking stitch foundation.

Another page of the story was being written in Scandinavia, where the peasants copied in knitting, on gloves and coats, the reindeer and pine trees that were the natural background to their everyday life.

Colour knitting bequeathed to Europe from its Arabic sources by the early Phoenician traders, travelled from Spain to Fair Isle. The Spanish tradition still lingers there, for in all genuine Fair Isle garments one of the basic motifs is the ‘Armada Cross’. The influence of Christianity can also be seen in the patterns used in Fair Isle knitting. Their very names, the ‘Rose of Sharon’, the ‘Sacred Heart’, the ‘Crown of Glory’, all speak to us of the golden age of Christendom itself.

Shetland lace knitting is another fascinating aspect of a worldwide story. The practice of lace knitting in Shetland was derived from needle-made laces. In the early part of the nineteenth century a Mrs Jessie Scanlon visited Shetland, taking with her a wonderful collection of laces she had gathered together in all parts of Europe. The Shetlanders, who were already ardent knitters, mainly following the Scandinavian tradition which had been taken to the islands by the Norse settlers in the ninth century, were soon busy plying their needles and wool copying the intricate patternings from Mrs Scanlon’s laces.

By the end of the first Elizabethan age London ceased to be a small collection of villages clustered round the city itself and became transformed into the banking and trading centre of England. Knitting was driven farther and farther North, finally establishing itself as a home industry among the hand knitters of the Yorkshire Dales.

The men and women of the Dales became famous for their hand-knitted stockings and until the beginning of the eighteenth century were able to earn a good livelihood by plying their needles and wool.

The Crimean War marked the final phase in this part of our story. The last burst of prosperity came to the knitters of the Dales through the making of Balaclava helmets, which were worn by the British troops in that campaign. Lord Cardigan gave his name to the well-known knitted garment that is worn to-day by both men and women.

The beginning of the Victorian Age at first seemed destined to sound the death knell of this ancient craft. That knitting resurrected itself was largely due to the women’s magazines, which made their first appearance in the middle period of Queen Victoria’s reign. Mrs Beeton seems to have had a finger in this pie as well, but probably the credit ought to go to Mrs Weldon, who founded her Ladies’ Journal. These magazines encouraged the ladies of leisure to devote their time to handicrafts, and although we may shudder at the ugliness of many of the Victorian knick-knacks or look at them merely as bizarre curiosities collected for us in museums, it was due to these things that knitting was kept alive during what might have been its last lingering twilight.

In 1854 a Mrs Gaugain published in Edinburgh The Lady’s Assistant, ‘for,’ as she tells us, ‘executing useful and fancy designs in knitting, netting, and crochet work.’ This interesting little book, sold at 5/6d, soon ran into seven editions, and among the list of patronesses and subscribers we find such imposing names as ‘Her Majesty The Queen Dowager, and Their Royal Highnesses The Duchess of Gloucester, The Duchess of Cambridge, and the Princess Augusta Carolina’.

Not only did Mrs Gaugain produce a second volume of The Lady’s Assistant in the same year, but she seems to have been her own advertising agent. On the fly-leaf of Volume Two we find the following paragraph:

Many Ladies having found great difficulty in procuring the proper Wool for the Fine Shetland Shawl, page 105; the Alpine Knit Scarf, page 331; the Barege Fichu, page 226; the Square Shawl with Shaded Border, page 369; also for the Triangular Shawl, page 370, &c.; MRS GAUGAIN begs to intimate that she can forward the Wool to any Post Town in Great Britain. Through the medium of the post, Material for the largest piece of Knitting mentioned above, may be sent, postage included, for 6s. 3d.; all other Materials may be forwarded, in the same way, at an extra charge of 2d. postage on every ounce.

The First World War saw women once more busy with their knitting needles, making comforts for the troops. The emancipation of women in 1920 produced the ‘Sweater Girl’ who, wearing her long, loose, knitted sack-like tunic, became the symbol of the ‘Roaring Twenties’. Chanel, the world famous couturier, was then the reigning queen of haute couture in Paris and her collections always contained specimens of knitted sweaters, thus placing them in the forefront of fashion. To-day Lola Prussac and Anny Blatt are the leading exponents of couture knitwear, while recently Christian Dior himself has entered the field. The classic tailored lines dominate knitwear to-day.

CHAPTER 2 Ways and Means

I know of no home-craft that enjoys the universal popularity of hand-knitting. Watching knitters at work in France and Germany, in Scandinavia and Italy, in Shetland and on Fair Isle – in fact in all the countries where my journeys have led me during the past twenty-five years, I often wonder what gives the craft its wide appeal.

The answer is the ease and simplicity with which knitted fabrics can be produced and the cheapness of the tools and materials used for carrying out the various stitches and techniques used in knitting.

Fibres for Knitting

Almost any fibre is suitable for knitting. Cotton, silk, the new nylon yarns, rayons, and wool all have their right use and proper purpose in the pursuit of the craft.

The right purpose is the important thing. Always buy the type of wool or fibre recommended on the knitting instructions you are using. Knitting wools fall into two main groups – these are known as botanies and cross-breds. In the main, cross-breds are harder wearing and will stand up to more rough and tumble than the softer botanies. For babies’ wear soft botanies are ideal, while for hardwearing school jerseys and pullovers a good cross-bred should be selected.

The wool and nylon mixtures on the market are very suitable for socks, while for women’s fashion garments you can use either a good botany or a good cross-bred.

Classification of Knitting Wools

Knitting wools fall mainly into the following groups:

(a) 1 Ply. This is a very fine spun yarn suitable for garments that will not be subject to hard wear.

(b) 2 Ply. An ideal yarn for light-weight underwear and summer garments.

(c) 3 Ply. One of the best all-purpose knitting wools that can be obtained, as it is equally suitable for men’s, women’s, or children’s garments where a fairly fine fabric is desired.

(d) 4 Ply. The 4-ply weights are another useful all-purpose yarn; for men’s cardigans and pullovers, women’s coats, children’s school garments, and lightweight sports jumpers and sweaters this is the perfect wool to use.

(e) Double knitting. This wool is approximately double the thickness of 3-ply and is the perfect medium for heavy sweaters and coats.

Fancy Wools and Mixtures

In addition to the above wools there is always a wide variety of fancy yarns on the market. Some of these are mixtures of wool and rayon, others mixtures of various fibres and wool. There is also crepe wool and bouclet. Both these wools were well known before the war and are slowly regaining popularity among discriminating knitters. Crepe wool has a tighter twist than an ordinary fingering and creates a very firm and attractive fabric. Bouclet is spun with a series of little bumps or loops that create in stocking stitch, when the reverse side is used, almost the appearance of a woven fabric.

In buying knitting wools select a good make that has a reputation, as although this may cost you a little more at the outset it will prove well worth while when you have knitted your garment.

Knitting Needles

Knitting needles are made in various lengths and sizes and can be obtained in either metal, bone, or plastic. I prefer the metal type of needle covered with an alloy, as this has a smooth knitting surface that helps to produce a smooth fabric.

You can obtain pairs of knitting needles with knobs on the end in lengths varying from ten inches to fourteen inches, while sets of four, pointed at both ends used for knitting in the round, can be obtained in lengths varying from six inches to twelve inches.

In addition to the standard needles you can also obtain cable needles in various sizes. These are short needles with points at both ends and are used mainly for working cable patterns.

The best knitting is always done on long needles. The end of the right-hand needle is tucked firmly under the arm thus enabling you to hold the right-hand needle rigid while working with the left-hand needle. This helps to ensure an even tension throughout the fabric. I know that to some of you this may seem an old wives’ tale, but for centuries knitters always used either a sheath or a pouch and long steel needles. One end of the needle was stuck into the sheath that was fastened into the belt or into the pad on the pouch that had a belt attached to it in order to keep the needle completely rigid. You will still find knitting pouches in daily use in Shetland, and the Shetland knitters are still among the finest craftsmen in the world.

Another point to watch for in selecting knitting needles is that the point is not too long and tapering. A good knitter always works as near to the points of the needles as possible, and a long tapering point can cause variation of tension throughout the fabric.

SIZE OF KNITTING NEEDLES. Most knitting needles are stamped with the size (this is called the gauge of needle). The sizes of English, and Continental and American, knitting needles differ, as there has been no agreed standardization for these three types of needles. The following table gives you the comparative sizes of English, and Continental and American, knitting needles:

English	Continental and American
1	13
2	12
3	11
4	10
5	9
6	8
7	7
8	6
9	5
10	4
11	3
12	2
13	1
14

The sizes given in this table for the Continental and American needles are approximate, as there is a very slight variation in the diameters of the needles.

You can easily adjust this, however, by carefully checking the tension before commencing to work a garment if you are knitting from a Continental or American pattern and using English knitting needles.

The Knitter’s Work Basket

The wise knitter’s work basket will also contain two or three stitch-holders. These are very simple gadgets on to which stitches that are not being worked can be put. Another useful item is a bell gauge for measuring the sizes of knitting needles. These gauges are made in cardboard, plastic, or metal, and have holes punched in them the exact circumference of the appropriate sizes of knitting needles. Each hole is marked with a number, the gauge of the needle. If your needles get mixed up in your work basket it is a simple matter to check the size by using a gauge of this type for the purpose.

For making up the pieces of fabric into a finished garment you should always use a blunt pointed tapestry needle. Keep a packet of these in your work basket. A few safety pins are also very useful, as you can use these to slip the stitches on when you are knitting front bands that later have to be incorporated in neckbands.

Another useful accessory is a row counter. There is one on the market to-day that you slip on to the end of the knitting needle, rotating a round disc at the end of the counter that brings numbers into view in the little round windows on the front of the counter itself. A gadget of this kind is particularly useful for matching the front and back of a garment or the length of the sleeves. It enables you to be quite sure you have done exactly the same number of rows on each piece of the garment up to a given point.

These simple things all add to the tailored finish of your work and give to home knitting the master touch that every woman longs for in her home knitted garments.

Tension

From knitting needles and gauges we turn naturally to the all-important question of tension. This seems to be the nigger in every knitter’s wood pile. Most complaints about garments not being the correct size are almost entirely due to the knitter’s failure to work to the correct tension.

Tension is a very simple matter. It simply means that to every square inch of fabric there will be a given number of stitches to the inch across the width of the fabric and a given number of rows to the inch down the length of the fabric. All good knitting instructions give you a working tension at the beginning of the pattern. Here is a list giving you the standard tensions for 2-, 3-, and 4-ply, and double knitting on knitting needles ranging from size 5 to size 14:

All these tensions are given in stocking stitch. If you work to the correct tension in this fabric the fancy patterns and fabrics you knit will also be at the right tension.

Persevere with your tension before commencing to knit any design. Cast on sufficient stitches to knit a two inch square of fabric. This means that if you are working in 3-ply wool on size 11 needles you will cast on sixteen stitches. Now work a sufficient number of rows for two inches. This means working with the same 3-ply wool on the same 11 needles you will work twenty rows. Cast off the stitches and then lightly press this square of fabric on the wrong side, using a warm iron and damp cloth. If your tension is correct the piece of fabric should be exactly two inches square.

Rough Hands and Rubbed Wool

The care of the hands plays an important part in producing perfect knitted fabrics. To-day many women do their own chores. Soap powders and detergents are being widely advertised and used. That is why your hands may get slightly rough, and when you are knitting please do take that little extra care of your hands. Rub a good cream into them occasionally to keep them smooth, or if the fingers seem very slightly rough pour a little icing sugar into the palm of the hand and rub it all over the hands themselves. This will act like a very fine sandpaper and smooth off the roughened ends of the fingers.

The reason for this advice is that some women complain that knitting wool always rubs up. Rough fingers, even when the roughness is hardly visible to the naked eye, are one of the main causes of this trouble.

Always wrap up your knitting in a soft cloth before putting it away. If you spread this cloth on your knee when you are working it will protect the wool from becoming roughened as it rubs against the fabric of your skirt or dress. The fabric may have an uneven weave, giving it a rough texture, and your wool will suffer unless you protect it from direct contact.

Look After Your Wool

If you buy the wool in skeins wind it loosely into balls. Slip two fingers between the ball and the wool as you are winding it, as this will help to keep the wool soft and pliable. Tightly wound wool robs the yarn of its natural softness and may even stretch it, thus ruining the garment before you have begun to knit.

Always buy sufficient wool to complete the garment you propose making, otherwise you may obtain the same colour that has come out of two different batches of dyeing. No matter how careful the spinner may be there may be a slight variation in tone in the same shade in different dye-lots.

James Norbury