Retro Crafts with Vintage Stitchcraft Magazine

 A couple of weeks ago, a local lady asked me if I crocheted baby shawls. I told her I hadn't as yet but would have a look for a pattern. I mentioned this to my Mum who is a very crafty lady. She suggested having a look through her box of Stitchcraft magazines for something suitable.

I don't whether any of you remember Stitchcraft but for those who don't, it was a monthly craft magazine with patterns for all the popular crafts - knitting, crochet, cross stitch, tapestry etc.

For me, Stitchcraft brings back loads of lovely childhood memories of sitting in front of the fire or out in the garden leafing though these fabulously crafty magazines.

Having three daughters, my Mum would always be sewing dresses and skirts and knitting cardigans and jumpers for my sisters and myself. When it came round to my turn to have something knitted, the box of Stitchcrafts would be fetched from the cupboard under the stairs and I would search through them looking for a pattern that took my fancy. My Mum would sit nearby commenting on my selections with 'yes that's ok, that's moss stitch', 'that looks far too complicated', 'mmm that's got cables but that's ok'  or 'looks too fiddly' 'what kind of wool is that then?' or 'no, that's crochet'. She prefers knitting to crochet.

My Mum had always had her copy delivered every month since the 1950s until the 1980s when it was discontinued and she has kept them all. When she came to stay last week, she brought a selection for me to browse through for a pattern for the baby shawl.

I chose a quiet moment one evening, made myself a cuppa and took a trip down memory lane. I loved looking through these nostalgic magazines, so much so that I thought I'd share some of the images with you.

I loved looking at the covers, some from the 1960s............

I loved looking at the ladies' fashions and all the hair dos.....

This lady in a bobble hat looks familar....could it be Lorraine Chase?

I love this dress... wish I was slim enough (and young enough) to wear it!

Mmm not sure about these two...

This pretty shawl is gorgeous - may have to make this..

From the February 1954 copy.. always so stylish..

From a 1963 copy...... 

I loved browsing the crafts for ideas........

Sweet chicken and chicks cosies - nice for Easter...

A poodle pen holder?!

An adorable knitted elephant..

And so many cute crochet and knits for babies and children...

And of course, the male models knits for men..;)

Yes I could see Chris in this ;)

And yes, yippee, I found a pattern for the baby shawl...

Another lovely project to add to the list :)

Well I hope you've enjoyed these little snippets from the past. I certainly have.

Gosh it's Friday tomorrow - nearly the weekend - have a lovely one :D

Maggie xx

Beauty and the Beast and the sorting of the wools...

Hello everyone!

It's a lovely sunny day here and I feel I should be making the most of the sunshine by being in the garden or going on a nice walk....

However it's been quite a busy week. Chris is working today so I've been catching up with a few chores and looking forward to tomorrow and Tuesday when he has the two days off work. These two days will be our 'weekend' and I'm hoping we will go treasure hunting and catch the movie War Horse at our local cinema - can't wait to see it!

Not War Horse but a lovely friendly horse in the field next to where we were camping last summer.

I've had a wonderful week as my Mum came to stay. On Thursday we went shopping and lunching in town. Then, joined by my sister Clare and my little nephew Joel, we all bundled in my little car to go and see the local production of Disney's Beauty and the Beast. Lots of singing and dancing all in the cosy Cotswold Playhouse. The songs really brought back lovely memories of watching the film with my boys when they were little...it was always one of our favourites :)

I'm quite a newbie to crochet but I've found my stash is rapidly expanding so much so that I've decided upon a new storage solution.

Before, my yarns were in random boxes......

and now they're neatly (well kind of) sorted and colour co-ordinated in this little chest of drawers.....

I must admit I preferred the look and randomness of the boxes but realised I was soon going to have little boxes of wool all over the house so practicality took over .... also the chest allows for more expansion :) Please note the empty bottom drawer..how long is that going to last?! Especially if I make a visit to Lidl this week for their bargain yarns -

see Helen's blog post..  http://helencrochet1.wordpress.com/2012/01/19/scouting-for-bargain-yarn/

Here's my growing wool eater blanket. I'm finding it a bit challenging keeping to Sarah's schedule and have been running behind but managed to finish the 6th round last night (whilst babysitting, eating chocolate and watching Avatar) and I have just started the 7th round....

For the wool eater pattern, please see Sarah's blog http://sarahlondon.wordpress.com/wool-eater-instructions/.

Here's another little colourful crochet project I am enjoying....

It's probably going to become a cushion....but I might change my mind about that ;)

My last post talked about 'sorting' tasks. Well, you'll be proud of me. Most of them are 'sorted'...well some of them at least..Still a little bit of office tidying....a little bit of finance organising......fabric stacking.......etc etc.......Trouble is I'd much rather be crafting :)

I'm hoping to get my sewing machine out this week. There is some rag quilting on the cards. I've been collecting some gorgeous brushed cotton fabrics.. here's one with sweet little birds...

That project will be later in the week though as I am so looking forward to spending the next couple of days doing stuff with Chris ....

So have a lovely week whatever you're doing.. Happy making, sewing, crocheting, shopping, lunching ...or whatever you have planned..or not planned...

Maggie xx

Goodies and Treasures - what it says on the tin...

I woke up this morning to a lovely sunny day with blue skies. Very cold and frosty but uplifting........I decided I must be brave and this would be the day to start my blog...

Frosty fields this morning

So here goes.....my first blog post!

I'm so excited but also a little scared and a bit daunted.... so please bear with me...

For my first post, I've decided to keep it simple and do what it says on the tin i.e. share with you some of the crafty goodies I've made and the treasures I've found.

I'd put aside the first couple of weeks of the New Year to do some 'sorting out' 'organising' 'tidying' tasks and put the crafts/treasure hunting aside. However we are now the 14th January and some of those 'sorting tasks' are only half finished and I seem to have several crafty creations and a few shiny pieces of treasure ......Oops... :D

So here they are.........

A crochet scarf and a few granny squares......

A vintage linen ribbon-embroidered tissue box cover......so pretty and looks just right in Hannah's room...

I've just started my oblong wool eater blanket for Sarah London's crochet along. Six rounds by the 18th...it's not too late to join in...http://sarahlondon.wordpress.com/   

I love blue - it's my favourite colour.

I had to have a practise first :)

Made on a bit of a whim after New Year's day - my patchwork lampshade......

Chatted with the lovely lady at the local antique shop (I wasn't treasure hunting, honest, I just happened to be there..) and somehow just stumbled upon these gorgeous vintage vases.....

My first crochet cushion - the two sides were made before Christmas and I sewed it together last week. Rather pleased with the (slightly wonky) result :)

And last but not least, some lovely vintage fabrics and sheets... and a beautiful linen tablecloth embroidered with crinoline ladies.....it's just gorgeous..

So, as you can see, it's not surprising that my 'sorting tasks' have not been completed.

Gosh, I seem to have survived my first blog post!

 I really hope you've enjoyed reading it.

Maggie xx