Retro Knits: Cool Vintage Patterns for Men, Women, and Children from the 1900s through the 1970s

by Kari Cornell (Editor), Jean Lampe (Editor)

Everything old is new again in this collection of fun, hip knitting patterns dating from the early 1900s through the 1970s. Within the pages of this book youll find everything from the pattern for those classic embroidered mittens your grandmother knitted to the alluring mohair sweater your mother stitched during her college days.

Retro Knits collects 50 vintage patterns for items as stylish today as they were in their time. Organized by decade, these patterns have been culled from vintage pattern books published by yarn makers, and feature old photos, pattern book covers, and original instructions.

The patterns--for hats, mittens, socks, scarves, sweaters, vests, and shawls, all picked to exemplify the era of origin--also offer modern yarn and needle suggestions, new schematics, and updated sizing.

Genres: Knitting, Nonfiction, Crafts

160 pages, Paperback

First published April 15, 2008

Reviews

[Ligaya · Rating 2 out of 5]

I was really disappointed in this book. There's lots of very fine gauge knitting and miles of stockinette. I would be bored out of my mind! Mostly because I didn't find anything very exciting, nothing grabbed my imagination. But what really turned me off was the design of the book. From the ugly cover to the insensitive schematics, I was pissed. Even the font choices for the row-by-row directions were unhelpful. Graphic design can make the reader's journey easy, but this book's is hard (and unattractive). Looks like amateur work. That said, the vintage photos were great and I wish there were even more of those, just more thoughtfully arranged.

[Merry Love · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute patterns I'd actually wear today and plenty of great men's patterns too.

I love the organization by decade, and the vintage clips from the original patterns.

[Imani Zoe · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked the fisherman's rib pattern.

[Abbey · Rating 4 out of 5]

Despite the cutsie subtitle and its terrible cover design, despite the "gee, whiz!! Ain't these awfully CUTE!!!" book description, this is actually a really good pattern book if you like classic styles and basic patterns, as I do.

Nicely arranged by decade, with illustrations and pix from the original advertisements and/or pattern books, the writing is crisp and informative without being intrusive, and the pattern instructions are arranged very nicely, with clear indications of sizes and materials needed. And the authors carefully show (and suggest) yarn substitutions, helpfully indicating easy ways to make such changes within a pattern, as well as a good general information section at the front of the book. Nicely set-out, decently produced book that only suffers a bit from one of my pet peeves and from an aesthetic consideration/pout of mine.

My formost pet peeve about knitting pattern books is that so many of them appear to have no consideration that there might be a lot of knitters "out there" who might otherwise enjoy their patterns and want to make them up, but aren't 42" in size or less (sometimes FAR less!) While I'm a very experienced knitter and often graduate up a size or two from a pattern, there are lots of knitters who are loathe to do so, and many more who have tried and wound up with disasters. Not a good advert for your book IMO....

ANYway, that's my pet peeve. The aesthetic consideration (aka "snit") of mine? The cover is a real turn-off! Ugly, ugly, ugly, AND (shame on you, editors!!) many of the nicest patterns shown on the cover are NOT inside the pattern book! I know those pix were chosen to show a representation of knitting books from the past, but, really, if you're going to show a lovely sweater on a pattern book cover, then you really ought to include that pattern inside the book, right? If you just want to show off some of your fave pix from the period, then do that along with your initial write-up inside the book! I was very disappointed to not find one of my favorite patterns from the cover not included inside, and suspect I wasn't the only reader this happened to.

But even given those caveats, this is a very good book to keep in your home library. Most of the patterns (except for a couple of really weird 1960s and 1970s ones) are nicely basic, albeit worked in light yarn on fairly small needles, so you've been warned - many of these projects are not for the impatient. But there's a very basic cardigan for women that just cries out to be made up in some super-soft yarn, and a classic mens' v-neck cardigan, and a baby ensemble, and.... (grin)

[Tonileg · Rating 4 out of 5]

Old timey pictures abound in this 1900's to the 70's knitting pattern book. Sizes tend to be small, medium, large which translates to 32", 34" and 36" bust with sometimes up to 38" or 42" bust-lines so this is the smaller true vintage size from before people got fat driving around in their cars and had to bike or walk everywhere.
Sweaters, cardigans for ladies as well as men and a, argyle sock pattern.
I really like the Lady's bow sweater published by Minerva, 1928 with a Fair-Isle contrast color yarn bow in the front and collar of the sweater, very chic and I think I saw something similar at Forever21 shop the other day. Lady's Pullover published by Monarch, 1946 is really simple and chic and would be great in cotton for a summer tea-party (page 75 in my edition). Gauge needed 30st by 40rows on 10cm2 in patt st on size US2/2.75mm needles, this looks like it could be converted to circular needles pretty simply.
Tons of other good ideas as well as a cute mitten set.
160 pages
4 stars

[PoligirlReads · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was an okay book. I appreciated the overview of the history of modern knitting, and I can appreciate the research that went into recreating these patterns, especially when earlier pattern instructions were quite vague. More of an emphasis on later era patterns, probably because they were more readily available. I would've liked to see what the finished results looked like.

[Mckinley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Variety.