Cornish Guernseys & Knit-frocks

by Mary Wright

From Meg Swansen (Schoolhouse Press, distributor) This charming and historic title, first published in 1979, is just now back in print from Polperro Heritage Press. I have knitted many Guernseys using patterns from this dear book; the Polperro Musician being one of my favorites. And isn't the cover photo of the patient knitter, waiting for the ships to return, most touching? You will find 30 Gansey charts, complete history of Cornish knitting, instructions for two classic garments (into which you can knit the stitch-pattern of your choice), and scores of wonderful old photos.

Genres: Knitting, Crafts, History

68 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 1979

Reviews

[Cayenne]

Well-researched and interesting. I don't know if I can knit a whole sweater at 9 stitches per inch, but maybe someday I'll attempt it. It makes you realize how fast those women could knit. They would finish one of those sweaters in a week. Wow.

[Jojo Richardson]

This is a history book masquerading as a knitting book and it is fantastic.

[Tam G]

A nice mixture of history, culture, and knitting.

[Nicky Triggs]

This is an enjoyable little book. The first part looks at the history of ganseys and includes photos and information about sources. There are 30 charts for the patterns based on Mary's findings. These are lovely and clear. I think it's a pity the 2 full patterns for making a gansey at the end aren't a little more detailed, with more instructions for a beginner. They are written concisely, but I would have liked it spelt out more. Perhaps it's just me? That makes it a 4 rather than a 5.

[Grace]

An incredible bit of research into historical knowing with a lot of extremely cool photographs. Short but worth it if you're interested in historical fiber arts!!

[Phoenix Blackdove]

Great little book on the history of production knitting in Cornwall, and an attempt to capture the regional patterns and methods of knitting fisherman's guernseys before they were lost from living memory. Has basic pattern instructions for two different regional guernseys in the back, plus several stitch patterns that were traditionally used in Cornwall.

The book assumes an intermediate knitting knowledge - the instructions are fairly basic - but if you've knit a jumper before and are willing to do some maths and figuring out, it's quite doable.

[Sarah]

A quick read. Not just a knitting book but a history of knit frocks and their knitters. Some gansey stitches are given as is a basic pattern for a gansey. Probably not a book for beginner knitters though.
Fascinating book.

[Kathryn]

Both a history of traditional Cornish knitting and a pattern book.

[Sue Johns]

A new edition of this wonderful little book has just been made available

[Cinnamon]

This is a great geeky book for knitting history fans. I love the images and stories to go with the knitting patterns.