About Weldon's Practical Needlework

From Interweave Press:

About 1885, Weldon’s began publishing a series of fourteen-page monthly newsletters, available by subscription, each title featuring patterns and instructions for projects using a single technique.

About 1888, the company began to publish Weldon’s Practical Needlework, each volume of which consisted of twelve issues (one year) of several newsletters bound together with a cloth cover.

Each volume contains hundreds of projects, illustrations, information on little-known techniques, glimpses of fashion as it was at the turn of the twentieth century, and brief histories of needlework. Other techniques treated include making objects from crinkled paper, tatting, netting, beading, patchwork, crewelwork, appliqué, cross-stitch, canvaswork, ivory embroidery, torchon lace, and much more.

From 1999 through 2005, Interweave published facsimiles of the first twelve volumes of Weldon’s Practical Needlework.

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Week 4: The Barrister's Wig




“Barrister’s Wig in Puffed Knitting” from Weldon’s Practical Knitter (Thirteenth Series), dated 1890.
“Our engraving shows the fashionable head covering known by the name of the ‘barrister’s wig’.”

I just found another picture of a barrister's wig, and I guess the Weldon's pattern DOES resemble this one.  Perhaps I shall redo it in silver at some point and see if I indeed look barrister-ish.  That picture of me modeling the wig looks more Queen Victoria bridling in horror.
The original pattern calls for “1 oz. light silver grey single Berlin wool and 2 ozs. of pale blue double Berlin, a pair of No. 9 knitting needles, and 2 yards of inch wide pale blue ribbon”.
The “puffed stitch” pattern is an interesting drop stitch pattern, where you do double yarnovers, then drop them the next row.
And it's done!  Okay, this isn't something I'm going to wear to the grocery store (unless you give me a hefty cash bribe), but I'll admit it is cozy and warm, also lightweight.  If I was a Victorian lady, I'd like it.
I'm not going to rewrite the pattern for this one, as I don't imagine there's a ton of interest in knitting it :-)  But if there's a demand, I'll write it up.

1 comment:

  1. Just found your blog and wanted to say - what a great idea! Looking forward to keeping up with what you do next. I am interested in historical knitting myself :)

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