Vintage 1980s Knitting Patterns - Part 11: The Kaffe Fassett Special

Time for another fix of 1980s knitting patterns. 

As no review of 1980s knitting patterns would be complete without making reference to the knitwear designs of Kaffe Fassett, a designer synonymous with 80s knitwear and best known for his elaborate colourwork creations, I decided to feature some of the patterns from Glorious Knitting, Fassett's seminal 1985 collection of knitting patterns, in today's instalment of my ongoing series on vintage 1980s knitting patterns. 

Originally published by Century Hutchinson and now out of print, second-hand copies of this vintage publication are widely available in both paperback and hardcopy formats and I highly recommend getting your hands on this classic. 

Even though the patterns in Glorious Knitting may seem daunting at first sight and some of the bolder statement pieces in this collection may not be to everyone's taste, Glorious Knits is a fantastic showcase of the possibilities offered by integrating colourwork into knitwear design.

The book has an extensive section on colour knitting, in which Fassett sets out his approach to colourwork (not colour theory!) and knitwear design, before introducing us to the elements and motifs constituting the building blocks of his designs.

 

Kaffe Fassett Striped T-Shirt

Vintage 1980s Knitting Patterns - Part 10

Time for the 10th instalment of vintage 80s knitting patterns.

...in which I am featuring all 13 exclusive knitting patterns (and adverts!) from the February 1985 edition of Handknitting News - a truly vintage knitting publication.

Enjoy. 

All my other vintage patterns can be viewed via this link.

 Handknitting News, February 1985 

Vintage 1980s Knitting Patterns - Part 9

Time for instalment number nine of my vintage 80s knitting patterns. 

This post features numerous Alafoss and Wendy knitting patterns, plenty of batwing and dolman sweaters, pastel shades and headband accessories, with some entrelac and colourwork thrown in for good measure.

Enjoy.

All my other vintage patterns can be viewed via this link.

Vintage 1980s Alafoss Lopi Traditional Sweater Knitting Pattern - Booklet No 2

Vintage 1980s Alafoss Lopi Traditional Sweater Knitting Pattern - Booklet No 2

Vintage 1980s Knitting Patterns - Part 8

Time to indulge in more 80s knitting nostalgia. 

Enjoy.

All my other vintage patterns are available via this link.

Vintage 1980s Knitting Pattern - Argyll 416 Ladies' Sleeveless Scoop Neck Sweater 

Vintage 1980s Knitting Pattern - Sirdar Pattern 7175 Ladies' Cardigans 

Vintage 1980s Knitting Patterns - Part 7

Time for another instalment of 1980s knitting pattern handsomeness.

All my other vintage patterns are available via this link.

Enjoy.

Vintage 1980s Knitting Pattern - Patons Pattern 8065 Ladies' Raglan Sweater 

Vintage 1980s Knitting Pattern - Patons Pattern 1994 Ladies' Sweater Pattern

Vintage 1980s Knitting Patterns - Part 6

I posted my last instalment of vintage 1980s knitting patterns way back at the end of  2018 and felt it was high time to sift through the vintage pattern haul once more, in order to add another instalment to the series of vintage pattern posts.

As most of the patterns are not dated, it's mainly guesswork to determine whether these are really going back to the 1980s. Some might be early 90s and others may be late 70s. If you think I've got it wrong, as always, feel free to leave a comment below. 

All my other vintage patterns are available via this link.

With that said, it's time to kick back, relax and enjoy a trip back in knitting history to colour blocks and batwing sweaters.  

Vintage 1980s Knitting Patterns - Sirdar Pattern c6798 (Odpins) Ladies' V-Neck and U Neck  Top 

Vintage 1980s Knitting Patterns - King Cole Pattern 561 - Ladies Batwing Sweater 

Vintage 80s Knitting Patterns - Part 5

Putting my 1980s vintage patterns up on the blog has been great fun and, going by audience feedback so far, they have certainly put a smile on readers' faces. 

This instalment of 1980s knitting patterns features Patons Book of Knitting Patterns No 259, which contained '11 young fashion designs' utilising the 'Patons special Odpins technique' (basically knitting with two needles of different sizes).

All other 80s knitting patterns and more vintage knitting are available here.

Dolman sweaters and ridiculous poses coming up. Enjoy.

Vintage 1980s Knitting Patterns - Patons Book 259 (Odpins)

Vintage 1980s Knitting Patterns - Patons Book 259 (Odpins) Ladies' V-Neck Sweater

Vintage 80s Knitting Patterns - Part 4

As always, proceed at your own peril. : -)

Vintage 1980s Knitting Pattern - Argyll Wools Ltd, Leaflet No 576, 1985

Vintage 1980s Knitting Pattern, Ladies' Raglan Sweater - Patons, Pattern 3336

Vintage 80s Knitting Patterns - Part 3

You know the drill...

It's time to kick-back, relax and indulge in more 1980s vintage knitting - 22 vintage jumper, vest top and cardigan patterns coming up now. 

Proceed at your own peril.

Vintage 1980s Knitting Pattern - Jarol Ladies' Square Neck Top 

Vintage 80s Knitting Patterns - Part 2

If you can't get enough of 1980s knitting patterns, here is another post full of them. Some might be 1970s, some 1990s. Unfortunately, the majority of these don't have a publication date.

At any rate, be prepared for broad shoulders and daring colours.

More of my vintage knitting pattern collection is available here.

Vintage 1980s Knitting Pattern, Ladies' Slash Neck Slipover - Argyll Wools Ltd, Leaflet No 647

Vintage1980s Ladies' Jersey with Aran Stitch Bands Knitting Pattern

Vintage 80s Knitting Patterns

As I was going through my vintage knitting pattern collection, I came across these gems from the 80s. They simply had to go on the blog. 

It's time for knitted jackets (preferably with foam shoulder pads), over-sized jumpers and colour blocks. Let's go back to the 1980s.

Enjoy!

Vintage 80s Argyll Knitting Pattern - Ladies' Cotton Drop Stitch Sweater 

Vintage 80s Alafoss Ladies' Jumper Knitting Patterns 

The Picot Bind-Off: It's a love-hate relationship

I'm in the process of finishing the Picot Pi and (as the name suggests) I'm binding off picot-style. At over one thousand stitches, this is a lengthy and repetitive process. But, the end result will be worth the wait.

Picot literally means 'small loop' and describes the bobbles at the cast-off edge, which are produced by adding more stitches immediately before binding off. Incorporating the picot bind-off will result in a very flexible, wider garment at the outer edge of the piece. In other words, it adds drape.

Picot Bind-Off Detail for Ammonite 

The Picot Pi in Progress

In line with my latest obsession with Elizabeth Zimmermann's knitwear designs, I find myself  knitting my own variation of her Pi Shawl pattern / knit recipe. 

A Tribute to Elizabeth Zimmermann's Pi

In an earlier post on Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitter's Almanac, I outlined why I believe that Zimmermann's no-frills paperback should be considered a very special publication indeed, despite its somewhat bland appearance and apparent lack of project photography. 

First up, a few words on the low-cost nature of the paperback edition: The Almanac features instructions to over 15 patterns (including 4 sweaters) on approximately 150 pages, making this a densely packed publication. With the exception of the book cover, the project photography is in black and white throughout, thus lacking the visual appeal and photographic detail of contemporary knitwear publications. 

In short, the project photography (though decent and undertaken with great care) is by modern standards outdated. As a result, those of us, who derive inspiration from ogling an appealing finished object before casting on, will undoubtedly be disappointed.  To really get in the mood for knitting a Zimmermann pattern from the Almanac, it might be best to start off by trawling the web for pictures of finished Zimmermann projects and adaptations of her original designs. At this point, her true genius will be revealed. The Pi Shawl pattern provides a perfect case in point.  

Zimmermann's Pi Shawl design and instructions have inspired countless knitters to produce a multitude of design variations based upon Zimmermann's original design. The Pi Shawls featured below are merely a small selection of the many outstanding projects on show across the  web. 

Special thanks go to MadKnits, Terhi, Aisling Doonan and Glenna C aka crazyknittinglady  for allowing me to showcase their most amazing, finished Pis here on the blog. Thank you so much! 

For even more Pi inspiration, please visit my Pi Shawl board on Pinterest.

Terhi's Pi, Yarn: Wetterhoff Sivilla and Fiberphile Merino 

From one opinionated knitter to another: Revisiting Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitter's Almanac

Almost three years ago, I had Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitter's Almanac on loan from my local library. Had I written my review of the book at the time, it would probably have sounded very different from my assessment today. Frau Zimmermann - at least as far her Almanac is concerned - is certainly not aiming her designs at beginner knitters; and I would have described myself as one at the time. Consequently, when I first laid hands on Zimmermann's Almanac, I didn't find it too appealing. The patterns appeared somewhat tired and outdated; and her occasional digressions into anecdotes, though intriguing, distracted from the instructions. When it was time to return my borrowed copy to the library, I did so without attempting to retain any of the instructions for future projects. It seemed as if the Almanac had nothing on offer for me. 

Elizabeth Zimmermann

A Pint and a Jumper: Knitting meets 70s Britain

What have I started?

My ever present urge to organise things has driven me to sort through a pile of retro knitting patterns, purchased quite some time ago in a charity shop in Canterbury. I started going through the bundle last week. Instead of discarding some of the patterns, in order to thin out the pile, as I had originally envisaged, I'm beginning to feel that I'm sitting on something akin to a social history of the British Isles in knitwear. 

My pattern collection went from trash to treasure in the space of an afternoon. It's now obviously impossible to throw any of them away. Far from it, I'm actually considering how best to preserve these glimpses into a not so distant past.

One of the most amusing pieces in my collection is the pattern below.

Handknitting meets Life on Mars 

Knitting is a Slippery Slope

Welcome to the "wonderful" world of vintage knitting patterns, British vintage knitting patterns, to be precise...