The extensive range and variety of knitting patterns, pattern books and women’s magazines dating from the 1920s provide a rich resource for the fashion historian and contemporary designer. The image of knitting in the early patterns is remarkably glamorous and stylish. It is this quality that Jane Waller identified and brought to knitters in the 1970s which Susan Crawford has continued and refreshed. The many visitors to the KRL both professional designers and students continue to be inspired by the quality of these images and designs.
The magazine Women’s weekly is also part of this collection. It is one title amongst many popular women’s magazines held in the KRL unexpectedly retained given the academic context of the University. They richly illustrate the prevalence of knitting and dress making as thriving domestic activities over the decades with some notable peaks and troughs.
Are you in the loop?
I co-organised with Jessica Hemmings the first knitting conference entitled In the loop: knitting past, present and future in 2008 at Winchester School of Art. A constant buzz from the conversation amongst the generations of knitters who attended as delegates was heard throughout each day. The Knitting Lounge located in the Rotunda proving a popular venue. The conference resulted in a published book In the loop: knitting now edited by Jessica Hemmings and published by Black Dog in 2010.
In the loop 2: tradition and renewal took place at the Shetland Museum & Archives in September 2010 and was co-organised with Dr Carol Christiansen. A day trip on Sunday up to Yell and Unst in the far north of Shetland proved an unforgettable experience. Prior to the conference we had the opportunity to identify the constancy of knitting and the new generation of knitters through an interview on Radio 4 for Woman’s Hour.
In the loop 3: the voices of knitting took place at the Winchester Discovery Centre in 2012 once again including a variety of themes. The themes of adornment, exploration and discovery, sport, voices and well-being were richly explored by the keynote speakers.
In the loop 3.5: making connections is at the planning stage and will be taking place as part of the Shetland Arts International Textile Festival 31 July to 5 August 2013.
And Finally
The Knitting Reference Library today comprises books, exhibition catalogues, knitting patterns, journals and women’s magazines. It covers knitting, crochet, tatting, macramé and netting. There is also contextual material broadly covering costume, dress and other aspects of textiles. The earliest printed works date from the Victorian period of the 1830s, the latest include the publications of today. New resources are acquired regularly to ensure the library reflects the diversity of approaches to knitting in the 21st century.
Montse Stanley’s collection of knitted objects, knitting tools, postcards and photographs is located in Special Collections at the Hartley Library at the Highfield Campus, University of Southampton. This resource compliments the published material enabling the potential link between object and text.
Contact information Our website is at
www.soton.ac.uk/intheloop
The Victorian knitting manuals have all been digitised and may be accessed via our website link at
www.soton.ac.uk/intheloop
A pilot project to digitise knitting patterns has recently been completed. The digitised patterns are available via
www.soton.ac.uk/intheloop E-mail enquiries to
www.wsaenqs.soton.ac.uk
On the left: More examples of patterns.
All images courtesy of the KRL, University of Southampton.
The books and journals are all catalogued and indexed on the University’s online catalogue which is accessible via the internet at
www.soton.ac.uk/library Special Collections may be contacted in the first instance by e-mail at
archives@soton.ac.uk
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