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Morning cuddles with a boy and a cat

Gifted knitting booklets

Baking shortbread with little helping hands

A 32 week ultrasound with nothing but good news so far

Relief, joy and excitement 

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Cohen and I spent a lovely slow afternoon together wandering around our three favourite op-shops yesterday, searching for useful items for the house or baby. While I pushed the pram, Cohen played with his toy crane and chatted away and we both scanned the aisles. We came home with an small embroidered pillow slip, a hand knit cardigan, a Meakin jug that matches a bowl I own already, an old handmade cushion and some crochet and knitting booklets, the oldest dating from 1937. 

And just in case you were wondering about the blue cardigan, we actually aren't finding out the sex of the baby. I just find it difficult not to buy things like this sweet cardigan for $1. I am hedging my bets evenly by buying a few boy things and a few girl things when I see them. Given that family and friends are having or planning to have babies, I figure that none of these darling little clothes will go unloved.

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Sometimes happiness can be measured by way of vintage craft finds.

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Happy 8th Wedding Anniversary my love.

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Things that charm...

A pleasing stack of vintage knitting patterns.
A tiny hand knitted cardigan.
Replacing a broken new sifter with an old working one.
An antique egg beater, long coveted, unearthed today for $3.
The virtues of thrifting.

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I couldn't resist sharing a few more pattern pages with you. I particularly love the ones with the notes in the columns and the sweetly posed ladies and those delightful props. ( I want that hat and phone, please!)

I have uncovered the occasional vintage knitting pattern book while thrifting, hidden amongst their more modern counterparts. They are usually priced between 20c and $1 each. I've also noticed that Ebay generally has a few from the 40's and 50's if you are interested in adding to or starting a collection, though they seem to be priced at around $10 each. 

The internet has thousands of free vintage knitting patterns available too. Ravelry seemed to be the most obvious place to start, though goggling 'free vintage knitting patterns' returned 386,000 results! These are a few of my favourites - Skiff Vintage Knitting Patterns, Free Vintage Knitting, Knit Heaven and this beautiful cabled cardigan at Vintageous. 

Do you have any great resources for vintage knitting patterns?

Now, to continue practicing my knitting...

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I have a wonderful little collection of vintage knitting pattern booklets, once belonging to my Great Aunt and Grandmother, whose knitting needles recently came into my possession. 

I am as taken with the beautiful patterns as I am with the historical context of the booklets themselves and the messages from the era. The warnings incorporated into the covers are little short of amazing - 'Don't help the enemy! Careless talk may give away vital secrets.' My father related another that had read 'Loose lips sink ships.' It's difficult to imagine knitting books being produced with such covers now, is it not?

Also found amidst the pages, scribbled notes from a long ago project, possibly in my Grandmothers hand. As well as a message from Patons and Baldwin encouraging women to keep knitting for themselves, using the odds and ends from their stash, as a way to help the war effort. 

I have a few more favorite pages to show you tomorrow.