on the needles

This gorgeous ruched knit twinset cardi caught my eye whilst I was scouring the farthest reaches of t'internet. Dated 1939, it can be found  here.

I am knitting it in my go to stylecraft 4ply acrylic in a lovely shade of raspberry, on 3.25mm and 3.75mm needles.

So spoilt 

Our 16th wedding anniversary was a few weeks ago so my husband spoiled me and took me to a massive antiques centre here in the shire.

Hemswell Cliff used to be an RAF station during the war. There are many of them, now decommissioned and scattered about the countryside. And anybody with local, older lady acquaintances will have tales of the shenanigans they got up to at dances (and outside them), with the handsome men in uniform. I'm not sure they were all handsome, but something about the uniform distracts the eye from many obvious faults.

So, although they may now look sweet and frail, offering you biscuits and tutting at what goes on these days, I can assure you that they got up to much mischief. Apparently looking for those treasured silk knickers in the long grass of the fields around these bases was a common pastime. 

I think in those times, it was a case of work hard and party harder ...

Just finished this gorgeous, negative ease double rib and cable jumper. 

For those of you who don't want to ruin your eyesight, the pattern can be found here 

Trove is an Australian site with a wealth of  magazines, papers etc and a LOT of free patterns to enjoy. Because of their audience, I find most of their patterns are practical and stylish, without being too outlandish. And their names are so straightforward - there is no trying to figure out what a 'Daphne' looks like - the clue is right there in the name.

 finished 

The open work jumper from the late 1930s/ early 40s can be found  here

The tie turned out to be not quite long enough for a bow, but a really neat tie, finished with a vintage scarf loop

on the needles or on the lash? 

Another Subversive Femme knit. The open work jumper from the late 1930s/ early 40s can be found  here