Austerity to Affluence

I have been looking through some Emu knitting patterns from the late 1940s and 1950s.  We have permission to copy Emu patterns for Guild members, and so I have scanned a batch of front covers, to show some of what's available.   Many things were in short supply for several years after the war, even after rationing finished, but in spite of that there were some very stylish knitting patterns around.  (There were also some rather boring sweaters and cardigans in plain stocking stitch and fine wool - I don't think that many hand-knitters would want to make those now.  Back then, it was cheaper to knit your own than to buy machine-knitted, so knitters needed a range of basic patterns.)

Here's a small selection from those that aren't boring.   The first two are very typical of the late 40s.

Emu 151 - Sports Jumper

 Stranded knitting across the shoulders of sweaters and cardigans was very popular at the time, as well as more traditional Fair Isle designs.  This is a nice one: the blue flowers on white have a kind of peasant feel, and the little collar is a neat touch. 

Emu 171 - Hungarian Blouse

There was also a fashion for knitwear like the Hungarian Blouse - cardigans in quite complicated stitch patterns involving cables, usually in white, and embroidered with flowers in bright colours.  (I'm not sure that they are always called Hungarian - I think the style is attributed to several other European countries as well.)

Emu 201 - Cap-sleeve Sweater

 

I do like the cap sleeve sweater very much.  It is much more New Look, worn with a full skirt and the waist more defined.  It's not very clear from the cover photo what's going on in the design, but I like the neat neckline, and there might be some shoulder detail - I'll have to look at the pattern.   

Emu 259 - Cardigan in Crescent Stitch

The cardigan in crescent stitch would be much more appealing if it were posed differently - the model has adopted one of those tortuous poses that make the clothes look really uncomfortable to wear.  But it's a interesting textured stitch and could be a perfectly nice cardigan, though the neckline is bit too high for me.

Emu 296 - Tuck-in Blouse

The tuck-in blouse is a typical 1950s lacy knit that takes just a few ounces of really fine wool.  I'm not sure that many knitters would have the patience to knit it now, but it is pretty.  (Odd that women in the 1950s seem to have been completely blatant about showing their underwear.  It doesn't fit with my memories of being a teenager in the 1960s, when showing a bra strap was totally embarrassing.)

Emu 326

The jumper in Emu 326 seems to me to be a wonderful example of what you can achieve with colourwork, with only two colours.  (I assume that it's all done in the knitting, and not added afterwards - I should check.)  And who is that model?  She is the face of 1950s knitting patterns, as far as I'm concerned.  She modelled knitwear seemingly every week in Woman's Weekly, as well as appearing in other magazines and modelling for pattern leaflets, as here.

Finally, I have picked a couple of designs in double knitting wool.  The ladies' jackets still look very definitely 1950s, but the pullover in honeycomb stitch looks more like early 1960s to me - sweaters with big collars were very popular then.  (Either I am completely wrong about the dating, or Emu were not very consistent about numbering consecutively - leaflet 82 is much later than leaflet 151 and all the rest.)

Emu 396 - Two Ladies' Jackets

Emu 83 - Honeycomb Stitch Pullover