1500-1600

It took a long time for knitted fabric to become popular Most people continued to wear stockings cut from woven fabric It is thought that children were the only wearers of knitted stockings

during the first half of the century

Guilds of Knitters were formed on the continent, but not in Britain, Each guild had it's own Patron Saint.

St Lucy, St Ursula, St Sebastian, St Martin, and St Micheal the Archangel, were all patron saints of assorted knitting guilds.

Potential Master-Knitters studied for three years to learn their craft, A further three years was spent as a journeyman The final Masterpiece would be a carpet or a pair of beautifully knitted

eclesiastical gloves or an elaborate silk waistcoat. The knitted carpets created are amongst the most interesting examples of

handkniting which survive today

1527 saw the founding in Paris of the Cap-knitter's Guild under the patronage of St. Fiacra,who, according to the 'Patron Saints Index', is also the Patron Saint of gardening.

in 1545 some fragments of knitted fabric were found on the sunken 'Mary Rose', these provide evidence that by this date, knitters had an knowledge of shaping,and also that items other than hats and stockings were being knitted

An English Act, dated 1571, made the wearing of caps on Sundays and Holy Days compulsary,disregarding this order brought a fine of three shillings and four pence (17p)

In October 1591 in the Greyfriars building, in city of Lincoln England, (now the city library),one of the earliest knitting schools was set up.Children and young people were taught the art of hand-knitting,

By the end of the 16C handknitting was firmly established across the whole of Europe

early machine knitting

The stocking-knitting-frame was invented in or around 1598 by William Lee, an Englishman born in Nottingham,

Machine-made stockings soon replaced caps as the most popular commercial product

During the 17C, English machine-made stockings became particularly desirable for their good quality and strong design

However, machine knitting was very slow to take off.It did not have any really significant effect on the handknitting industry until about 1800, nearly 200 years later.

1600-1700

The 1653 parliament of Oliver Cromwell became known as the 'blue stocking' parliament,At this time blue or grey wool was cheap and unfashionable, so the name was intended to express the severely puritanical and highly moral nature of the parliament.

1655 is the date of the earliest known written knitting-pattern.It was for a pair of stockings with turned heels, knitted on four needles.

The frame-knitting industry continued to develope and In 1657 0n June 13th, the Framework Knitters Guild was granted a charter of incorporation by The Worshipfull Company of Frame Knitters.

In 1678 in an English document entitled'Some Proposals for the Employing of the Poor' Thomas Firmin suggested that workhouse schools should be set up to teach the poor spinning, knitting and lace making.He stated that this had been done successfully in other countries.

In 1699 children in a workhouse in London were organized to earn their keep by sewing and knitting.

By 1700 knitting had become the labour of the poor, rather than the occupation of the Master Craftsman.

1700-1800

Published works around 1720-30 inform us that at the beginning of the century, the handknitting industry in Britain was still very active,although in some areas close to London City, hand-frame knitting was beginning to take over.

There appears to have been two distinct qualities of stocking being produced at this time; handknitted, woollen stockings which were very course and ordinary, and cheap to produce,

and the better quality machine-made, worsted stockings which were rather more costly.

Richard Rutt suggests that this distinction in quality and type could be one reason whythe cottage industry of handknitting survived the 'machine-made' competition for so long.

The Victoria and Albert museum and the Whitworth gallery Manchester,both have examples of the Brocade or Florentine jackets that we associate with this period.

The jackets or waistcoats are knitted in silk, using two colours, one of the colours being used for the intricate floral pattern.

Sometimes the fabric contains purl stitches which slightly raise the pattern areas,and enhance the brocade effect

In 1712 a london newspaper reported the theft of a green silk knit waistcoat with gold and silver flowers all over it.

It is known that these brocade jackets and waistcoats were still being worn

around the middle of the century, as some American newspapers were still refering to them asSaxon Green knit jackets or silk knit waistcoats

In 1768 a patent was registered by Josias Crare and J P Porter of Edmonton England, for a method of frame knitting Brocade fabric, leading one to understand thatthese later brocade jackets and waistcoats may have been produced on a knitting frame

By the end of the century, the impact of the Knitting-machine was becoming serious,pre-empting the inevitable decline of the handknitted stocking industry.

THE VICTORIAN AGE

If the end of the 18th Century heralded the decline of the handknitting industry

The 19th century heralded the beginning of the craft of home-knitting for pleasure rather than profit.

This was the time of white cotton work, doilies, chair backs, curtains, shelf edgings etc.

If an article could be knitted, then the Victorian lady knitted it.By the end of the 19C handknitting had become a very popular

artistic pursuit

By 1835 knitting had become a very fashionable hobby for middle class drawing rooms of England and Scotland

Between 1835-40, English knitting books appeared in large numbers, these were very popular

New imported yarns, fine wools and improved quality needles now became available,

1836 is the date of first known pattern publication, this was by Jane Gaugain.

In 1837, Jane produced a small slim book on family knitting In 1840, she published a bookThe Ladies Assistant which included crochet

as well as knitting between 1852-3, she produced lots of books, they contained patterns for

caps, counterpanes, purses, baby clothes, shawls, bags, pin cushions, doyleys, cuffs, spencers, blankets,muffs, scarfs, mittens, and stockings,

It was in about 1837, in Gaitloch, Scotland that the first Argyle or Tartan stockings were produced,

Some where between 1838 1nd 1843, a Miss Frances Lambert, a prolific author of knitting books,invented a disc shaped gauge punched with holes.

The holes were sized inline with the British Standard Steel Wire Gauge, They went from 1-26, size 26 equaled 0.4mm This gauge remained the standard for British needles sizes until 1977

Around the mid 1840s Cornelia Mee (1815-1875), an author of books on knitting and crochet, claimed she had invented crochet

At about the same time, Mlle Eleanor Riego de la Branchardiere,also claimed herself to be the inventor of crochet

By the 1850's knitted lace had become popular, Many stitch patterns were based on eyelets or faggoting.

The first writer to give attention to tension was Francis Lambert,

The Crimean War of 1854-6, provided English women with their first opportunity to knitwar comforts for their loved ones serving overseas.

They knitted an assortment of items, which included shirts, mittens, scarfs, and hats

1867 saw the first recorded use of the tea cosy, The first cosy was like an upside down bag that covered the whole pot In 1893 instructions are recorded for the new fashion 'batchelor' cosy, This was the first cosy to have holes, one for the handle, one for the spout. tea cosies became the 'must have' fashion, and were knitted in all shapes

and styles,Thatched cottages, crinoline dolls, beehives, etc.

Towards the end of the Century, The Victorians became particularly noted for their exquisite beaded knitting.Hand-knitting beaded bags being a particularly popular pastime in the USA,

In 1868 the word cardigan first appeared in print,a year after the Earl of Cardigan died,

In 1870 the Education Act was introduced, This Act introduced manual skills into the curriculum and education for the

working classes, Knitting was taught to boys and girls, In 1879 a teaching aid, The Standard Guide to Knitting was used in

schools. Better education meant that more people were now able to read knitting

instructions and fancy knitting became possible for all, including the working class

This bought about a change in English publications.Many magazines now began to include articles on knitting in their publications.

In 1881 the word Balaclava first appeared in print,17 years after the the Battle of Balaclava, which took place on October 25th, 1864

THE EARLY 1900'S

1900-1920

The original version of the knitting abbreviations that we are familiar with, first appeared in 1906

Raglan sleeves first appeared in knitted garments somewhere between 1912 and 1913,just prior to the first World war

This style of sleeve was named after Lord Raglan, about 57 years after his death in 1855.

During the first world war, knitting became almost a full time occupation for many English women,

In December 1916, 'The Family Journal' published an appeal by Her Majesty Qween Mary, she appealed for woollies to be knitted for the soldiers fighting for their country

All and sundry knitted with great passion and almost obsessive zealin order to send 'comforts' to the 'lads at the front'

They knitted on trains, trams, in theatres and resturantsas well as by their own firesides

These busy hands knitted, socks, mitts, body belts, helmetsand anything else they could think of, that would bring warmth and comfort to our soldiers

1920'S

The 1920's may well be remembered as the Jazz age, or the age of short skirts, cropped hair, and a flattened torso,but the 1920's was also the age of the jersey craze.

During Victoria's reign knitting was thought of as a hobby or craft,and many usefull items such as doylies, table runners, cushion covers, or clothing accessories, like gloves, hats, scarfs, stockings,were made

Knitted items were iether decorative or utilitarian, The act of knitting may have been fashionable, but the results had very

little to to do with fashion, In the 1920's that was to change, not just sweaters, but whole outfits were

now being producedfrom either hand or machine made knitted fabric,

knitted garments, jumpers, jumper suits, dresses, bathing costumes, were now the very height of fashion

Three female designers dominated the 1920's fashion scene, each in their own way played their part in the 'jersey craze',

They were:Gabrielle Chanel, Elsa Schiaparelli and Madeleine Vionnet

Chanel had a particularly significant influence on knitwear, and knitwear design,

After the war, because many raw materials were in short supplyChanel pioneered the use of knitted jersey fabric, a fabric which previously had only been used for men's underwear

Her easy to wear, uncomplicated jersey jumper-suits took the world by storm.

They suited all age groups, all fiqure types and all purse sizes knitwear was suddenly very, very fashionable In 1924 Chanel designed the costumes for Diaghilev's

very popular ballet 'Le Train Bleu', these designs were revolutionary The dancers wore hand-knitted, very daring, unisex bathing costumes, Costumes which scandalised the critics,

but instantly made handknitted unisex-styled bathing suits the number one 'must-have'

Swimming and bathing costumes continued to be hand-knittedthroughout the 30's and 40's and well into the 1950's

Madeleine Vionnet was the Queen of bias cutting, Her contribution to the knitting revolution was more to do with introducing

women to stylish clothes that suited the new, less restricted lifestyle they were now becoming used to

Her clever cutting of softly draped fabric, produced clothes that were fitted but unstructured.

clothes that allowed complete freedom of movement, clothes that were elegant, feminine and very fashionable. Not everyone could afford the silks and silk chiffons of courture fashion,

but many could afford clothes made from inexpensive jersey-knit fabric,a fabric which has just the same qualities of softness and drape as bias cut chiffon,

Clothing made from jersey-knit fabric, answered the every-day needfor the now fashionable requirement of elegance, freedom and informality

ELsa Schaparelli was a very innovative, creative and influencial designer, She almost always included unusual hand knits in her collections In 1927 Schaparelli designed her most famous trompe-l'oeil jumper The black sweater had a rather large knitted-in bow on the front. In 1928 the sweater of the year, was another of Schiaparelli's trompe l'oeil

designs, This one had a knitted-in scarf which draped round one hip, with a real tie

on the other These sweaters were sensational, nothing like this had ever been seen

before They were witty, clever and fun, and best of all, they were knitted using

two pins Those who couldn't knit, very quickly learnt how to.

Hand knitting became very popular lots of knitting patterns were available for the the new long straight

jumpers

Horizontal colour stripes, and bands or borders of flower designs were very popular

As was traditional geometric Fair Isle The Prince of Wales is said to have started this particular fashion explosion in 1922, On september 27th, he appeared on the golf course wearing the

now famous Fair-Isle sweater Patterns for Fair Isle, giving instructions for weaving-in, soon appeared in

magazines and fashion journals, Stranding yarn across the back of the knitting did not become popular until

until a couple of years later Fair Isle knitting has never gone out of fashion, but it reached a real peak

in the mid 1920's There was also a new interest in Lace knitting during the 1920's, Herbert Niebling worked on reviving and developing the intricate designs

of the Biedermeier period, (1820-48), His designs appeared in magazines published by Burda.

THE MID 1900'S

1930'S

The 1930'S was a period of ecomomic recession resulting in mass unemploymment,both in America and Great Britain,

The unemployed suffered cuts in their unemployment pay, which now became means-tested

Life for many families became very tough indeed Middle class ladies, having experienced the war time comfort's knitting,

now began a new crusade, and charity knitting was undertaken with gusto Every tiny odd scrap of yarn was collected and utilised to knit small items,

tea cosies, mittens, hats toys, or anything else that would sell. Most of the major spinners published knitting patterns or pattern booklets

of instructions for bazzar knits Once more the whole country was knitting.

In 1932 the Personal Service League was founded, with Queen Mary as the patron.

The league was set up to encourage knittingThey organised the collection and distribution of the knitting,

The league existed for at least 10 years

On 2 November 1934 'The Times' made a National Knitting Appeal for every woman in the country to knit one garment, for the unemployed.

The target was 100,000 garments,

In terms of fashion the 1930's was the era of detailed shaping, nipped in waists,slightly broader shoulders, and intricatly shaped necklines.

It was a period of very sophisticated dressmaking , which had a strong influence on knitwear.

Almost all middle-class women were expert dressmakers , with an understanding of pattern cutting

This knowledge enabled them to expertly translate the detailed shaping of woven wear into 3 dimensioonal knitting

knitwear now began to imitate the styling of woven Fashion, For the first time garments were now knitted with carefully shaped bust,

hip and waist darts, Jumpers, skirts, dresses and suits, were smooth fitting from neck to hip,

the skirt being either straight or a slightly flared 'A' line The shaping lines often appeared as decorative elements within the

knitting

It was during the 1930's that sweaters became acceptable wear both in town and for early evening wear

And by the end of the decade the sweater had become the basis of most looks,

It was worn with slacks, or tweed skirts Highly sophisticated versions were worn with the town suit the sweaters were short, brief,and fitted, knitted with rib textures,

and knots, short puff sleeves and tied neck lines Hand knitted boleros with short puff sleeves often covered backless

evening dresses Another 1930's handknitted innovation was the snood, a very glamourous

sort of hair-net, which was an essential accessory to a smart suit or day dress.

Hand knitting was more popular than ever, lots of patterns were published,either as leaflets or booklets or as instructions in magazines

And many knitting books were published In 1932 Vogue launched The Vogue Knitting Book , the first of a highly

successful series of books which lasted for over 30 years Mary Thomas, fashion Journalist and illustrator,

wrote her first books, which were on embroidery in 1934, and 1936,. her first knitting book 'Mary Thomas's knitting book' was published in

1938. Her second knitting book, 'Mary Thomas's Book of Patterns' was published

in 1943 In 1939 the world was at war for the second time, The decade ended with all knitters once more supporting 'the soldiers

comforts campaign' by Knitting socks, balaclavas, scarfs, finger-less mittens, blankets etc.

1940'S

The war years of the early forties were a time of utility and thrift, make do and mend,

Knitting wools along with fabric and clothes became rationed in June 1941, To buy knitting wool it was neccessary to use a precious clothing coupon Published designs always contained helpful information on how to use both

wool and clothing coupons in the most economical way To save coupons knitted garments were unravelled and reknitted, not once

but many times, To save wool the short sleeve became very popular, There were also an assortment of instructions available for gilets, to be

worn under a jacket The front of a gilet was knitted like a jumper but the back was either

made from a rectangle of discarded fabric, or a cheap net, more frugal was the backless gilet, in this case, tapes were stitched at waist level on each side of the front

for tying at the back, while the shoulders were safety-pinned to underwear

In 1940 the first of the Koster and Murry books was published by Odhams Press'Practical knitting Illustrated'

This very popular book was reprinted seven times and remained in print for a decade.

The book contains knitting instructions for underwear, beach suits,cushion covers and place mats for the table,

Plus jumpers, (lots of short sleeves) cardigans and so on for men, women, children and babies,

The book also incudes alternative stitch pattens, and graphs of sizes,with instructions on how to adapt the patterns

The sweaters are short and body fitting, shoulders wide and padded, All the neck lines have interesting details. Also very typical of the forties, surface decoration and texture

is more important than colour patterning. Bobbles, moss st, and cable twisted-stitch patterns, are the vogue. Over the following 9 years a further seven books by Koster and Murrry

were published by Odhams,

These two ladies continued writing knitting books, booklets and articles throughout the 1950's

In 1941 silk stocking were banned, the substitutes, cotton and rayon,were soon in such short supply, that bare legs and footlets were recommended

At this point Vogue offered it's readers a knitting pattern for footlets

Two years after the war ended 1947, Christian Dior introduce his 'New Look'

skirt hems exactly 16 inches from the ground, tiny waists, a defined bustline and batwing sleeves, lots of extravagent

fabric. This design was the reaction to years of restriction and making do, and

women loved it. during the next decade, the 1950's, this more exuberant style continued

1950'S

The Fifties were a heyday for handknitting, And for Fashion in general, a new era was born

The Festival of Britain in 1951 was a celebration of British achievement,renewing confidence in British manufacturing,

The following great wave of commercialism brought with it the concept of mass production.

For Fashion that meant, cheap, trendy, easily accessable 'ready to wear' Rationing ended in 1954, negating any regard for economy Overlarge, generous, extravagant, full , became the fashion buzz words of

the decade.

For the first time young people began to use clothes as a means of group identification

The word, Teenager, imported from America, was used for the first time. The Fifties was the age of the young. It was also the age of male clothing, as men became very conscious of

fashion A look based on the Edwardian Style evolved and Teddy Boys emerged.

Young new, British, just-out-of Art School, designers,eschewed establishment fashion and developed their own fresh and original looks

Dior died in 1957, and Yves Saint Laurent became the new King of Fashion, Chanel continued to be Queen The British designer Mary Quant became the major fashion force outside

Paris

Handknitted fashion was revolutionised by the introduction of nylon synthetic fibres.

Yarns made from nylon, Orlon and Courtelle , were easy to machine wash, and they dried very quickly

Soft, thick, chunky yarns in pale colours became very popular. Large, over-sized chunky sweaters, called sloppy joes, worn over tight

pants were hot news, A second look was a tight , either very low scoop neck or high polo neck,

sweaterworn with a full complete circle skirt.

Both looks were accessorised with flat ballet pumps, and a very tightly fitting, 4 inch wide, elastic waspie belt.

Also in demand were, thick mohair cardigans and jackets, and aran knits These sweaters were usually underpined by a 'sweater girl' bra, The bra sported stiffen, conical shaped cups, spiraled with rows of

stitching.

These new yarns and new shapes created a tremendous demand for new patterns ,

Many new knitting books, knitting leaflets, patterns in magazines, and new specialist knitting magazines were published.

Once more, everyone was knitting.

THE MID 1900'S, continued

1960'S

Wide spread interest in handknitting faded in the 60's, It became rather unfashionable to knit

Knitting instructions for clean-cut designs in fine yarns, using lacey intricate patternswere still being published

Such handknits were gradually replaced by machine knitted clothes in manmade fibres

knitting over-large sweaters with bulky bri-nylon continued, but these bulky garments soon became very unfashionable

In the mid 60's Womens Home Industries produced a range of see-through crochet dresses,which proved to be very popular

These were shortly followed by home crocheted versions, using instructions printed in many magazines and knit books

The new elite of the sixties were young, talented and creative, They were pop artists, singers, photographers, hairdressers,

interior decorators, writers and designers, The talented young doing what they wanted, very sucssesfully And they were British. The sixties made Britain into a fashion leader Throughout the decade and into the early 70's, buyers from all over the

worldwould come to look at British ready to wear.

This was the great age of theLondon Boutique , and Carnaby street.

It was also the age of Teenage Society , and the young shopper, By 1967, 50 percent of all the knits, coats, dresses and skirts, sold in UK ,

were bought by 15 to 19 year olds

And the age of the mini Mary Quant took the mini skirt to New York in 1965 with The British

Fashion Show,it became a favorite export

In 1966 Mary Quant received the OBE for services to the fashion Industry, She attended the ceremony at Buckingham Palace wearing (of course) a

mini skirt,

And the age of: the dance craze The twist; Plus, big, thick hair; wigs, and hair pieces; black, heavy eye make up; very

pale lips; Knitted dark plaid stockings; coloured nylon stockings; thick knee socks;

tight skinny rib sweaters, worn pulled down and tucked in; crocheted pudding-basin hats and long scarfs;space age shapes and colours; art Deco geometric patterns

In 1962, James Norbury published a book, 'Traditional Knitting Patterns', Barbara Walker published her 'First Treasury of knitting Patterns' in 1968. The BBC publication, 'Knit! with James Norbury', a book on knit technique,

appeared in 1968,

Norbury's better known book,'The Family Knitting Book' was published in 1969

During 1968/69 three new schools of fashion began to emerge Flower Power ; Ethnic Peasant; and the ruffles and ringlets look These new looks heralded the end of 1960's space age fashion

1970'S

The seventies saw dramatic changes in the role and purpose of fashion Parisian Couture Fashion now took a back seat, and mass produced

Ready to Wear fashion took over Never again would there be one single , leading or right fashion look, Now there were a host of fashions, with the emphasis on individual, often

freelance, stylists The buying public were no longer divided into the young and the others

as they had been in the 60's Now the split was more to do with those who prefered to buy lots of less

expensive clothesand those who opted for investment buying, more expensive, but fewer purchases.

Women were dressing to amuse and please themselves, Never before had there been so many different looks

Clothes were now much more about decoration than fashion, Everything is painted with flowers, stripes, or fantasy Liberty prints become collectors items, This is the time of pattern on pattern , colour worn over colour, layer over

layer, Style is no longer dictated, the choice is yours, Hot pants were being worn in city offices, Spotted shirts were worn with tile-pattern skirts and a patchwork knitted

vest. Very high platform soled shoes were worn with baggy sailor trousers, This was the decade of colour, pattern and the unconventional This was the age of the Kings Road and Punks, Flower Power, Peace,

and the Womens Liberation movement,

For many people the great general focus of the time was on environmental issues

Pollution, preservation and conservation were the social buzz words, There was a return to the 'back to nature', home spun, ideal, This in turn created a trend towards the creative hand-crafts, nostalgia

reigned

Restablished knitting's fashionable image Hand knitting now became as popular as in the Twenties And sweaters were a big part of the fashion picture Sweaters came with three-quarter length batwing sleeves , or short square

cut kimono sleeves, They came vsleeveless with low cut necklines, They were wildly striped or patterned, They were worn, one layered over another,

Vogue, who had withdrawn their knitting books during the 60's,now started to publish country look patterns

The patterns were a combination of modern design plus nostalgia for the past

Long ribbed cardigans and matching skirts in speckly wool, to imitate Donegal tweed,

Sleeveless tank tops, in wild patterns and colour combinations long striped coats, and the ever popular sailor sweater

In 1972, Zandra Rhoades produced her first sweater, it was striped in pink, green and blue,with bat wing sleeves, and a long point at the centre front and centre back hem line

In Italy, Rosita and Ottavio Missoni created a knitting revolution, with incredible mixes of pattern and colour

In Great Britain, Jean Muir was the undoubted Queen of jersey knit And Kaffe Fasset a gifted colourist , had a tremendous influence on colour

knittingHis first design 'Moroccan Waistcoat' appeared in Vogue Knitting in 1969.

THE LATE 1900'S,

1980'S

Fashion has always been in a state of constant evolution, but in the 80's it all starts moving much faster

The 'in' look changes much more frequently than previously, and fashion becomes fiercely competitive,

The young designer is the new demi-god , Top models are now called Super Models and become famous, Catwalk shows now become show business spectaculars

The 80's see the birth of the Yuppie or young Urban Professional The office, corporate activities, business travel, working lunches, all

become a large part of life For the upwardly mobile there is a need to look the part Power dressing is the answer Large wide padded shoulders, narrow hips, perfectly tailored trouser suits,

and the crisp white shirt,are all fashion musts for the working girls day,

For the evening party we see the re-appearance of the formal evening dressand the long ball gown.

The social groups now re-form into many sub-groups , each with it's own clear, visible identity

Including the new rich , who have the sort of spending powerthat enables the growth of the luxury-goods industries

The 80's heralded the end of submission to the dictates of fashion, From now on active choice prevails and fashion is led from the street.

Hand knitting was astoundingly popular in the 1980's many designers had hand knits in their collections, There were also specialist hand knit designer collections Body Map a company formed in 1982, had a particularly significant

influence on knitting They designed very creative, unconventional, unstructured knitwear Patricia Roberts designed and developed new stitch techniques for

creating texture and patternin her innovative handknits,

Kaffe Fasset's use of colour was inspirational

Perhaps one of the most interesting developments, was the availability of new and unusual yarns

The 80's found everyone knitting with soft bulky fluffy yarns, tubular ribbon tape, leather and leather look-alike tape, spray dyed silk ribbon, yarns with coloured bobbles or knots,tweed yarns, mohair, alpaca, cashmere and a variety of cotton yarns.

There was even a 1/2 inch wide paper knitting ribbon Shiny, dull, matt, glossy, shimmering silver and gold, raffia, gauze, linen,

there was a whole spectrum of new novelty yarns to enchant the knitter.

The Vogue Knitting Magazine continued to be produced

Rowan yarns were now producing books of hand knitting patterns several times a year,

Hand Knitting News was first published in February 1985, In the summer of 1987, The Victoria and Albert Museum held an Exhibition

of knittingentitled 'Knit one, Purl One'

In the 1980's hand knitting made the sort of contribution to the Fashion Look, that has never been seen before or since.

1990'S

1999 to 2000 was the decade of new technology, functionalism and minimalism

Fashion has become universal, now similar styles are worn all over the world

In general terms the fashion industry is now split into two extremes At one end there are the experimental designers, who explore and develop

new trends, At the other extreme are the large multi-national companies who mass

produce garments for global consumsion The fashion industry is now about big business, Target marketing and product promotion are becoming as important, if not

more important, than product design and styling

The fashion look of the 90's is about the body beautiful Francois Baudot, a leading fashion and style specialist, argues that much

of the interest in how one looks,has switched from that of clothes themselves, to the body of the wearer

In the 90's there is an unpresidented emphasis on the shape and fitness of the body

The fashion styles like the industry itself, vary from one extreme to the other

On the one hand we have designers like Gianni Versace, Yohji Yamamoto, stella McCartney and Donna Karan designing garments of timeless classical elegance for the grown up lady

On the other hand there are designers such as Vivienne Westwood, Rei Kawakubo (comme des Garcons),

Alexander McQueen, and Jean-Paul Gaultier designing conceptual works of art, intended to be worn

Throughout the period the one consistancy is the colour black Black is the colour every woman is wearing, whatever her age or shape, Black is worn to the shops, to the office, to the party, Each season, in spite of the effort made to introduce a different colour as

the 'new black'Black remains the fashion colour of the decade

Knitwear, other than piece goods, such as circular knit jersey for 'T' shirts, sweat shirts etc, and stretch-knit fabric, such as lycra, is not fashionable at this time.

The increasing number of two income families , means that for most women, there is more money but less time,

In view of the vast array of cheap and cheerful imports that are available,handknitting is time consuming and relatively expensive,

As for the young most of them have no experience of knitting or sewing, Neither dressmaking nor knitting is any longer on the school curriculumn, For them knitting is something Grandma does

The publication 'Vogue knitting' continues to support those who still enjoy handknitting

However, the short lived 'Machine knitting News' ceases publication. In style, handknits are still loose fitting, but not as big and floppy as in the

previous decade, Armholes and sleeve tops are still straight or square cut, rather than set in, Armholes are still deep and roomy One important knit fashion trend is the combining of textured patterns,

cables, bobbles and other raised stitches, with laceand-or colour patterns,

By 1998 shapes start to get neater and smaller By the end of the 90's a renewed interest in skillful knitting, as compared

to quick-knitting,starts to emerge,

KNITTING NOW

2000

The fashion look of 2005 has been dubbed "The New Sexy" look, It is a womanly, feminine, chic and sexy look, It is not a bare-all look, but a covered up look, except for some tempting

glimpses of bare backs, To quote Tina Gaudoin, the style director of Times Magazine,

" whether it's high street or high-end, showing less really is more "

As always there are many individual fashion stories, but the overall movement is towards modesty,

The fabrics are soft silk, muslin, fine cotton and voile, Often printed with floral designs, that are delicate , and pretty, but never

twee, Alternatively, the flower patterns can be big and bold in earthy colours,

reminiscent of the 50's The look is one of softness, floating volume, a look somewhere between

gypsy and farm girl, Ruched peasant tops, delicate camisoles, long layered skirts often a

patchwork of different prints

Knitwear comes in two guises, either small neat, close fitting shapes with intricate detailing, or large shapes in plain or open work fabrics using fine up-market yarns,

The trims are often ruffles or fringes

The first half of 2000 has seen a resurgence of handknitting There appears to be a new, almost underground, movement dedicated to

introducingthe public to the joys of knitting

The craft of handknitting is being marketed as a fun, creativeand satisfying hobby in it's own right,

The emphasis being on the activity rather than the end product New pulications and new yarns are doing their bit to encourage both

the experienced and the new knitter The yarn craze at the present time being new fur-look-like yarns, great for

the new shrug or bolero jacket designs

The recent, 'Knit 2 Together' exhibition at the crafts Council Gallery in London, will have inspired many potential knitters

Many more will be inspired by The Knitting and Stitching Show at venues inLondon Oct 13-16,   Dublin Nov 3-6,   Harrogate Nov 24-27,

These shows will be exhibiting student and graduate collections, in addition to the work of more experienced designers.