Knitted vest made by Anna Bell Bray, Shetland, UK
<p><span>This is a man's vest made by Anna Bell Bray of Shetland, UK for my husband, Wade Lindsay, in late 1997 or early 1998. The vest is made of Jamieson and Smith Jumper Weight wool yarn in a combination of 11 dyed natural colors, solid colors, and tweeds in the traditional manner -- knitted from the bottom up, in the round, using no more than 2 colors per round. The V-neck and armholes are steeked and cut, with the edgings picked up and knitted after cutting. Anna Bell Bray typically knitted her garments using a traditional knitting belt and 5 long steel needles. </span></p>
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<p><span>During a visit to Shetland in July 1997 with my mother-in-law, Betty Lindsay and father-in-law Joe Lindsay, we met Anna Bell Bray at the Islesburgh Exhibition, where she and a group of accomplished knitters and designers from the area exhibited and sold their work. As I've written elsewhere, Anna Bell Bray’s work is distinguished by couturier details that are difficult to achieve in knitwear made using traditional Shetland knitting techniques. She agreed to knit a vest for my husband -- to be sent to us whenever it was completed -- sizing him on the spot just by looking at him. We knew whatever she created would be amazing, and so it is.</span></p>
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<p><span>The photos show many views of the vest, and capture Anna Bell Bray's masterful use of light and dark values and large Norwegian-style star motifs to achieve an almost kaleidoscopic visual effect. An unusual ribbing with checkerboard detail adds distinction. As shown in the inside-out photo, the neck ribbing reveals a patterned facing, while the hem and armholes have plain facings. These facings give the garment a more finished look by enclosing the raw edges, and allow it to better hold its shape. The facings also reduce the chance of excessive wear at these common stress points. </span></p>
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<p><span>The subtle gradations in the colors, and their placement, serve to keep the eye moving over the design so that it always looks fresh and interesting. For example, one brown used in the ribbing is not used in the main body of the sweater, while the tweed yarns are used sparingly to point up the centers of the motifs. </span></p>
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Anna Bell Bray
1997 or 1998
Length (shoulder to hem) = 27", Chest (circumference) 43" Gauge appears to be 11 stitches x 11 rows to 1"
2019.030
Hand knit Scandinavian Folk Dolls
<p>"Sven & Helga" are hand knitted dolls created by Judith Lasch of Middletown, New Jersey, in the year 2000. Judith created the dolls for her daughter, Callie, following a trip they had shared together to the Scandinavian countries. Folkloric dolls were a staple in their home growing up and, as Callie and her sisters honed their own making skills, making their own dolls was further encouraged. Plans for the next doll to be shared as a surprise gift were made many months in advance. Sven & Helga were named in honor of Callie's father and grandmother.</p>
Judith Lasch
2000
12" x 6" each
2019.013
Ballerina Bunny, hand knit doll
<p>This Ballerina Bunny was created in celebration of many important apects of my life. I was raised in a household where giving and receiving handmade dolls was a very big part of our family culture. The joy of making them has never gone away and only increased with time.</p>
<p>The project of the Ballerina Bunny was created from a pattern I had found (but no longer retain). It spoke to me because it encompassed a lot of my favorite things all at once: my love of ballet; my work as a ballet teacher; my love of animals, knitting, and dolls. I was especially smitten with the tutu and the faux-toe shoes. It was also a good project for learning different knitting techniques and to be able to see results quickly.</p>
<p>Most importantly, I knew it would make my mom happy. She had been my knitting teacher and I wanted to show her how much she had taught me. At the time, my mother was battling the final stages of her illness. I had caught a cold and for 3 weeks it was unsafe for me to visit with her, so I was seeking a way that we could still do something together that made us both feel useful and happy. Making a knitted doll, with so much personal resonance, seemed like a good solution. We talked over the phone regularly about how to approach different parts and fix issues and share pictures of our progress.</p>
<p>When I was finallly able to present it to Mom, her excitement was beyond what I had imagined. She loved it, for so many reasons, and certainly for more than just the accomplishment of knitting. That's what makes it a treasure - because it's an everlasting, irreplaceable, shared experience of the heart captured in each and every stitch.</p>
Beth Lasch
2003
10" x 5"
2019.014
Doll coat and booties knit by Heather Hernandez, Berkeley, California, USA
<p>Knit from Venus Dodge's "Matinee coat" and "booties" patterns in her book, Doll's Dressmaker, using 2mm needles for the coat and 2.75mm needles for the booties, both with Schachenmayr nomotta Regia 4 faedig 4-ply, color 5033 Partie, fingering weight wool/synthetic blend yarn, for my Vogue Ginny baby doll.</p>
Hernandez, Heather
2005-2006
Coat is 4"/ca. 10cm from collar to hem, and the booties 2.5"/ca. 6cm toe to heel
2021.013
Holiday Table Mats with Crochet and Buttons
<p>Over the years, people who knew my love for knitting, crochet, and sewing entrusted me with related supplies they no longer needed, or those they inherited from loved ones and were unlikely to use.</p>
<p>When it came time to craft these holiday table mats, my received button collection came in handy. The plan was to use holiday-themed crochet applique to embellish a pair of shaggy felt rectangles.</p>
<p>I crocheted corrugated leaves, inspired by similar leaves in Irish Crochet lace. Crocheted with red yarn and arranged in a wide circle with stems pointing inward, the corrugated leaves made a pretty good approximation of a poinsettia flower. That was appropriate, because live poinsettia petals are specialized leaves. I tried adding crocheted green leaves, because poinsettias have those as well. No matter how I arranged them, they overwhelmed the red "petals." The piece needed green though, so I added green buttons, which probably came from the estate of one of my aunts.</p>
<p>A slightly altered, crocheted fern frond made a reasonable Christmas tree. My then five-year-old daughter Ella helped me choose the best red buttons to decorate the tree. Ella wanted to decorate her own tree mat, so we found a crocheted leaf, sewed it to a scrap of felt, and sewed button ornaments on it. Unfortunately, I could find only a very small photo of Ella's holiday mat.</p>
<p>The edges of the shaggy felt were wavy. Since the felt was synthetic, I was reluctant to press it with a hot iron. The edges needed a trim or something else to weigh them down and flatten them.</p>
<p>My sister-in-law's sister, Sharon, had worked in a fabric store and collected several half-gallon tubs of buttons. Sharon decided she would never use them all, so she passed them along to me. With a trove of buttons like hers, I could afford to be extravagant. I sewed a solid line of buttons just inside the edges of each holiday table mat. That flattened the edges.</p>
<p>I am grateful that people thought of me when they had sewing, knitting, and crochet supplies they didn't need. Naturally, I couldn't keep everything, so I passed along items I wouldn't use in a thoughtful and respectful way.</p>
Thompson, Suzann and Frederick, Ella
2008
17.5 x 11 inches, each; around 3 x 4 inches
2022.0011
Crocheted pillow cover by Heather Hernandez, Berkeley, California
<p>Design adapted from one in the book Ouvrages de Dames edited by Jules Trigoulet, <span class="breaker-breaker"></span>available on the Internet Archive at <a href="https://archive.org/details/MAB.31962000791123Images">https://archive.org/details/MAB.31962000791123Images</a> ; a chart that I made is also available at <a href="http://www.imagists.org/knitting/crochetpillowcover.pdf">http://www.imagists.org/knitting/crochetpillowcover.pdf</a> . Crocheted out of size 10 DMC Cebelia cotton with a 1.4mm steel crochet hook, I then sewed the crocheted piece onto one side of peach linen.</p>
Hernandez, Heather
2013
21" x 17"/ca. 54 x 69 cm
2021.016
Crocheted Snowflakes
<p><span>Some of the designs pictured here are probably by Deborah Atkinson (Ravelry); I learned a lot from studying & making her snowflake patterns. Others in the picture are of my own design. I entered these pictures in CraftStylish's "Dare to Make it: Holiday, 2014" contest -- and won the top prize!</span></p>
<p><span>The snowflakes were crocheted using white Aunt Lydia's brand #10 cotton crochet thread using a #8 or #7 steel hook. Once completed, I blocked and starched the flakes so they would hold their shape as ornaments on the Christmas tree.</span></p>
<p><span>Growing up in Mississippi, snow was a rarity. After that, I continued to live in the southerly climates of Florida & Texas. A "White Christmas" has never really been a possibility (except during the couple of years I spent living in Germany). Around 2014 or so, I decided to kick my crochet skills up a notch by learning to use the tiny steel hooks & cotton thread. Doilies didn't really appeal to me, but snowflakes! ❄ I could have a White Christmas -- without the cold...or the need to shovel!</span></p>
<p><span>For a time, I was addicted to making these. Each one was a small, compact & quickly finished project. Because no two snowflakes are alike, I felt free to make variations & create totally new designs. I made so many snowflakes that I started giving them away. Eventually, all my snowflakes had new homes, and my passion for making them melted away just like the snow...but I still have the memories.</span></p>
Cabler, Cindy
2014
various sized snowflakes, approximately 2 - 4 in in diameter; crocheted in white Aunt Lydia's brand #10 crochet cotton with a #8 or perhaps #7 steel hook
2021.022
Red Cross Sweater for Navy Use
<p>This is a Navy sweater knit by Rebecca Keyel in 2016 from a sweater pattern originally designed by the American Red Cross in the late 1930s. The pattern (designated ARC 400-3) appeared in a Red Cross pattern book issued by the Milwaukee Chapter of the American Red Cross in 1941, and was reprinted numerous times between 1939 and 1965. The garment is knit all in one piece and finished by sewing the sides of the garment to close. The contributor knit the sweater using worsted weight wool yarn (Quince and Co Lark) and US size 8 casein needles as part of a doctoral dissertation on women's volunteer knitting during the First and Second World War. It is one of 13 other objects knit for the project.</p>
American Red Cross
2016
2019.001
Amigurumi squirrels and crochet woodland set
<p><em>The Big Acorn Race</em> is a 72-page crochet story and pattern book by Jennifer Olivarez that was published in 2016. The story follows the amigurumi characters from the crochet blog, Squirrel Picnic, as they compete to see who can get an acorn out of a tree first. It sounds simple, but there’s a catch: they aren’t allowed to climb the tree. They each must use their wit and imagination to find an alternative solution. <em>The Big Acorn Race</em> also includes 15 crochet patterns and projects to make the items featured in the story.</p>
<p>Shown here are some of the characters, props, and sets that Jennifer crocheted for the book. </p>
Olivarez, Jennifer
2016
2019.031
Nantucket jacket by Heather Hernandez, Berkeley, California, USA
<p>My version of the Nantucket Jacket designed by Norah Gaughan and published in the Winter 2006 issue of Interweave Knits, pages 62-64; Ravelry pattern page here: <a href="https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/nantucket-jacket">https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/nantucket-jacket</a>, and my Ravelry project page here: <a href="https://www.ravelry.com/projects/igel/nantucket-jacket">https://www.ravelry.com/projects/igel/nantucket-jacket</a> Like many who have knit this pattern I altered it, but I only extended the sleeves, adjusted the trim to place the scallops over the buttonholes, only used four buttons, and tacked the collar down in the back over the seam between the collar and the body (further details on my Ravelry project page). It is knit of Jupiter Moon Farm Sabine yarn, worsted weight, 40% Cotton, 30% Llama, 30% Merino, modeled by myself.</p>
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Hernandez, Heather
2016
Smallest size, 34"
2022.003
Winterling, a knitted, embellished wall hanging
Winterling is a knitted, quilted wall hanging, embellished with crochet, embroidery, beads, and buttons. It was made by textile artist Suzann Thompson in 2017 for her Celebrate Doilies exhibit. The name Winterling refers to a now-closed chinaware factory in Schwarzenback an der Saale, Germany, where Thompson's great-grandmother worked. Among the many china patterns the Winterling factory produced was the popular blue and white Zwiebelmuster or Onion Pattern, which Thompson interpreted on the vase in the picture, using a combination of knitting, applique, crochet, embroidery, and beading. The crocheted flowers are Thompson's own designs. The background of the picture is reverse stockinette stitch, knitted with many different yarns, stabilized with fusible interfacing, cut and pieced back together, and machine sewn to a fabric foundation.
Thompson, Suzann
2017
28" x 38"
2018.009
Spindles, Peru
<p>Spindles, Peru, 2017. </p>
<p>As an avid spinner, I was eager to bring home some spindles from our hiking trip to Peru in 2017. Our guide helped me find them during a visit to a weaving and textile cooperative called the Asociacion Civil Apu Salkantay, Warmicuna de Mollepata, in Mollepata, Anta Province, Peru. <br /><br />Spindles were not offered for sale in the weaving shop, but upon learning of my interest in spinning, one of the women went home and came back in a few minutes with a plastic grocery bag filled with loose shafts and whorls. We fitted a few together and I purchased 3 spindles, with some raw Alpaca fiber to spin. I understood that she made the spindles herself. </p>
<p>These spindles are "low whorl" spindles. The shafts are sticks that, according to Abby Franquemont (https://abbysyarns.com/2011/02/peruvian-spindles-my-spindles/) are peeled and whittled into shape. The whorls are turned on a lathe, with ornamental lines burned into the wood. The tag pictured is for a beautiful handwoven gray Alpaca shawl I purchased from the shop; I include it because it identifies the name and location of the Warmicuna de Mollepata weaving and textile cooperative.</p>
<p>During our travels I saw men and women using spindles like these to spin Alpaca and wool yarns. I enjoy having and spinning with these working momentos of our trip. <br /><br /><br /></p>
Unknown
2017
Shafts: 12.5" Whorls: Height 3/4", Diameter 2" tapering to 1.25"
2019.035
Pussyhats
<p>Some of these pussyhats were made for women across the country to wear at the Women's March in Washington D.C. </p>
<p>Others were made for local women to wear to local marches. My daughters and I participated in a march in Morris Minnesota.</p>
<p>The marches took place around the world on January 21, 2017.<br /><br />They were made with Lion Brand Hometown bulky yarn and knit in the round on size 13 needles. I could make a hat in about 30 minutes, and made 20+ hats inspired by the pussyhat project. <a href="https://www.pussyhatproject.com/">https://www.pussyhatproject.com/</a></p>
Grandy, Ann
2017
2020.019
Set of baby garments in rainbow yarn
This is a set of baby garments, a sweater with buttons and a soaker, made for a newborn baby in 2018.
The yarn is urth uneek worsted. The garments were both knit from a single skein of yarn to make a complete set of clothing.
The set was knit for the first born child of the maker’s closest friend.
The sweater was knit from Gabrielle Danskknit’s Winter Sunset pattern, and the soaker was knit from Rebecca Krolikowski’s Frantic Mama Knitted Soaker Pattern.
Keyel, Rebecca
2018
2019.002
Knit lace pattern shawl
<p>This shawl was knit by Nicole H. Scalessa using size US7 needles and Lion Brand Shawl in a Ball Metallic Prism. The stitch is a feather and fan variation with lace stitch insert.</p>
Scalessa, Nicole
2018
5’x14”
2019.011
Register to Vote quilt with doily "O"
"Registering voters isn't the most visually exciting thing in the world, so I made this quilt to lure people close enough to ask them if they need to register. I had the perfect doily to make the O in VOTE. Yay, doilies!!" wrote maker Suzann Thompson on her Facebook page. The 17" doily trim dictated the size of the letters in the word VOTE, and the size of the quilt. The patchwork was pieced from scrap fabric, mostly cotton. Thompson composed the lettering on Adobe Photoshop Elements and printed them full-sized. She cut out each letter and used it as a pattern to cut the letters from fabric. The letters are attached to the quilt top with temporary spray adhesive, and Thompson zig-zag stitched around the raw edges to attach them permanently.
The O in VOTE is from a vintage doily with a cloth center. Thompson starched the doily, cut out the damaged center, turned under the cut edge, and finally machine-stitched the turned-under cloth and crocheted trim to the quilt top. After quilting she added mother-of-pearl buttons to the crocheted trim. The obvious message of the quilt is "Register to Vote." Semi-hidden letters in the patchwork change the message to "Register us to vote automatically." Button groupings in the border spell the word VOTE using the Braille alphabet.
Thompson, Suzann
2019
63 inches wide, 49 inches tall
2019.003
Trick or Treat Doily by Bella Crochet
Designer Ann White of Bella Crochet (bellacrochet.blogspot.com) designed the Trick or Treat Doily to accompany another Halloween-themed doily in her design collection. Suzann Thompson crocheted the doily in 2019 with No. 10 crochet cotton from her collection (another term for "stash"). She said that watching the pleats form was fun. They fall into place naturally when you have finished three or four rounds. The first round of the lacy border more-or-less locks the pleats in place. Suzann starches doilies with a mixture of one part liquid starch and one part water. Suzann and her daughters enjoy creating holiday displays on the family's sideboard. It's a good excuse to clean off the items that mysteriously accumulate there in-between times.
Thompson, Suzann
2019
9 inches in diameter
2019.010
Heartfelt Thanks with Crocheted Heart Motifs
<p>I designed this sweet crocheted picot heart in the 1980s, envisioning it as an applique motif to embellish handmade or purchased items.</p>
<p>I ran across it several times over the next 30-some years, but didn't crochet it again until 2017. Our daughters' piano teacher and our good friend remarried, and she and her new husband didn't need anything at all. I tucked a crocheted picot heart in a card for the couple, writing that I hoped they would think of the heart as a symbol of all the good things to come. "It was perfect!" my friend said.</p>
<p>In 2020, I needed to write a bunch of extra-special thank you notes. Crocheted hearts might be just what I needed to help me not just say, but show my gratitude.</p>
<p>One recipient was a life-long fan of The University of Texas at Austin, so he received a burnt orange picot heart. He also enjoyed iced tea, and I thought he might use his crocheted heart as a coaster. The yarn was Brown Sheep Company's Cotton Fleece, crocheted with a U. S. size H-8 (5mm) hook.</p>
<p>Friends who raised buffalo gave me a big box of buffalo fur and hair plucked from bushes, trees, and barbed wire fences. Their picot heart was crocheted with buffalo fur which I spun and plied with a hand spindle. The yarn was bulky and was crocheted with a U. S. size K-10.5 (6.5mm) hook.</p>
<p>What will people do with the crocheted hearts? Maybe they will add a piece of thread to hang the heart as an ornament, glue the heart into a scrapbook, or give it to their Valentine. Maybe they will just leave it lying around where they can see it from time to time, and let it remind them that their efforts were appreciated.</p>
<p>The red hearts are crocheted with No. 10 crochet cotton and a Susan Bates aluminum hook, U. S. steel size 4 (2mm). They are about 1.75 x 1.75 inches.</p>
Thompson, Suzann
2019
various
2020.004
BLM Yarn Bomb
<p>This knitted yarn bomb hangs inside my front porch window. I designed and made it in support of the Black Lives Matter movement in July of 2020. I used size 13 needles and employed intarsia technique. <br /><br /></p>
<p>I live in a small community 30 miles east of Madison, Wisconsin. I wanted to do something to show my support for the Black Lives Matter movement. There hasn't been any protests here, but that doesn't mean people don't care. So I made this. It's not much, but it's what I can do with my voice. </p>
Lucas, Rhonda
2020
15”x31”
2020.020
A knit teddy bear named Biggie Bear 2.0
<p>This bear was knit as a replacement for the original "Biggie Bear," a knit bear created using Bobbi Intveld's <a href="https://blueskyfibers.com/product/baby-bobbi-bear/" target="_blank" title="Baby Bobbie Bear" rel="noreferrer noopener">Baby Bobbi Bear</a> pattern. Rebecca made it for her niece, and he became its owner's favorite stuffed bear. Unfortunately, the cotton yarn and loose knit construction of the original made him less able to withstand the elements. He is still very well loved, but is now more of a bear blanket, as his child pulled all of his stuffing out.</p>
<p>This version is Biggie 2.0, knit in bulky superwash wool (Cascade 128) and in a smaller needle size (US 8/5mm) to help make him sturdier. He's stuffed with polyfil and has a knit heart inside. Future Biggies may be needed, so the heart can be transferred if necessary into his new regenerated form.</p>
Keyel, Rebecca
2020
12"
2020.022
Two 1940s Cable Vests
<p>Two matching handknit vests made from an original 1940s pattern. The yarn used was Purl Soho Linen Quill held double. Yarn content is a blend of wool, alpaca, and linen, and the colorway is Juniper Green. Pattern was retrieved from a hardcopy vintage magazine copyrighted 1942. </p>
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<p>These vests were made for two of my very dearest friends who live in Sweden. I met them both via instagram in 2012, and we met in person for the first time in 2018. We knew in an instant that the three of us were soul mates, fated to know each other and be life long friends. The two friends are a couple, now married, and love to wear vintage clothing. Even more so, they love to match. I wanted to make something for them that evoked their personal styles, and allow them to perfectly match with vintage items (something that is very difficult to do). These took almost two years to finish, but it was worth it. </p>
Crabaugh, Sydney
2020
JPEG
2020.024
Birthday Woodins
<p>This is a set of Woodins, knit from the <a href="https://knitty.com/ISSUEfall07/PATTwoodins.html" target="_blank" title="Woodins on Knitty.com" rel="noreferrer noopener">Woodins</a> pattern by Anna Hrachovec that appeared in the Fall 2007 issue of Knitty. The creator knit it for her niece's second birthday and added felt birthday hats for each creature.</p>
<p>The project consists of a five small creatures made from single ply wool yarn from the creator's stash and a log also made from stash yarn. Both components were fulled (felted) in the washing machine and by hand, then stuffed with polyfil.</p>
Keyel, Rebecca
2020
2020.025
Hand knitted jacket designed by Alison Ellen
<p>This jacket is hand knitted in pure wool individually dyed. It is an Alison Ellen design, and a modular knit. It has a small peplum at the waist and hand made buttons. It was knitted by Betty Dobson.</p>
Ellen, Alison
2020
To fit small woman
2021.001
First Knitted Pieces by a Seven Year-Old Girl
<p>My mother, Anna Wirth Thompson (1936- ) learned to knit, crochet, embroider, and sew in school in Germany, where she was born and grew up. She taught me to knit when I was seven years old. I was in Mrs. Stone's second grade class at Edgemere Elementary School in Plainview, Texas, at the time.</p>
<p>First, I knitted the yellow piece, which was about 5 inches wide at the start. As many beginning knitters do, I accidentally added stitches, so the width at my last row was 6.75 inches. The piece measured 4.75 inches from bottom to top. The yarn was probably wool.</p>
<p>I had watched my mother knit slipper socks for my father. They were blue with a wondrous stranded pattern in red. After the heel, she worked two sets of 2 x 2 stranded checks, for a total of four rounds. Then came a decorative diamond shaped pattern, and finally another 4 rounds of 2 x 2 checks.</p>
<p>"Mom, I want to knit checks," I told her. She gave me more wool, and told me how to knit checks. I offer written instructions, all these years later:</p>
<ul>
<li><strong>Row 1:</strong> *k 4, p 4;* rep from * across.</li>
<li><strong>Rows 2-5</strong> (or so): Knit the knits and purl the purls.</li>
<li><strong>Row 6:</strong> Purl the knits and knit the purls.</li>
<li><strong>Rows 7-10:</strong> Repeat Rows 2-5.</li>
</ul>
<p>Following her spoken instructions, I created a (mostly) checkerboard pattern with textures. But, "Mom, I want to knit colors!" I said, thinking of the checks on the slipper socks she made.</p>
<p>She gave me multi-color yarn in the Fiesta colorway. I guess that satisfied me for a time. The finished piece was 5 to 6 inches wide and 10-ish inches from cast on to bind off.</p>
<p>My mom influenced the course of my life by teaching me how to knit. I am glad she did.</p>
Thompson, Suzann
c. 1966
as noted
2022.010
Filet crochet antimacassar
<p>An antimacassar for the back of a chair, made in filet crochet by Alice Eichelberger Cleland (1864-1938). She produced an extraordinary amount of fine crochet during her married life. She was born and lived in Middletown, Dauphin County, PA, USA. This piece was probably made somewhere between 1890 - 1900.</p>
Alice Eichelberger Cleland
ca 1900
18" by 12"
2020.009