Crochet has long been one of the most popular forms of needlework. Instructions for crochet have been a staple of women’s magazines for well over a century, and early books on the subject were eagerly sought by practitioners of the art.
During the first sixty years of the twentieth century, America’s thread companies produced thousands of inexpensive instructional leaflets designed to promote their products. These leaflets featured beautiful crocheted tablecloths, bedspreads, doilies, edgings and other household items. By the 1960s, however, tastes in needlework had changed, and such crocheted accessories were no longer in favor.
Today, there is a new interest in crochet, and these now rare instruction leaflets, and the designs featured in them, have become collector’s items. Here we offer directions for 80 of the finest designs from the 30s, 40s and 50s. Modern technology permits us to present them to you exactly as they originally appeared. For your convenience, we have arranged the designs into four categories—Tablecloths and Placemats, Bedspreads, Doilies and Edgings.
A number of the threads called for in the directions are still available; if not, other, similar threads can easily be found. Be careful when buying threads, however, because some product names used in the past are now being reused on completely different threads. If using colored threads, be sure to buy enough at one time to complete your project, since dye lots can vary considerably.
Many of the patterns in the book list a gauge—the number of stitches per inch or the size of the individual motifs or blocks. However, not all patterns give this information. Doilies often list only a finished size, while a few patterns do not even do this. In these cases, a small variation in the size of the design will make little difference to the appearance of the finished piece. Whether there is a gauge listed or not, the number of stitches and rows should be the same as indicated in the directions. Work a sample of the pattern using the suggested thread and hook and compare it to the gauge if one is listed. If your piece is too big, use a smaller hook; if too small, use a larger hook. If no gauge is stated, check the appearance of your work—if the stitches are loose and untidy, use a smaller hook; if they are crowded, use a larger hook. Edgings are a special case and can be made using a variety of threads, depending on the desired effect. Just remember, the finer the thread, the smaller the hook required.
Your finished piece will be improved by careful washing and blocking. For large projects that are made up of many units sewn together, you may find it easier to block the individual pieces before joining them. Use a neutral soap and cool water. Gently squeeze the suds through the crochet; do not rub. Rinse thoroughly. Pad a flat surface with several layers of thick terry toweling. Using rust-proof pins, pin the piece, right side down, on the surface, pinning each picot and loop in place. When the crochet is almost dry, press it through a damp cloth with a moderately hot iron. Do not allow the iron to rest on the stitches, particularly the raised stitches.
To give a crisper look to doilies, starch them after washing. Mix the starch solution following the manufacturer’s directions and immerse the piece in the solution, squeezing it through the stitches. Squeeze out the excess and pin the piece in place as described above. For a ruffled doily, use a very heavy starch solution and pin the piece right side up, leaving the ruffle free. Shape the ruffle with your fingers as the piece dries.
The terminology and hooks listed in this book are those used in the United States. The charts opposite give the U.S. names of crochet stitches and their equivalents in other countries and the approximate equivalents to U.S. crochet hook sizes. Crocheters should become thoroughly familiar with the differences in both crochet terms and hook sizes before starting any project.
The stitches used in the projects in this book are explained on page 95. A metric conversion chart is located on page 96.