flame lily

Sunshine after the Rain

This week the weather has been truly awful.  We've had torrential rain and terrible thunder storms.  The storms were so bad that I had to bring Lulu and Pupu (our geese) down from the top of the garden to the back door so that I could talk to them and keep them calm.

Today come rain or shine, I was determined to get on 'film' my latest knitting project, Girasole.

The pattern is designed to be either knitted in a lace weight yarn for a shawl or a heavy weight for a blanket.  I've used an aran weight which has made a really warm but light blanket.  Although having experimented, it can also be worn as a lovely shawl. 

  

Design: Girasole Shawl or Blanket

Jared Flood of Brooklyn Tweed

Yarn: Aran weight fleece, 80% wool/20% silk, shade Primrose

635 gm

Colourmart

Needles: Chart A and following 6 rows, 5 mm double pointed

Charts B-G, 5.5 mm circular

Edging, 5 mm double pointed

Size: 60" Circle

Notes: I-Cord circular cast-on.

If you're wondering about my gorgeous mannequin.  It was made by the lovely Lucy of Corset Laced Mannequins.

Lucy has used a beautiful vintage slightly textured barkcloth.

I'm not sure which is better.  The front which beautifully shows off the fabric.

Or the corset laced back......

Such attention to beautiful detail......

With love

Flame Lily

Soft as Silk

A few weeks ago we visited  Lingerie, zo zacht als zij  at the Museum voor Industriele Archeologie en Textiel (MIAT) in Gent.  The exhibition was about 100 years of lingerie in Belgium.

Sadly I was only able to take a few photographs. but fortunately they are of exhibits from my favourite period.

This sweet little bra is made from a lovely blue floral cotton and dates to the 1930s.

This very delicate and flimsy bra is from the 1930s and made from imitation crochet.

 

It seemed a little strange to find an advertising board for knitting yarn in the middle of a lingerie exhibiton but there is a connection.  The Eskimo company produces the cotton interlock fabric used for under garments.

These were the only home-made garments I spotted.  The knitted camisole is from the period 1930s.  It must have been well used.  At some point the right shoulder strap appears to have been completely re-knitted. The tension and yarn are slightly different to the rest of the garment.

The bra is also from the 1930s.  The cups have been crocheted using an English treble with the under-band knitted in an extremely fine yarn.  The straps are made from ribbon.

The book is open at the pages showing a pattern for knitted ladies knickers!

For me, the most charming and fascinating parts of the exhibition were the table of mannequins and the wall of corsets.

The Velba mannequin was about a metre tall with very long legs!

The corsets are from the period 1930-1940.  Can you spot the corset for the pregnant lady?  

It's this one!

The exhibition has now closed, but the two books which accompanied the exhibition, Lingerie, zo zacht als zij Deel 1 and Deel 2 by Sabrine De Groote are still available from the museum shop.  They are only available in Dutch but there are plenty of wonderful photographs.

with love

Flame Lily