Tag: Twenties

The Creative Corner · Vintage Needlework

Edgings Crocheted Widthwise

VintageJenny
Five crocheted edgings on a table with their ends tucked under a vintage crocheted placemat.
All these were created by crocheting short rows, working back and forth.

Today I have something that I hope will intrigue some of you. When I posted the article on Five Great Vintage Crochet Edgings, I promised you this one, too. Today I bring you Edgings Crocheted Widthwise. Four of these date from the 1920s and one from the 1940s.

Why crochet using the narrow side?

Edgings Crocheted Widthwise? What does that even mean? Well, most of the time when you crochet an edging, you make a really long chain or you work a base row of single crochet onto an item and then build your edging upon that. These are the two ways you usually create an edging. But there’s another way.

Some edgings build from the narrow side, row by row. You start with a foundation of 20 stitches, a few more or a few less. Then you crochet one row at a time back and forth, back and forth on those few stitches until you have an inch of edging. Then two inches. Five inches. A foot. A yard. And so on.

This is how knitted edgings and many tatted edgings are made, and it’s a nice way to create an edging. Most knitted edgings historically start with a few stitches and work back and forth until you reach the length you need. Many tatted edgings start with one ring and work back and forth, back and forth, to make a yard or two of lace. You create the length that you need, and you’re finished.

Give one or more of these a try

Give one or more of these edgings a try. Some go faster than others. If you need speed, look for an edging that either uses shells in its construction or open squares, called filet. Those are generally the quickest to make.

On the other hand you can create an edging like this that’s as involved and deep as you like. I’ve seen patterns for edgings three or more inches deep using fine thread that you work widthwise rather than lengthwise. A crochet hook can turn out very elaborate edgings this way.

If your time is at a premium, the first three edgings go fairly quickly. The latter two took more time to create per inch of length. All these edgings are crocheted with size 10 Aunt Lydia’s crochet thread. However, the original instructions called for a much finer thread if they specified any thread at all. Make sure your thread and your hook size match so that the edgings are sturdy without being too tight. Size 10 thread = size 7 metal crochet hook. Size 80 thread = size 13 or 14 metal crochet hook.

You will need

For these edgings crocheted widthwise, you will need:

  • crochet thread (If you have no access to threads you can find many different sizes at The Tatting Corner.)
  • a corresponding size steel crochet hook

Remember, thick threads or yarns need bigger hooks than the narrow threads.

Edging 1

Crochet edging that looks like leaves on an open square background. This edging is crocheted widthwise, from the narrow end.
Edging one is a quick and easy filet pattern.

As you can see from the family photo at the top, this edging looks like leaves on an open background.

  1. Make a chain of 17 stitches.
  2. Make a double crochet (dc) stitch in the 8th stitch from the hook, then (chain 2, skip 2 chains below, and 1 dc in the next ch) 3 times. Turn. You now should have a row of four open squares.
  3. Chain 5, dc over the next dc, chain 2, dc over the next dc, 6 dc.
  4. Chain 5, skip 3 ch on your hook, and make 1 dc in the next 2 chains, then 10 dc in the next 10 stitches of the previous row, ch 2, skip 2, 1 dc.
  5. Chain 5, dc over the next dc, chain 2, dc over the next dc, 6 dc.
  6. Make a double crochet (dc) stitch in the 8th stitch from the hook, then (chain 2, skip 2 chains below, and 1 dc in the next ch) 3 times. Turn. You now should have a row of four open squares.
  7. Repeat from Step 3.

This is an example of an easy filet edging. Once you get the hang of filet it’s relatively quick. It was extremely popular in the 1910s and 20s. As the use of netting as a needlework technique declined, filet crochet took its place.

Edging 2

Crocheted edging that has small rectangles of solid crochet set into a lacy heading. An unusual edging from the Twenties.
An unusual modified filet crochet edging that ends on the diagonal when completed.

This edging is unusual because the pattern ends on the diagonal. Not many Twenties patterns looked like this.

  1. Chain 20 stitches.
  2. Make a double crochet (dc) in the 6th stitch from the hook, dc in each of the next 2 stitches, chain 2, skip 2 stitches, dc in next stitch, ch 2, skip 2 stitches, dc in next stitch, 6 dc. [Those empty squares are called spaces in filet crochet, and the filled squares are called blocks.]
  3. Chain 3, then 6 dc in the next 6 dc of the previous row (you will skip the first stitch. The chain 3 counts as the first dc.), chain 2, skip 2, dc, chain 2, skip 2, dc, ch 2, 3 dc under the chain-3 at the beginning of the last row, chain 2, and then a treble stitch (tr) under the same chain as the 3 dc.
  4. Chain 5, 3 dc under the 2-chain, chain 2, skip 2, dc, ch 2, skip 2, dc [2 spaces made], 6 dc.
  5. Repeat from Step 3.

This is a two-row pattern that’s easy to memorize once you get the hang of it.

Edging 3

Simple crocheted edging in white with a jagged pointed lower edge.
This pointed edge lace from the Twenties would look great on towels, aprons, or linens.

This edging consists of two easy-to-memorize rows, and it goes fairly quickly. The original instructions called for a size 60 thread and a metal crochet hook size 13, which would make it tiny.

  1. Chain (ch) 11.
  2. 1 sc (single crochet) in the 2nd chain from hook, 1 dc (double crochet) in next three ch. Chain 2, skip 2, dc in next ch. Ch 2, skip 2, dc in next.
  3. Turn, ch 5, dc in 2nd dc, ch 2 dc in next dc, ch 4, turn.
  4. Repeat from Step 2.

Edging 4

Lacy crocheted edging with small scallops along one side.
A lacy edging from the Twenties, crocheted side to side.

This edging is a bit more complicated and requires some concentration to get into the flow of the stitches.

  1. Chain (ch) 9, turn.
  2. 1 double crochet (dc) in 5th chain from hook, skip 2 ch, dc in next, ch 2, dc in same chain. Chain 3, sc in end of chain. This sets up the foundation row for the rest of the lace.
  3. Turn, ch 1, in 3-chain loop make 2 sc, 2 ch, 2 sc, 2 ch, 2 sc, 2 ch, 1 sc. (This will be tight and you may need to stop and scrunch the stitches up to fit them all in.) Then chain 5, dc into the next 2-chain loop, and in the 5-chain loop at the end make 1 dc, 2 ch, 1 dc.
  4. Turn, chain 5, 1 dc into 2-ch loop, in next 5-ch loop make 1 dc, 2 ch, 2 dc, 3 ch, 1 sc.
  5. Repeat Steps 3 and 4 for the length of the lace.

Edging 5

Half-completed lace edging showing the making of the lace as well as a second row of chain stitches across the top that makes a header.
This Forties edging is a bit more complicated than the others.

This edging is made in two stages. In stage one you make the lace itself, and in stage two you come back across the length with a chain, picking up the top loops as you go. This creates a header chain for sewing the lace onto something else. Here you see the lace completed and the header chain half-done.

  1. Chain 6.
  2. In 6th chain (ch) from hook make 2 dc (double crochet) ch 2 and 2 dc (shell made). Ch 5, turn.
  3. In 2-chain space of shell make a shell as before (2 dc, ch 2, 2 dc), ch 9, sc (single crochet) in next turning loop.
  4. In ch-9 loop make (2 sc, ch 3) 6 times; then 2 sc in the same loop. Ch 2, shell in space of next shell, chain 5, turn.
  5. Shell in space of next shell, treble crochet in 2nd 3-chain picot. Chain 5, turn.
  6. Shell in space of next shell, chain 5, turn.
  7. Shell in space of next shell, chain 9, sc under previous treble-bar. Turn.
  8. Repeat Steps 4 to 7 for desired length, ending with Step 4. Do not turn work when you’re finished, and work the heading by (sc in next ch-5 loop, ch 5) repeating this across to the beginning.

You choose the size

I hope this intrigues you enough to attempt edgings crocheted widthwise. These patterns lead to a very different edging look. Best of all, you can make these with any size thread and hook that you want. I did them all in size 10 thread because it makes the details easier to see. I wrote an article about making crochet in various sizes here. Check it out.

Recipe Collections · The Vintage Kitchen

Making Ice Creams, Ices and Sundaes

VintageJenny
1020s photo of a round platter holding there spoons and two ice cream sundaes in glass dishes. A glass filled with a whipped cream fruit mixture sits beside them.
Enjoy a vintage Pineapple Marshmallow Sundae, South-Pole Sundae, or a Marshmallow Parfait this summer.

During the warmer months sometimes the weather gets really hot. Short of dumping ice water over your head, how do you stay cool? Before the advent of air conditioning, cold drinks, hand and electric fans, and ice creams helped to bring temperatures down. Not really, but it’s hard to be sad while you eat a nice bowl of ice cream. So today I’m going to talk about making ice creams, ices and sundaes –– straight from a Twenties source.

It’s relatively easy to make all sorts of fancy ice creams at home. You can go beyond bowls of plain chocolate, vanilla, strawberry, and peach, which were the Ice Cream Standards of the 1920s. Instead of a plain bowl of ice cream, why not serve a sundae? Even the most fancy version starts with a base of vanilla ice cream and then adds syrups and whipped cream. In the Twenties a sundae might also be decorated with preserved, fresh, or candied fruit.

Ice creams and sundaes from your own kitchen

This article will tell you how to make a Pineapple Marshmallow Sundae, South-Pole Sundae, Marshmallow Parfait, Caramel Ice Cream, and a Cafe Frappe. It assumes you already know how to make basic vanilla and chocolate ice cream. I have a recipe for those somewhere that I will post a bit later in case you need it.

Ice cream was classified three ways when sundaes were new. A French ice cream was made with eggs. Today we often call that an ice cream custard and we make it with egg yolks only. A Philiadelphia ice cream was made with thick whipping cream. American ice cream was made with fresh or condensed milk with a little whole cream added. 100 years later we are still making French ice cream with eggs, but the American ice cream has replaced the condensed milk with half and half (light cream) or simply milk with a bit of cream. Even in the Twenties, commercial ice creams contained gelatin to help it maintain its consistency.

Other options for frozen desserts included water ices. We call them granitas, and sometimes they were called granites. In some recipes cream was frozen without stirring in an ice cream maker. This created a parfait or a mousse (have you ever had frozen chocolate mousse? 1000 calories of pure heaven!).

Suggestions for great results using your ice cream freezer

If you use an ice cream freezer that requires ice and salt, you might want to try kosher salt instead of rock salt and crushed ice instead of larger ice chunks. Actually, the instructions suggest that you pulverize your rock salt, but I don’t know anyone who wants to sit outside with a bag of rock salt and a hammer when you can get kosher salt instead.

Most ice cream maker instruction manuals tell you to pour in a layer of ice and then top it with a thin layer of salt, and repeat. Why not try mixing the ice and salt thoroughly in a large pan before putting it into the freezer? One part salt to three parts ice keeps it very cold. Add the ice and salt to the freezer before you add the ice cream mixture. If you add the mix to the container and then add the ice and salt, the mixture begins to freeze at the bottom before the top is cold. It then freezes unevenly.

Avoiding that grainy consistency

Have a problem with grainy ice cream? This often happens when the crank turns too rapidly at the beginning of the freezing cycle. Turn the crank slowly but keep up a steady motion. When the dasher starts to turn hard (and you’re beginning to get tired from all the turning) that’s when you beat hard and steady for one full minute.

Then remove the crossbar that holds the contraption together, remove the container lid and take out the dasher. (I always tried to find a small child who wanted a taste. The little ones are very willing to hold the dasher and try the ice cream for you while you attend to the rest of the procedure. Voilá! You no longer need to find a place to set the dasher.)

Pack the ice cream down, replace the lid on the canister, and plug the hole with a cork. Remove the icy, salty water from the pail and repack it with salt and ice to ripen the ice cream. This ice can be larger than crushed, and use about half the salt you used before. If the weather is very warm (assuming you are doing this outdoors because it creates a mess) you may have to redo the ice and salt before the ice cream is ripened.

Covering the ice cream freezer with an old blanket or a thick cloth helps to keep the cold in. If you get it wet before laying it over the freezer, it will help keep it that much colder. The original instructions said to keep the blanket wet with the brine from the ice cream freezer, but I can’t imagine what that level of salt water would do to old fibers in a blanket. Maybe this is where all the old quilts went.

And on to the cold treats!

Now that you have an idea of some of the forgotten advice on ice cream making, let’s make some warm weather goodies. Making ice cream and sundaes at home can be great fun. Like most Twenties recipes, some of these may sound a little odd at first. Give one or more of them a try and you can have your own Old Fashioned Ice Cream Social.

All of these recipes should serve from four to six.

Pineapple Marshmallow Sundae

You will need:

  • Vanilla ice cream
  • Marshmallow cream filling (like Fluff or Jet-Puffed Marshmallow Cream. Look for it at your grocery store.)
  • One slice of canned pineapple per person
  • Shredded coconut (packaged. Moist. Not dried coconut. Available in your baking aisle.)
  • Whipped cream
  • Juice from the canned pineapple

Instructions:

  1. Half fill a sherbet glass with vanilla ice cream.
  2. Top this with a dollop of marshmallow cream filling.
  3. Press a slice of canned pineapple onto the marshmallow cream.
  4. Top with a tablespoon or so of the soft shredded coconut.
  5. Finish off with a topping of whipped cream.
  6. Pour a little of the pineapple syrup over the top of the sundae.

South-Pole Sundae

You will need:

  • Vanilla ice cream
  • Real chocolate fudge. You don’t have to make it fresh for this; if you made chocolate fudge in the past couple days you can reheat it and pour it over the ice cream. Melt it enough to pour by placing it in a pan set in a larger pan of boiling water. It shouldn’t be very hot. A double boiler works, too. Or [Sh!! Don’t tell!] even a quick zap in the microwave.
  • Candied cherries or Maraschino cherries

Instructions:

  1. Place a tablespoon of vanilla ice cream in the bottom of a glass. I would use a six or eight ounce glass Pyrex dessert dish.
  2. On top of this pour a just a little of the soft chocolate fudge.
  3. Heap the glass bowl with ice cream.
  4. Give it a thin topping of fudge.
  5. Decorate with candied cherries.

This tastes a little like the chocolate covered ice cream bars that were all the rage in 1922. The secret to this is to make the fudge layers thin, like a frosting.

Marshmallow Parfait

You will need:

  • 1 cup whipping cream
  • 2 Tbsp sugar or to taste
  • 2 bananas
  • 1 orange
  • 1/4 lb marshmallows
  • 2 Tbsp shredded pineapple
  • Candied cherries/ Maraschino cherries

Instructions:

  1. Whip the cup of cream and sweeten with the sugar. Set into the freezer to chill while you make the rest of the dessert, or set on ice in a bowl.
  2. Cut the bananas, orange, and marshmallows into small pieces. Stir in the pineapple.
  3. Remove the cream from the ice or freezer. Beat the fruit lightly into the cream and fill tall glasses with the mixture.
  4. Decorate with candied cherries or maraschino cherries.

If you find that you like this parfait, which is not actually frozen, you may also like this recipe for Fruited Cream. It’s similar.

Caramel Ice Cream

You will need:

  • 1 cup brown sugar
  • 4 cups half and half
  • 4 cups whole/heavy cream
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Instructions:

  1. Heat the brown sugar into a small frying pan and stir over medium heat until it melts and begins to smoke a little. You want it melted and hot enough that it tastes caramelized but not dark enough that it tastes burned.
  2. Heat together the half and half (light cream) and cream, mix the liquid sugar with them and flavor with vanilla.
  3. Remove the mixture from the fire and stir until it cools.
  4. Strain the mixture to remove any large sugar particles.
  5. Freeze in an ice cream freezer as usual.

The flavor of this ice cream is varied by the length of time the brown sugar is cooked. Be very careful –– hot melted sugar like this can cause dreadful burns.

Cafe Frappe

This is the original method of making a frappe, without the help of a blender. It’s more of an ice than an ice cream, since 3 of the five cups of liquid are water based.

You will need:

  • 3 cups strong black coffee
  • 2 cups cream
  • 1 1/3 cups granulated sugar
  • 1 teaspoon vanilla
  • Whipped cream for serving

Instructions:

  1. Scald the cream and dissolve the sugar in it.
  2. Set aside to cool.
  3. Mix coffee with the sweetened cream. Add the vanilla.
  4. Pour into an ice cream freezer and freeze slowly until it reaches a mushy consistency.
  5. Serve in glasses with a spoon of whipped cream on top.

I hope you enjoyed these recipes for making ice creams and sundaes in your own kitchen.

Parties and Visits · The Vintage Kitchen · Vintage Entertainment

Plan a Summer Automobile Picnic

VintageJenny
Family of five enjoying a picnic outdoors in the 1920s. Mom unloads the hamper while little sister enjoys a drink, little brother munches a sandwich, and dad talks to big sister, who sits with a warm cup of coffee or tea.. She holds a teacup in her hand and an insulated Thermos bottle sits in front of her.
Ah….. enjoying the great outdoors and meal at the same time!

Wide automobile ownership brought the great outdoors within reach of a whole new audience. Previously, people could go as far as the local streetcar, the interurban, or the train could take them. Or they could ride a horse if they had one. For short excursions a bicycle would work well. But nothing beat an auto when you wanted to plan a summer automobile picnic an hour or so away from home.

Taking off in your auto

The automobile picnic actually became a term on its own in magazine articles. With the extra space afforded by the car, owners could pack it to the windows and take practically every luxury with them when they headed out for their nature dinner.

When you think of supplies, you may want to use fabric shopping or tote bags instead of hampers if your car space is small. Bags can be hung from the clothing hooks or tucked into places that a large hamper will not go.

The prepared picnic addict kept a special shelf of supplies, plus more hidden away in the automobile trunk. If you wanted to pull a picnic together on short notice, you needed a few items on hand. Here is a bona fide Twenties picnic list that will help you plan your summer automobile picnic.

Supplies that make easy work of the picnic lunch

Wherever you store your seasonal things, you should have these available:

  • Paper plates
  • Tablecloth
  • Napkins
  • Cups
  • Doilies
  • Empty cracker boxes
  • Rolls of paraffin (waxed) paper
  • Strong market bags with handles (paper or burlap are good materials. Today I’d suggest a reusable fabric shopping bag. The Twenties picnicker would have loved such a light and useful item.)
  • Thermos bottle
  • Lemonade pail (a covered/lidded pitcher with ice makes a good, sanitary substitute.)
  • Picnic hamper

… And the shelf-stable food

These are the foods that should sit on a picnic shelf of your pantry so you can throw together a great vintage summer automobile picnic in a short amount of time:

  • Stuffed olives (or simply jarred olives. They really don’t need to be stuffed.)
  • Jellies (grape, strawberry, mango…whatever your family loves)
  • Grape and pineapple juice
  • Mixed pickles (these are different vegetables all pickled together like small onions, carrots, cauliflower, tiny peppers… and they often would be home canned in small 8-ounce jars for portability and cost. Check the Ball Blue Book if you want recipes (Amazon link; look for it wherever canning supplies are sold), or take a look at this Hot Pepper Mix of pickled vegetables from the Ball website to get an idea.
  • Pickled herring — sh! This is great on crackers as an appetizer. If you like pickled herring, that is.
  • Potted ham or chicken (This was an early solution for canned meats. Substitute a can or two of whatever meat you like canned. You can still buy potted meat. You may or may not like it. Think Spam.)
  • Canned soups
  • Boxed cookies
  • Boxed salted and plain crackers (This is calling for saltines and.. say.. an unsalted cracker like… do we still have those? I can’t think of any. If you know of an unsalted cracker on the market please let me know in the comments.)
  • Pimientos (This was the Twenties cook’s solution to adding color and nutrition of various meals. Roasted peppers in everything! They kept better this way than in the refrigerator and fresh.)
  • Canned salmon
  • Canned tuna
  • Prepared salad dressing
  • Sweet wafers (These are very thin cookies often used to decorate desserts. You may be able to find them in the grocery with the Italian cookies. Look on the top shelf. Pizzelles are a type of sweet wafer. If you happen to have an ice cream cone waffle iron, a small flat waffle cone makes a great wafer. I do, because gluten free ice cream cones are few and far between.)

Let’s not forget the refrigerator!

Lest you think that everything for your picnic needs to come off the longterm storage shelf, you will find a few items in your fridge to spice up your day:

  • Mayonnaise
  • Home-made salad dressings
  • Hard boiled eggs
  • Cold boiled potatoes
  • Green peppers
  • Celery
  • Fresh tomatoes
  • Young onions (we would call these spring onions or green onions or scallions.)
  • Lettuce
  • Lemons
  • Fresh fruit

Of course you won’t use all of this! This is your store from which you pull all the things you need for the ultimate picnic. Maybe you have a fresh loaf of bread on hand. You can make tuna sandwiches, or chicken salad sandwiches. You can have hard boiled eggs (transport them cold in the shell and let everyone peel their own), or you can make deviled eggs (transport them filled and facing each other, wrapped in plastic or waxed paper. Unwrap them, twist them apart and each person has two deviled eggs!)

Pull some fresh fruit, some cookies, and pack a drink and you’re done! See how easy this can be when you have supplies ready and on hand? Not every picnic needs to be fried chicken and corn on the cob.

Note: if you are fixing anything with mayonnaise, please keep it chilled in a cooler until it’s consumed. Warm mayo, while it probably won’t kill you, is less than tasty on a sandwich or in deviled eggs.

Add a Sweet Surprise

If you like, and you have the time and the equipment, you can make up two quarts of ice cream a bit ahead of time, pack the container in a cooler with ice, and tuck it into the car for after lunch or dinner. Even simple vanilla made with milk, half and half (light cream), sugar, and vanilla tastes heavenly when it’s fresh.

Traditionally, of course, this could be made in the kitchen sink: fill the sink with ice and enough kosher or rock salt to make it even colder, and place a metal bowl into the sink with your prepared ice cream mixture. You should have enough ice to make the bowl cold. Start stirring. Stir until you think your arm is going to fall off, and then stir some more. Switch arms. Hold the bowl steady and stir with your other hand. Every now and then you’ll need to scrape the stuff off the sides of the bowl so new unfrozen stuff can take its place. Is this easy or quick? Nope. But I hear it works if you have no other alternative.

Don’t forget the auto supplies!

Filling your car with picnic-ready equipment will ensure that you’re always ready for a trip. Consider these additions:

  • Canned heat, stand, and pan to fit on it. (I keep my canned heat on the pantry shelf because my car gets really hot in the summer. You may want to, as well.)
  • Charcoal, in case you find yourself at a park with usable grills.
  • Toy pail and shovel for each child, especially if you are going where there is sand. Or rocks. Or loose dirt. Or leaves.

Two tasty on-the-go meals

Here are two options for picnic meals, Twenties style. Each of them can be made largely from the ingredients made above, with some additional items that you’ll notice. Substitute wherever you like. Plan your summer automobile picnic to make yourself happy. This is your picnic.

A Fireless Meal

For those days when you can’t fire up the park grill, here’s a menu that you can pack and go:

  • Potato salad (using those cold boiled potatoes from the fridge)
  • Eggs stuffed with Ham (minced ham + a little mayo in a hard boiled egg white. Use the yolks, or not.)
  • Sliced fresh tomatoes
  • Nut bread sandwiches (nut bread sliced thin; two pieces held together with cream cheese or butter)
  • Lemonade
  • Cookies (fresh or from the shelf)
  • Sliced fruit in Raspberry Jelly (this is probably calling for sliced fruit in something like raspberry jell-o)

An Automobile Lunch

  • Hot Buillion from the Thermos Bottle
  • with Salted crackers
  • Sandwiches of cream cheese and maple sugar with graham bread (this is a sweet sandwich to balance the soup; graham bread is whole wheat bread.)
  • Vegetable salad (prepared fresh or steamed cold veggies with a little salad dressing to perk them up, whatever you have)
  • Sweet pickles
  • Chocolate cake
  • Iced Tea

Neither of these will take a huge amount of time to put together if you already have most of the ingredients. And they are substantial meals for on the go. Use these, or rely on favorite foods when you plan your summer automobile picnic this year.

If you’d like an option for more of a tea-party picnic than a traditional picnic, you might like my entry on creating a summer porch party. These recipes require a bit more care in packing but they are just as tasty.

The Vintage Kitchen

The Best Vintage Leftover Ham Recipe

VintageJenny
White plate, holding a small baked potato covered with a creamy ham sauce.
Ham in a cream sauce over a baked potato. Delectable.

Everybody has leftover ham sometime, if they eat ham at all. It might be from last night’s celebratory dinner, or perhaps some deli ham is about to go south in the refrigerator. When that happens, this delicious recipe comes to your rescue. It is the BEST vintage ham with cream sauce recipe I’ve used so far. It’s tasty, the family loves it, and it uses up the ham that would otherwise molder in its refrigerator box.

The cookbook actually called this Ham with Cream Gravy. You may call it Delicious. The original recipe, of course, was written in one dense paragraph. I’ll break that down for you into steps in the recipe.

Making the ham and cream sauce

The technique is very simple. First you chop or dice the leftover cooked ham, and brown it in a pan on the stove. If you start with ham slices, learn about the benefits of snipping instead of chopping in this post I wrote about Ten Uses for Your Kitchen Scissors.

Ham cubes in a pan on a stovetop.
The beginning to a quick and easy dinner

Once the ham is toasty warm and a browned as much as you like, remove it to a bowl. The browning on the ham pieces give it flavor. While you don’t want to burn it, a bit of the brown brings out that savory-sweet ham taste.

Next, you will make a white sauce.

Pan on stove cooking a white sauce. A whisk stirs the mixture.
White sauce in process, ready for the diced ham.

Then, once your white sauce is thick and bubbly, re-introduce the ham to your pan. Let it simmer for ten minutes or so over low heat to combine the flavors, and then stir in salt and pepper to taste. It’s that easy, and that delicious.

A pan of small ham cubes floating in a thick sauce.
Ham in Cream Sauce thickening for dinner

Serving it up

Although the recipe included no serving tips, I’ve found that one of the best ways to serve this is with potatoes. Any potatoes. I’ve used cubed fried potatoes, frozen potato tots and crowns, baked potato, and mashed potatoes. The beauty of Twenties recipes is that simple foods combined with imagination make some great meals. Use what you have. It will be awesome.

It will, however, appear very beige. A side salad or a green vegetable goes a long way towards making this a full meal. Steam broccoli on the back burner while you make the gravy or throw a simple salad together while the the finished sauce cooks on low to meld the flavors.

Actually, my absolute favorite way to serve this is in a tortilla wrap like a burrito. Place a light layer of cubed fried potatoes, top with a layer of the ham mixture, and roll up. Unfortunately, most gluten free tortillas don’t have the strength of those made with wheat flour. So unless you have a really strong gluten free tortilla in hand, this assembly becomes a frightful mess quite quickly. Because of that I abandoned the bread wrap and started serving it plated. And no one complained. They snarfed it down just like the wrap version.

Plus, tortillas don’t appear in many 1920s – 1950s cookbooks in the U.S., so if you add one to this dish you strike out into uncharted vintage cooking territory. It’s tasty, though. You may decide this is the best vintage ham with cream sauce recipe, too.

Since we don’t use much whole ham here, I buy one and dice it for this recipe, storing the rest in the freezer in 2-cup allotments. That way I always have “leftover” ham on hand!

Print Recipe

The Best Vintage Leftover Ham Recipe: Ham with Cream Sauce

Use that leftover ham in this cream sauce that goes over vegetables, biscuits, or even wrapped in a tortilla.
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time20 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Servings: 5 1/2 cup servings

Equipment

  • large saucepan or frying pan
  • small whisk
  • small bowl

Ingredients

  • 2 cups cooked ham, diced
  • 4 tbsp butter, margarine, or oil
  • 2 cups milk

Instructions

  • Cook the diced ham in a hot pan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until lightly browned. Remove the ham to a bowl, leaving any grease in the pan.
  • Check the amount of grease in the pan. If cooking the ham left a substantial amount, add butter or oil until you have about 4 tablespoons. If cooking the ham left no grease at all, add all 4 tablespoons of the butter or oil.
  • Add the flour to the melted butter, oil, or grease, and whisk together until completely mixed and smooth.
  • Pour in the milk slowly, stirring all the while. Continue to stir until thickened, and then return the ham to the pan.
  • Reduce the heat to low, and simmer for ten minutes. Taste, and then add up to 1/2 teaspoon and up to 1/2 teaspoon pepper if you like.
  • Serve over potatoes, biscuits, vegetables, or wrapped up in a tortilla.
The Creative Corner · Vintage Needlework

Lessons in Embroidery: Cross Stitch

VintageJenny
A cross stitch embroidery design in two colors. A light blue outlines a mountain and horizon line. Two sailboats and a group of trees appear in dark blue. Water ripples in dark blue in front of the trees and one of the boats suggest the lake or ocean.
Cross stitch can be very effective with simple designs and only two colors. Design from 1927.

In the late Twenties Needlecraft Magazine published a delightful series of lessons in embroidery. Cross stitch appeared as the first lesson since it was the best known type of embroidery then and now. I am really excited to bring you the entire series of lessons. The first one I found was Lesson 2, and I’ve used it over and over through the years. But for today, back to cross stitch.

Not only the most popular, cross stitch is also the easiest of the embroidery stitches. You’re simply making X after X with your needle and thread. The best thing is that you can cross stitch on any fabrics you like. They don’t have to be “cross stitch” fabrics.

If you can find a fabric that you can count over the threads of the material as you go, it will give the best result. This is how the old samplers were done. You can use any fabric that has a regular square weave. This means the same number of threads to the inch lie in both directions, across and down.

You can embroider on a heavy fabric like linen where you can see the threads to count over them. Or you can embroider on a canvas-style fabric like Aida, where the fabric weave shows you where to put the stitches. You can also make cross stitches on regular cotton or wool fabric if you want. And you can also decorate an item with cross stitch if it’s made from a fabric where you can’t even see a square weave, like denim or velvet.

Rules for cross stitch

Cross stitch rules are simple.

  • All the top threads of your X’s should point in the same direction. Tradition says that the lower cross stitch starts from the lower left and goes to the upper right. The second half of the stitch comes from the lower right and crosses to the upper left.
  • Keep your tension as even as possible. Pull your threads tight enough to lie flat on the fabric but not so tight that the fabric pulls. (That’s a different type of embroidery and we will get to that later.)
  • It saves thread to do a batch of half crosses in one direction and then turn around and finish the crosses going the other way. You can do it one X at a time, but you’ll use a lot more thread that way. Some multicolored threads (called variegated) actually work best with one X at a time.
  • An embroidery hoop will keep your fabric taut while you stitch.
  • Choose your thread to match your fabric. A fabric with an open or coarse weave requires a thick thread. A close weave fabric requires a thin thread. Aida 14 count fabric usually requires two strands of six-strand embroidery floss. (Cut your thread to a good length, then pull each strand individually and put them back together before putting them through your needle.)
  • Select a needle size that will carry the thread easily without catching every time you pull it through the fabric. The right needle adds greatly to the enjoyment of any embroidery.
  • Embroidery uses no knots at the ends of the threads. Pull your thread through until a couple inches remain, and hold that end underneath the current line of X’s. Catch the end with the first three or four stitches and it will hold fast.
Image of cross stitch instruction. A needle with thread is in the middle of making a cross stitch, with six already completed and seven yet to go. Text reads: This is how the stitches should point in cross stitch. Lower left to right, upper right to left.
All the top stitches should slant the same way in cross stitch.

Today you see most embroidery patterns designed for Aida cloth or specialty linen fabric where the stitch count is the same both horizontally and vertically. Thus, cross stitches made on these fabrics make perfect squares. You can find Aida or embroidery linen in any craft shop where embroidery thread is sold. The fabrics may be under the Zweigart, DMC, Charles Craft names, or even a house label if the store distributes its own line of fabrics.

You can use any cross stitch pattern, chart, or design made on checked paper. Each square of the pattern represents a cross on the linen, and different symbols or colors in the squares stand for certain colors. In the top illustration the pattern is made from two colors. Further down you can see both the original illustration and the checked pattern I made from it.

Because you use filled boxes on graph paper as a foundation for cross stitch designs, you have a wonderful opportunity to exercise individual talent and original ideas.

What you need

In order to begin cross stitching, you only need a few things.

  • Fabric you can use for embroidery. If you can see the threads to count them, all the better. You can count as many threads to make a square as you like. Use blocks of two, three, four, or even more threads, depending on what you’re making and how thick your fabric threads might be.
  • Embroidery thread. This comes in little hanks with six threads loosely wound together. Only in rare instances will you use all six strands at a time for any type of embroidery. Cut a length 18 to 24 inches long and pull one, two, or three strands out to work with. Most cross stitch uses two strands of thread at a time. You can use any brand you like –– DMC, Anchor, Sullivans, or that old stuff your grandmother gave you that she used in the Forties (if it’s still good).
  • A needle. Embroidery needles are different from general sewing needles. Their eyes are larger to hold multiple strands of thread at a time. If your fabric has holes in it or you are counting threads and going between them, use a tapestry needle in size 24 to 26. (Larger sizes are smaller). If you are using regular fabric, use an embroidery needle with a sharp point, usually simply called embroidery needles.

Note: I know that embroidery thread comes in a dizzying number of colors. You do not need to run out and buy a skein of every color under the sun. Really. Especially if you are interested in vintage embroidery patterns, where the instructions might say that you need three shades of green, a blue, a brown, and a red. For vintage embroidery, buy only the colors you love, or the ones that coordinate with your decorating or favorite clothing colors. You will never need 460 different shades of floss for vintage embroidery. Not if you live to be 150.

Begin with boats on the water

The illustration at the top gives you a great first project. This is quick to do, and quite effective as a Twenties design. The outlines are easy to stitch, and the two colors give the project depth without making it difficult.

Originally, this was a towel border, like you will see below. You could purchase the hand towel via mail order and it came with X’s stamped on the fabric to show you where to make each stitch. You covered the inked X with your thread so that it no longer showed.

Photo of cross stitched towel. Towel is embroidered with simple boats and trees on the water in two shades of blue.

Since the stamped towel is no longer available for purchase, I copied the pattern and reproduced it onto 14-count Aida. (14-count means that the fabric has 14 blocks to the inch). Done this way, the pattern measures 1.5 by 6 inches. The towel was probably 14 inches across, so you see that the stamped X’s were much larger than the ones you can make when you count threads or woven blocks of fabric.

I reproduced the pattern in two shades of blue, as suggested. This model uses DMC 798 and DMC 826. I found them in a box of extra colors I had stashed away. What if your room is decorated in shades of pink? Light and dark pink would be darling in this pattern. So would greens, purples, grays, or browns!

You use whatever colors speak to you. That’s one of the joys of vintage needlework. The designers suggested colors –– they may have even sold skeins with the stamped fabric –– but you could use whatever you liked. Frankly, I’d love to see this pattern done in pinks or greens.

Uses for a simple pattern

One of the great things about cross stitch patterns is that once you have one, you can use it all sorts of ways. You can:

  • Work this on the bottom of a towel, as suggested.
  • Work it onto a strip of Aida fabric like I did, and then sew that onto a tote bag or backpack to decorate it.
  • Cross stitch this border over and over along the bottom of a pair of curtains.
  • Use the entire pattern for one thing, such as to decorate a kitchen towel, and then use the trees to adorn a set of potholders.
  • Rotate the pattern at a 90-degree angle, and flip it so that the trees turn a corner and are repeated going the other way. Now you have a corner design that would look great on placemats or corners of a special apron.

Sailboat charts

Here is the chart I used for the finished cross stitch above.

Sailboat and water beginner cross stitch pattern.
A great Twenties beginner pattern that only uses two colors.

I took the original pattern and turned it around a corner. This is what it looks like. I also added a little extra water in the corner so that the design comes to a point.

Ships around the corner.

Choosing your fabric

Regardless where you buy it, you will get the best results if you use fabric that is 100% cotton or 100% linen. This is especially true if you are using vintage patterns. The designers of the 1920s – 1950s had no concept of polyester or acrylic needlework supplies. Everything was designed for a type of cotton, wool, linen, silk, or that new kid on the block, rayon (which was made from wood pulp and/or cotton fibers too short to spin).

Traditionally, embroiderers used whatever fabric they had handy or could get their hands on. If they wanted to decorate a new tablecloth, maybe they had access to a nice heavy linen. They could cross stitch directly onto the fabric by counting the strands. On the other hand, perhaps the needleworker found a beautiful heavy muslin for an everyday tablecloth. The threads are too close for counting, so the pattern would have to be stamped onto the cloth as a series of X’s. If you want to have a go with counting on a traditional linen fabric, take a look at Fabrics-store.com’s heavy weight 4C22 linen. Fabrics-store has been online almost since the beginning of the Internet, even though you may not have heard of them before. They sell great linen at great prices.

Look for an upcoming post that talks more about cross stitch as we finish the first Lesson in Embroidery: Cross Stitch.

Poems from the Pages · The Magazine Rack

Poem: July

VintageJenny
A girl waters flowers in a 1920s illustration. A house sits in the background. Picture accompanies a poem, July, by Susan Swett.
Warm weather, beautiful flowers… it must be July!

This month’s poem, July by Susan Swett, is an old one. The poet died in Boston in 1907.

Susan lived with her younger sister Sophie, and both made their living as writers. Susan wrote poems and short stories. Her sister wrote stories and for a while was an editor of Youth’s Companion magazine. Susan’s poems appeared in children’s magazines like St. Nicholas as well as periodicals aimed at adult readership.

Of all her work, July is probably Susan Swett’s most famous poem. It appeared in children’s readers, women’s magazines, and you can find it online today.

Life of the poet

Born in Maine in 1843, Susan wrote one book of short stories, Field Clover and Beach Grass. It was published in 1898. A regional writer, her stories focus on the New England area that she knew. Much of Field Clover and Beach Grass is written in a New England dialect. However, she wrote her poems in standard English.

Published the day after her death, her obituary says, “her poems… reflected in a peculiarly happy manner the writer’s intimate knowledge of nature and her fondness for birds and flowers and all the various phases of the outdoor world. She was a ‘nature lover’ in the broadest and best sense, and though her fine talent for writing was for many years hindered by impaired health she has left many word-pictures of field and forest and garden that are deemed among the best of their kind.” (The Boston Globe, Jan 1, 1908.)

July

I hope you enjoy this month’s magazine poem, July, by Susan Swett. It appeared in a copy of Needlecraft magazine in the early 1920s.

        July 
by Susan Hartley Swett 

When the scarlet cardinal tells
  Her dream to the dragon-fly,
And the lazy breeze makes a nest in the trees,
  And murmurs a lullaby––
    It is July.

When the tangled cobweb pulls
  The cornflower's cap awry,
And the lilies tall lean over the wall
  To bow to the butterfly
    It is July.

When the heat like a mist-veil floats,
  And poppies flame in the rye,
And the silver note in the streamlet's throat
  Has softened almost to a sigh––
    It is July.

When the hours are so still that time
  Forgets them and lets them lie
Neath petals pink till the night stars wink
  At the sunset in the sky––
    It is July.

If you would like to read other poems that magazines of the day thought their readers might enjoy, see A Song of June and Hurdy Gurdy Days.

Parties and Visits · Recipe Collections · The Vintage Kitchen

Recipes for Your Porch Party

VintageJenny
Table filled with tea sandwiches, dessert, coffee, and cake for a porch party.
Put together a porch party your friends will remember.

In the Twenties and Thirties porch parties gathered people together. In a day before air conditioning, home owners and guests embraced any opportunity to spend time outside. Picnics on the grass weren’t for everyone, although they were popular. The porch party gathered everyone onto the cool front porch. They sat in comfortable chairs and enjoyed special nibbles or even a full luncheon. And if the gang didn’t gather for a special occasion, such as a shower, guests usually brought along their workbags. Knitting, embroidery, tatting, and crochet kept hands busy while conversation flew. Porch parties were so popular that entire menus often appeared in magazines and cookbooks.

Revive this tradition and host a porch party of your own. All you need is a clean, nicely decorated porch, a few guests, and some food. Invite a few favorites over and give these recipes a gander. These recipes for your porch party will fit your vintage (or not so vintage) gathering perfectly. They were designed for outdoor entertaining in warmer weather.

You could add hot tea to this menu and call it an afternoon tea. Or use the Peruvian chocolate recipe from the list and call it a luncheon party. (You may want to have a pitcher of water available, however. The Peruvian chocolate recipe is very rich, iced or hot.)

Add a small bowl of mixed olives and a bowl of mixed nuts to the foods listed here and you have a beautiful Twenties porch luncheon. The cream mints provide the perfect ending to a vintage luncheon. They cleanse the palate after a meal, and appeared on tables regularly.

1. Sweet and Savory Sandwiches

These Sweet and Savory Tea Sandwiches offer four options for quickly made, tasty sandwiches. Serve them at your next vintage-style small gathering or formal tea. And if you’ve never hosted a formal tea but always wanted to, these sandwiches will start you off.

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2. Peruvian Iced or Hot Chocolate

This Peruvian chocolate tastes like something between a normal hot cocoa recipe, and the thick drinking chocolate that you find in cafés. This is a drink to savor. It’s not too sweet. Enjoy this one with a friend or friends and some good conversation.

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3. Fruited Whipped Cream

If you’re looking for a light and cool dessert for warm weather, look no further. This Fruited Cream recipe from the 1920s fills the requirement. It’s smooth, fruity, sweet, and cold. And Fruited Cream gives us an example of some of the best from the Twenties kitchen.

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4. Many Layered Jam Cake

The Many Layered Jam Cake is one rich cake. A bit more involved than an everyday cake, Many Layered Jam Cake definitely tastes like more than a sum of its parts. This is a delicious, decadent cake for your next vintage gathering.

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5. Colored Cream Mints

Looking for something to add sparkle to your next small get-together? These easy fondant Cream Mints are simple to make and they taste great! And even better, this 1920s recipe was almost lost to time.

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Use these recipes for your porch party. Or your patio party. Or your pool party. These dishes will make your party, whatever it is, a memorable event.

The Creative Corner · Vintage Ways

Make Yourself a Rainy-Day Box

VintageJenny

Sometimes I come across vintage advice that is so good that it stops me cold. It doesn’t have to be huge, or timeless. It just has to be useful. Like the suggestion to iron a circular tablecloth from the center out to keep it straight and even, and then to roll it on a curtain rod to keep it that way instead of folding it. Who figured that out? And more importantly, how did information like this ever fall into the black hole of forgetfulness? Today’s advice: Make yourself a Rainy-Day Box.

A lined basked filled with a ball of yarn and sock knitting needles. Next to it sit four spools of silk thread in green, pink, red, and blue.
My Rainy-Day Box filled with socks to knit and silk thread for lacemaking.

A vintage idea that still stands strong

Rainy days can be dreary. A truth no less accurate today than it was 100 years ago. The air carries a chill, rain pelts on the windows, and the skies look gray and foreboding. This is not exactly the type of weather that makes us want to grab a filled picnic basket and head for the nearest park. So what do you do if rain falls and cancels your plans? Open your Rainy-Day Box!

I used to dislike rainy days. The patter of the big drops on the roof was a signal for the entrance of the gloom family, in droves.

Clara M. Neville, contributor to Needlecraft Magazine, 1921.

This idea appeared in a small article in an 1920s magazine. The suggester wrote “I used to dislike rainy days. The patter of the big drops on the roof was a signal for the entrance of the gloom family, in droves. … I doubtless succeeded in making other folks as miserable as I was myself by my low spirits.” This struck me, for sometimes I feel gloomy on rainy days as well.

So I followed her advice. I found a small box to serve as my Rainy-Day Box, and then I sat for a while, thinking. The little empty sewing box sat in front of me as inspiration. What did I really want to do but never seemed to find the time? What did I want to finish but always found myself pulled in seventy different directions as soon as I sat down to work on it?

A box of opportunities

As I looked around my work room, the answer became clear quickly. I love working with silk thread and yarn. It doesn’t have to be shiny and slick; it can be nubby and matte. Over time I’d amassed a small collection of Gütermann silk threads. Because I wanted use it for lacemaking instead of sewing, I specifically bought the flower and leaf colors. These would find their way into my Rainy-Day Box for making Oya/Armenian needle lace.

So I gathered a few things that you can see in the photo. These launched my own Rainy-Day Box, and now I too look forward to inclement weather. It’s filled with colors I love, threads I long to use, and projects that once upon a time filled my someday list. When I finish one project I will slip another one into the box for the next rainy day.

Put your box together

What kinds of things can you put into your own Rainy-Day Box? Here are some ideas:

  • Drop into your box that book you’ve been dying to read but never seem to find the hours to make it happen.
  • Do you relax by cooking? Slip that recipe you long to make into your box. If it requires non-perishable ingredients such as raisins or currants, purchase those and put them in your pantry with a big inked X on the front so you don’t use it for anything else.
  • If you want to learn a new skill such as tatting, place a shuttle and small ball of thread into your box and spend the day learning. (Try size 10 thread for learning. It’s bigger and easier to see the stitches.)
  • Interested in spending time watching a movie you can’t fit in any other way? Put a DVD in your Rainy-Day Box. If you use streaming services, write yourself a note with the title and the service and drop it into your box so you can find the information when you need it.
  • Would you like to immerse yourself in a project like knitting socks or crocheting a vintage yoke for a camisole? Place your goodies into your box and await the next day filled with wet skies.

As you can see, it doesn’t matter what you are into. If it fits in your Rainy-Day Box and it brings you joy, it works. And if it doesn’t fit, find yourself a bigger box. It doesn’t matter what you put into it as long as it makes you happy.

If you need ideas for projects to fit into your Rainy-Day Box, check out these posts I wrote on learning to make tatted lace with a shuttle, five great vintage crocheted edgings, or this turn-of-the-century travelogue about England.

Decorations and Decor · Parties and Visits · The Creative Corner

Make Your Porch a Summer Room

VintageJenny
Illustration of a summer room front porch with a porch swing, rug, two chairs, and a small side table with a table lamp, reading books, and a plant.
Inviting furniture, outdoor lamps, and a few good books make a popular warm weather spot.

Doesn’t this scene make you want to curl up with a good book or that project you’ve been hoping to start? This is a perfect illustration of a porch used as a summer room. Before air conditioned houses and apartments people moved outdoors in warm weather. Houses were hot, and people needed alternatives.

Not only were houses hot, but they could also seem claustrophobic in warm weather. The very house that seemed so cozy during the wintertime might feel oppressive during the hot summer months. Changing curtains and pillows from winter to summer fabrics helped. The best result, however, came from moving meals and entertainment to a whole new area.

Living and dining outdoors

The porch became the summer living room, and sometimes the warm weather dining room as well. Breakfasting on the porch could be delightful in the right weather, not to mention weekend luncheons and weekday dinners.

Black and white photo of a wooden table and chairs on a tile outdoor patio floor. A light hangs from the ceiling and an open arch leads outdoors.
A small but effective outdoor eating area.

A visitor who stopped on a nice day rarely made it into the house during the summer months. The hostess didn’t lack in hospitality or manners. She entertained in the most inviting area possible. Drinks and snacks made their way from the household kitchen to the front porch for relaxed, breezy socializing.

A porch with screens fitted to porch openings was ideal, but not everyone had those. Usually the porch had some kind of roof or covering. You see that in all the examples shown here. To be cool, an outdoor oasis needed to be out of the sun. Even a good awning could provide that at the right time of day.

Inside of an enclosed front porch of a 1920s home. Two large windows to the left sit above two chairs and a small table. In the middle of the room a table for four sits. The table is decorated with a flower arrangement.
An enclosed porch offers space to get away and relax.

Furnishing the outdoor space

All rooms need furnishings and the outdoor summer room was no exception. Furniture included comfortable chairs, couches, and a small but sturdy occasional table. Sometimes the table was made of wicker, while other times one of painted wood took its place as book and lamp-holder. Even if the porch included a ceiling light in the center, a table lamp or two gave a nice touch of comfort to the outdoor room. (Be sure to keep it unplugged when not in use if it’s outdoors. Summer storms can be quick and violent, as we all know.)

An indoor/outdoor mat or rug often found its way to the porch for the summertime as well. It helped to contain dirt tracked from the street and made the area look a bit more homey.

Fabrics used for porch cushions and pillows needed to withstand the season’s changing weather then as they do now. Today you can purchase beautiful pads for outdoor furniture, or make your own from a fabric like Sunbrella. Fabrics of the Twenties included stripes in greens and browns, heavy denim weave fabrics in colors other than denim blue, and bright plastic-like oilcloth.

Porch decorated with wicker couch, two chairs, and two small tables. Trees and foliage appear in the background.
Festive stripes and wicker furniture decorate this porch room.

Most of all, the colors of a porch decorating scheme were bright and inviting. Small spots of red, yellow, and black might offer a welcome contrast to more cooling colors like greens, blues, lavenders, or grays. A red and gray pillow on a gray chair, for instance, is very vintage. And quite welcoming.

Take a look at your own outdoor space and see how it can become a vintage-style living room. If you want something to serve your first porch guests, you’ll find these Sweet and Savory Sandwiches quick to fix and easy to serve.

The Creative Corner · Vintage Needlework

Make Vintage Crochet Any Size You Want

VintageJenny
Table with the same crochet edging in three sizes: large, medium, and small. Each one shows the hook used and the text reads: Make Your Crochet Project Any Size You Want.
Don’t let suggested threads or yarns hold you back.

Lots of crafters these days find themselves caught up in creating things the perfect way. With the perfect yarn. In the perfect color. In other words, so that it looks exactly like the original item. Today I bring you words of wisdom from the past: you can make vintage crochet any size you want!

It’s true that many vintage instruction books called for a particular thread, or a particular yarn. But others didn’t. It all depended upon the sponsor –– who paid for the publication of the book or magazine. If you page through an old copy of The Delineator, for instance, you will see that only Butterick patterns are advertised. That’s because the Butterick Publishing Company created The Delineator for the express purpose of showing off the lastest fashion and for selling patterns.

The same is true for many of the crochet and knitting instruction books that were published. J&P Coats, Clark’s, and Corticelli all published instruction books. These companies also made and sold cotton or silk thread. They realized, like companies today, that if no patterns are available to use the threads or yarn, very few will buy them.

Vintage independent designers give you freedom

However, you can find independent vintage patterns. They usually live in the needlework magazines that paid designers for their work and depended upon subscriber and advertising income. In those articles you will find phrases like “make this design according to your needs” and “match your hook to your thread size.” If the reader needed a design that would fit on a table, then making it in a fine thread made sense. If, on the other hand, the worker wanted a bed spread, coarser thread and a larger crochet hook or knitting needles would get them there.

Closeup of three crochet edgings done in three different size threads. A crochet hook rests on each edging, showing the size differences.
The edgings up close and personal.

Here, I took a favorite design from a 1925 periodical and created it in three different sizes. I crocheted the top edging in Sugar ‘n Cream cotton worsted weight yarn and a 5 mm (H/8) hook. It’s usually used to make toys and dishcloths. I made the middle edging in Aunt Lydia’s size 10 (1.3mm) crochet cotton and a size 7 (1.65 mm) steel hook. The bottom edging I crocheted from a Greek size 50 thread and a size 10 steel hook. You’ll find the pattern for this edging in my blog post Five Great Vintage Crochet Edgings. It’s Edging 4. If you want to know general thread-to-hook sizes, check this crochet hook size chart from DMC. Scroll about halfway down to find it.

If you need an edging for a heavy curtain, a bedspread, an afghan, or a shelf, the top design would be perfect. On the other hand, if you recreate a Twenties dress and need a long trim to go down one side from neck to hem, the second size would work well. And finally, if you wanted a deep edging for a handkerchief, something to trim underclothes, or even to dresss up a child’s dress or shirt hem, you could use the finest version shown. See? You can make vintage crochet any size you want.