Virtual Knitting History Conference 2020

Knitting History Forum would like to thank everyone, our excellent speakers, members, delegates and KHF friends old and new, for taking part in our first ever virtual AGM & Conference and for making it so enjoyable and interesting. The event was entirely online this year, perhaps the first virtual knitting history conference of its kind in the world but certainly, we hope, not the last! We would also like to express our thanks to KHF Chair Sandy Black and Treasurer Tricia Basham, who worked particularly hard both behind the scenes and onscreen on the day hosting the meeting. Speakers and delegates alike came from around the world, many joining us bright and early from time zones where lesser mortals were still asleep, yet all were fully engaged and enthusiastic. Questions and comments were insightful and discussion lively as ever, and though it was not possible to meet in person, this event brought us together, our shared interest creating sense of community and a buzz we hope will continue.

We look forward to seeing you all again in the future and though the conference has ended, you can still contribute and join in the conversation online:

http://knittinghistory.co.uk
https://groups.io/g/knittinghistory
https://twitter.com/KnitHistForum
https://www.facebook.com/KnittingHistoryForum
https://www.instagram.com/knittinghistoryforum/
https://www.ravelry.com/groups/knitting-history-forum

2019 Knitting History Forum Conference Report

Knitting History Symposium
Conference organised by the TRC Leiden and the Knitting History Forum
Leiden, November 2, 2019

Or

A Knitting Weekend in Leiden

Almost a year ago I spent a fantastic weekend all about knitting in Leiden, taking part in the Knitting History Symposium on the 17th century “Texel Silk Stocking” on Saturday and visiting the TRC Leiden where the KHF AGM was held on Sunday, as well as some of the sights of Leiden. I was so busy taking notes I did not take any pictures at the conference itself but I did in the exhibition on Sunday, which showcased most of the samples and reproduction stockings of the project.

The keynote lecture of the symposium was about the reconstruction of the 17th century Texel stocking finds by a citizen science community, under Chrystel Brandenburgh.

The stockings came from wreck number BZN17, and we now know it was an armed Dutch merchant ship that sank about 1645-1660.

The two goals for the project were to involve people who are not normally part of archaeological research but have the expertise needed for a reproduction, in this case experienced knitters, and to be able to repeat the experiment. More than a hundred people volunteered!

The original stocking was made from reeled, not spun, silk, and knitted in the round. It was examined with a Dino-Lite microscope. All information was gained from that examination, the stocking was not turned or otherwise disturbed.

The citizen science project involved knitting test swatches with different types of silk (some already de-gummed, some still containing the sericin, and different size needles, 0.7mm and 1mm, to find the right material and gauge for the reconstruction. The original measured 83 stitches and 100 rows for a 10cm square! The test pieces measured 5x5cm and took on average 5 hours to complete, and required 15m of silk, which means a stocking would need 1080m.

After the test swatch stage, about 40 people continued with the experiment by knitting a complete stockings, and as of the date of the conference 27 stockings were finished. Knitting with the silk that still contained the sericin proved easiest and quickest, and blocking the stocking after removing the gum also brought the most uniform result.

Using a wooden former to shape the stockings after washing (and de-gumming) was based on the existence of an extant example of the period in Denmark, and English records mentioning wooden stocking formers. Uneven knitting and a certain amount of difference in gauge did not matter after removing the sericin and blocking the stocking.

It is impossible to tell how long it would take to knit a stocking in period. Those knitters that knitted more than one stocking reported that the time it took to knit the second one was almost half of the first, showing how much familiarity with the material and the way to knit speeded up the process.

The papers in the Knitting History conference itself were all connected to the Texel Stocking project. The first section was about stocking production in Europe, showcasing current research in knitting history:

  • Lesley O’Connell Edwards’ “A hidden workforce: hand knitters in 17th century England” focused on evidence of who was knitting and what was being produced, and the research is centred on Norfolk and Suffolk. There is less information available on this topic for the 17th century than for the 16th century, and council and probate records are so far the best sources. Items produced by knitting included caps, gloves, petticoats (short jackets), stockings or hose, and waistcoats. There was no guild for knitters, but knitting was something taught, not necessarily learned in the family. Interestingly, although men were listed as teachers, very few men were listed as being taught. Silk hand knitters are mentioned in 1619 but there is not much more information about this aspect of knitting.
  • Sylvie Odstrcilova’s paper “Early modern stockings from the Czech Republic and neighbouring countries: The story continues” offered a fascinating glimpse into the variety of extant stockings in this area, and built on her research published in NESAT and ATR. Her findings of the similarity of the stockings of Imrich Thurzo in Orava Castle to the Texel stocking opened questions regarding manufacture and import of silk stockings throughout Europe.
  • Hanna Backstrom’s paper “The earliest printed knitting patterns” compared what the printed patterns looked like and who they were made for, to a hand written 17th century notebook, possibly from a knitter’s workshop. This was one of the highlights of the conference for me. It raised lots of interesting questions as to how they used the charts, diagrams and sketches contained in this book, especially in contrast to the printed books which seem to have been designed for a different audience.

The first afternoon section was dedicated to projects inspired by the Texel Stocking project:

  • Art Ness Proano Gaibor’s “Dye experiments on the Texel Stocking” was an interesting paper on how period dye recipes can have an impact on our modern lives, and how diverse the period recipes for dyeing black were – some doing more harm to the fabric than others.
  • Geeske Kruseman’s findings of her report “wearing 17th century knitted silk stockings” really surprised me. Two people wore two pairs of the stockings produced by the citizen science project with period reproduction shoes in everyday life and recorded their subjective and objective observations. Although the experiment was cut short, they still got some data. The stockings showed no signs of wear after an accumulated 139 hours of wear, kept their shape after washing, and were comfortable to wear in hot and cold weather. Afterwards everyone with the right foot size (European 38) got a chance to try the stockings , and I personally loved the experience! The stocking is very light and smooth to wear, you sort of forget you have it on, and the lack of stretch that we have come to expect from wool stockings wasn’t missed due to the garter holding the stocking up, and the fact that the stocking fitted me perfectly. It would be interesting to repeat this experiment with a wider range of participants.
  • Sally Pointer reported on her experience of making a replica for the re-enactment market based on the Texel stocking and using a 19th century knitting machine. She started with a wool version to test the design and then made a version with spun silk. She had to alter the key features to work with the much lower stitch count possible with the knitting machine, reducing the patterns produced by the purl stitches by about one third, and producing a stocking with a similar pattern but clearly different to the original. key question: “Though we can do it, should we?” The stocking she produced is much quicker to produce than the hand knitted ones, but still took a considerable time to make and it leaves the question how it would compare being worn to a non-patterned, machine-knit silk stocking and the replica hand knitted ones.

The last section consisted of papers based on Citizen Science Projects:

  • In “How not to knit: Sourcing silk, research and reconstructions reviewed” Susan North shared with us her insights into the problems encountered and mistakes made when making reconstruction silk stockings for the Original Practice at the Globe Theatre, and how difficult it was to find any information on tools, materials, and methods.
  • Jane Malcolm-Davies’ paper “Modern Slavery and the early modern work ethic: Lessons learned from volunteer participation in knitting in early modern Europe” gave insights into the experiences made by her and the volunteers in the Knitting in Early Modern Europe (KEME) project. She discussed how using volunteers in knitting (a notoriously underpaid work activity) raises the question to what extent Citizen Science is exploitative, and how much can be learned from the knitwork produced, and the process of knitting it. The focus has to be on what the benefits for the volunteers are as well as the researcher/scientist, and it is interesting that the KEME volunteers listed a similar range of benefits as the Texel stocking project participants.

The following panel discussion followed along similar lines, and I loved the new-to-me emphasis on the social aspect of taking part in a Citizen Science project, and the emphasis on being mindful of the nature of these experiments versus lab experiments, and that there have to be mutual benefits for the researcher and scientist as well as the volunteer.

My stay extended to Sunday for the Knitting History Forum AGM, and so I had a chance to visit the exhibition about the stockings in the Textile Research Centre, showcasing all the finished stockings, the former, all the samples and the ingenious holders some of the knitters had come up with to keep the cone of silk from unravelling while being able to knit off it easily. Also part of the exhibition was a treasure trove of patterned socks and stockings, and sample boards of different heel and toe varieties, as well as other knitting samples. I came away with so much inspiration!

We also were given a short tour of the facilities, making me want to come back to study some of the beautiful knitted and crocheted items in the collection. In the afternoon we visited the weaver’s house and the Laakenhal museum, all places I am looking forward to visiting again!

Christine Carnie

KHF Conference 2020 Tickets

Cary Karp, Sandy Black, Lorna Hamilton-Brown and Ellie Reed at the KHF AGM & Conference 2018

Booking for the Knitting History Forum AGM & Conference 2020 has now closed. We look forward to meeting conference delegates and enjoying a wonderful programme of speakers this Saturday! If you were unlucky and missed out this time, we hope to see you at our next event, whenever that may be in these uncertain days.

Knitting History Forum 2020 – Virtual AGM and Conference

TICKET BOOKING HAS NOW CLOSED. The 2020 edition of the Knitting History Forum Conference will be brought to you online via Zoom from several different locations.  Last year, as part of our visit to the Netherlands in collaboration with the Texel Stocking Project, the KHF AGM was hosted by the Textile Research Centre in Leiden

We start our conference this year with a presentation from the TRC’s director Gillian Vogelsang-Eastwood about their collection and will see some of its knitted items.

The next group of presentations focus on the experience of knitting at home with examples from research based in Scotland and elsewhere.  Lynn Abrams will give an overview of current research into the history of knitted textiles in Scotland, followed by Jade Halbert speaking about knitting for money as a homeworker in the 1980s.  Sandy Black responds to this with her personal perspective of being a knitwear designer and producer in the 1980s.

We then return to the early history of knitting with two presentations on gloves worn by religious figures.  The first, from Sylvie Odstrčilová in the Czech Republic discusses two pairs of 18thC Abbess’s gloves from Prague, and the second reports on a project by Angharad Thomas and Lesley O’Connell Edwards, mapping the existing liturgical gloves as worn by bishops from the sixteenth century. We conclude with a talk by Emily Whitted from Massachusetts USA on the stocking frame knitting industry in Germantown, near Philadelphia, including Emily’s experience of trying out frame knitting herself in Ruddington Museum.

Join us for a pre-session Show and Tell (including what did you make during lockdown?) or see and respond to the fascinating new knitwork produced by Michelle Hanks as part of her PhD research.

See the detailed schedule below…

We look forward to seeing you online on 7th November via Zoom.  It’s free for everyone but donations to Knitting History Forum are always welcome by Paypal to khfcommittee@hotmail.co.uk.

Please register via the Eventbrite link below and joining details will be sent to you.

Best wishes

Sandy Black

Chair, Knitting History Forum

Knitting History Forum 2020  AGM and conference – Saturday 7th November via Zoom

Schedule

We ask for your understanding if the schedule is subject to change at short notice due to the current pandemic.

10.30 -11.00 am Welcome and AGM  – see separate agenda (to follow)

Breakout groups

11.30 – 12.30pm Show and Tell open session – Moderator:  Tricia Basham

  • Bring along something to show and discuss  including “What I made during lockdown” – kicked off by Susan North’s crochet toys.

OR

11.30 – 12.30 pm PhD research student presentations – Moderator: Sandy Black

  • 11.30 Michelle Hanks, London College of Fashion “I’ll have to knit about it…”  Knitting as a thinking tool Showing her knitted pieces made whilst exploring ideas in response to interviews with knitters
  • 12.00 Emily Rickard, Nottingham Trent University Exploring the use of creative, open-ended knitting as a form of journaling to record emotions, with consideration for mental wellbeing

Break or keep chatting informally

1.20 pm conference welcome: Sandy

1.30 – 2pm    The Collection of the Textile Research Centre Leiden, with some knitted highlights.
Gillian Vogelsang-Eastwood, Director of the TRC Leiden, The Netherlands

2 – 2.15     From Fleece to Fashion: researching the history of knitted textiles in Scotland
Lynn Abrams, University of Glasgow

2.15 – 2.45    Knitting for Money: homework in Glasgow and beyond in the 1980s
Jade Halbert, University of Huddersfield

2.45 – 3.15   On being a knitwear designer in the 1980s
Sandy Black,  London College of Fashion, UAL

Break

3.30 – 4.00   Two pairs of 18thC  Abbess’s gloves from Prague
Sylvie Odstrčilová, Independent researcher, Czech Republic

4. – 4.30      Holy Hands: studies of knitted liturgical gloves
Lesley O’Connell Edwards and Angharad Thomas, Independent researchers, UK

4.30 – 5      Made in Germantown: Analysis of an Early American Frame Knitting Industry 
Emily Whitted, PhD candidate, University of Massachusetts, USA

5 – 5.05      Closing remarks – Sandy Black

ADH Lecture & Conversation Series

The Association of Dress Historians are launching an ADH Lecture & Conversation Series and have issued a Call For Submissions with a deadline of 1 October 2020. The aim of the ADH Lecture & Conversation Series is to provide a virtual space for ADH members to connect and share knowledge about dress history. Knitting and crochet intersects the history of dress – perhaps KHF members would consider a submission? For further information visit the ADH website: https://dresshistorians.org/virtual/

KCG Un-Convention 2020

Un-Convention 2020 is the Knitting & Crochet Guild’s first virtual convention. Running from this Wednesday 9th September to Tuesday 15th September 2020, the convention has a broad range of free events across the seven-day schedule, including speakers familiar from KHF conferences. Videos with closed captions (subtitles) will be available on Youtube and you can also join in on the Guild’s Facebook groupRavelry KCG or follow the hashtag #unconventionkcg on Instagram.  Visit the Un-convention 2020 website to see the exciting programme in full.

Knitting History Forum AGM and Conference 2020

Saturday 7th November 2020

In order to recognise the extraordinary circumstances of the 2020 global coronavirus pandemic, the Knitting History Forum has decided to stage an online event on Sat 7th November. This event will be free to attend and open to all, following registration, and will comprise speakers, discussion groups/show and tell and opportunities for research students to give short presentations or present posters online of their current work-in-progress.

Watch this space for further announcements!

Knitting History Forum AGM & Conference 2020

This has been an extraordinary year. Many have been affected by the events of the past ten months and it seemed in poor taste to continue posting. Indeed, mentions of the date of the next conference here and on social media received some objections and though made last year, were removed to avoid giving offence. Now as we return slowly to the new ‘normal’, it seems appropriate to resume. KHF is pleased once again to confirm Saturday 7th November 2020 as the date of this year’s Knitting History Forum Conference. We are working towards an event that is safe and accessible. Further information about the conference will be released in due course and we will post additional details here on the Knitting History website and on TwitterInstagram and Facebook when they are available. We hope you will feel able to join in and look forward to seeing you in November.

Knitting History Forum Conference 2019 Reminder

Join us in beautiful Leiden for a weekend of Knitting History! We welcome scholars, knitters and everyone with an interest in knitting.

The Knitting History Forum Conference 2019 with the culmination of the TRC Leiden Texel Stockings Project is on Saturday 2 November at De Tuinzaal (The Garden Room) at the Grand Café de Burcht in the historic city centre (at Burgsteeg 14). On Sunday 3 November Prof Sandy Black will chair our AGM for KHF members and we have a special visit to Het Leids Wevershuis (a textile workers’ house built circa 1560). The knitting exhibition ‘Socks & Stockings: A world full of surprises’ at the Textile Research Centre will open especially for conference delegates on Friday 1 November from 12.30pm to 2pm and again on Sunday 3rd November 10am to 12.30pm.

You can register for the conference and pay on the door (€25 or €15 for KHF members).

If you prefer you can pay in advance via PayPal using the “Donate” button on the home page of the Textile Research Centre – scroll down the right-hand column) or via PayPal directly to the TRC’s email address (info@trc-leiden.nl). Please visit our membership page for more information about Knitting History Forum and apply to join if you wish. You can also register for the conference online using this form if you are a KHF member or use this form if you are not. The conference hotel is Hotel Nieuw Minerva and a discount is available – email hotel@nieuwminerva.nl mentioning KHF2019.

The full conference programme is available here. Speakers and papers for the Knitting History Conference will include

Keynote speaker Chrystel Brandenburgh: ‘Knitting for science. The reconstruction of the 17th century Texel Stockings by a citizen science community’
Lesley O’Connell Edwards: ‘A hidden workforce: hand knitters in 17thcentury England’
Sylvie Odstrčilová: ‘Early modern stockings from the Czech Republic and neighbouring countries’
Hannah Bäckström: ‘The earliest printed knitting patterns’
Art Ness Proaño Gaibor: ‘Dye-experiments on the Texel Stocking’
Geeske Kruseman: ‘Wearing 17th century knitted silk stockings’
Sally Pointer: ‘Clues from the deep: Reconstructing for the re-enactment-market -silk stockings based on the Texel project’
Susan North: ‘How not to Knit: Sourcing silk, research and reconstructions reviewed’
Jane Malcolm-Davies: ‘Modern Slavery and the early modern work ethic: Lessons learned from volunteer participation in knitting in early modern Europe’
Panel discussion with Katrin Kania, Heleen van Londen and Roeland Paardenkoper: ‘Knitting leads the way! The perils and potential of citizen science in textile research’

It is not too late to register for the conference and book last minute flights, Eurostar tickets or even drive to Leiden to enjoy a knitting history event which, in a way, is itself historic. We look forward to seeing you this weekend.