Morn till Midnight in Knitteds

I’m loving my 1940’s knitting book! The photos, drawings and little cartoons are fabulous! It might even tempt me to knit something… but not underwear, knitted underwear… ugh!!

From the time you get up in the morning, for every call that may be made on  your wardrobe. there is a knitted garment in this section of women’s clothes which will answer the question “What shall I wear?”
Look at these morning clothes, for instance; there is a vest and panties set which is specially designed for hard service, and a warm yet glamorous house coat to cheer the breakfast hour before the day’s toil begins. There is an all-service pullover, a smart cardigan and a sleeveless waistcoat. Not only that, but for every garment, you will find suggestions for “ringing the changes” so that, by using a little ingenuity, you can adapt every garment to suit your own particular taste.
The everyday underclothes are designed to withstand the wear and tear of the day’s work without the shoulder straps breaking under the strain. Over them, when you get up, slip the housecoat knitted gaily in five colours with wool supplied from old jumpers, if you like.
The knitted waistcoat can be worn with a blouse and skirt when you go walking on one of those crisp autumn mornings. On the other hand, you can wear the trim ribbed cardigan with its bright coloured buttons and hankie. For real outdoor work try the well-tailored cable pullover.

I wonder what ‘hard service’ the underwear might have to take? … and I daren’t imagine the everyday underclothes ‘breaking under the strain’! It’s easy to mock, but really this is wonderful! The lively way the book is written, and the glimpse into the lives of ordinary women, trying to be economical during the war and afterwards when there was rationing and shortages, is fascinating…. and admirable.