One thing that often crops up on the blog, and on my social media, whenever I post anything to do with 1930s crochet is the fact that people seem to struggle to find patterns to use for their own projects. This always surprises me as I have a massive long list of patterns I want to make that I’ve found on the internet. Okay, so the majority of them aren’t the original copies, but they do give you everything you need to be able create your very own vintage crochet garments.
So, I have put together a list of my favourite sellers, and websites where they offer patterns for free, so I can always point people in the right direction whenever anyone mentions they can’t find any good vintage crochet patterns. I hope you find this list helpful too.
Free Vintage Crochet
A huge collection of free crochet patterns from the early to mid-20th Century all taken from original crochet booklets and magazines. With over 2000 patterns to choose from, and continually added to, you be hard pressed to not find something you like. Lots of different types of patterns are available from clothing to accessories and from a plethora of home accessories to Christmas decorations.
PDF reprints of complete booklets or magazines are also available at a tiny cost and often contain knitting patterns too. There’s also lots of crocheting information, such as how to crochet, hook conversions, vintage sizing and discontinued yarns.
Antique Pattern Library
Focusing mainly on the popularity of crochet at the very beginning of the 20th Century, this site offers a good selection of booklets and single patterns. You might even find the odd one from the 1800s! Many patterns are for edgings and motifs, as were popular during this time, but they do have some beautiful Priscilla pattern booklets from the late 1910s/ very early 1920s that contain the most incredible jumpers. Majority of patterns are free but do double check.
http://www.antiquepatternlibrary.org/html/warm/crochet.htm
Cemetarian
A large collection of knitting, crocheting and sewing patterns from the 1910s to the 2000s. Sells both original patterns and PDF reprints, always double check the description for more information of what you’re buying. The website isn’t the easiest site to navigate and find what you’re looking for, but they do offer their selection of PDF knitting and crocheting patterns via Etsy.
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/cemetarian
eStitches
A good selection of single PDF reprint patterns from a variety of eras from the 1910s to the 1970s, with a strong emphasis on 1930s and 40s. Mostly clothing with a small amount of accessories and home decoration and doll patterns. Also offers knitting patterns from the same eras.
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/eStitches
Iva Rose
A selection of really beautiful knitting and crocheting booklets from the 1880s to the 1950s. The majority are printed, bound and then sent to you in the post, although there are a few that are also available as a PDF download. As the company is based in the US, for those of us in the UK this does mean that this can amount to about £20 per booklet, but as each one contains a vast number of patterns it’s worth it. I’ve personally bought from them and they arrive quickly and beautifully presented, so you can get on with your crafting immediately.
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/ivarose
http://stores.ebay.co.uk/Iva-Rose-Vintage-Reproductions
Miss Julia’s Patterns
Almost 1000 vintage knitting and crocheting patterns available as PDF reprints for 99p or less. Ranging from the 1930s through to the 1970s and focusing mainly on clothing, there’s a huge amount of choice. There’s even a great selection of footwear! My only niggle with these is the colour wash added to the photos, it makes it hard to see definition on some of the garments.
https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/MissJuliasPatterns
Vintage Knit Crochet Pattern Shop
A great selection of both vintage crochet and knitting PDF patterns, all at a minimum cost. The main bulk of the patterns range from the 1930s up to the 1960s, although I have spotted a few 1970s and 80s pieces here and there too. The range varies from clothing to accessories and from home wares to crafting projects. There’s also a good selection of free patterns in both crochet and knitting.
http://www.vintageknitcrochet.net
The Vintage Pattern Files
This blog is run by the lovely Wendy from The Butterfly Balcony and is an online library of free vintage knitting, crochet and sewing patterns that are scattered across the internet. Each one has a link to the original post where you’ll find the pattern. There’s even a 1930s free crochet pattern from me! Just be warned, this blog has been going a long time, so some of the linked websites are now no longer live, therefore some patterns may be unavailable.
http://thevintagepatternfiles.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Crochet
The Vintage Knitting Lady
Although this site is mainly focused on vintage knitting patterns, it does have a good selection of vintage crochet patterns too. In the General section you’ll find anything from pin cushions to bags and from jewellery to blankets, mainly from the 1930s to the 1950s. The Hats & Gloves section has a wealth of patterns from these decades too but I am yet to discover any actual garments. All patterns are available as a photocopy or digital PDF for a minimal cost.
https://www.thevintageknittinglady.co.uk/crochetGeneral.html
Etsy Sellers
There are quite a number of sellers on Etsy that sell vintage crochet patterns, who I have listed quickly below, but the ones above have the best collections. I have personally bought from all of them or used some of their free patterns. Therefore, they all come highly recommended.
Knitted Couture – https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/knittedcouture
Vintage Visage – https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/VintageVisageonEtsy
Vintage Pattern Place – https://www.etsy.com/shop/VintagePatternPlace
Dazespast – https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/Dazespast
KissproofGirly – https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/KissproofGirly
VintageBeso – https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/VintageBeso (great for 60s & 70s patterns)
MyVintageWish – https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/MyVintageWish
Adorish Vintage – https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/AdorishVintage
Touch Of Nostalgia – https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/touchofnostalgia7
Nostalgia Rules – https://www.etsy.com/shop/nostalgiarules
If I’ve missed off any vintage crochet pattern sellers you are aware of please let me know below and I’ll add them to the list. Also, I have quite a number of original 1930s and 40s crochet patterns that I keep thinking about adding to this blog. Is this something you guys would be interested in? Again, let me know below.
Now if I could only crochet, of find the time to learn! But I have at least one friend who’d love this, one you know too, the lovely Inez! xxx
Oh yes, Inez’s knitwear is gorgeous. I hope she finds this useful! xx
Thank you so much for posting this massive list!! 🙂
I swear, you’re going to have me crocheting one of these days! 😉
Hehehe! That’s my intention, to get the whole world to crochet! 🙂 xx
Great list to have. I will do more crochet one day!
I hope you find something helpful on it! There’s so many beautiful vintage crochet patterns out there to do. Most are on my long wish list! xx
Thank you for sharing this because finding patterns to crochet can take days! Everything seems to be knitted. I adore your stuff on instagram but it seems so hard to do.
How do you actually know what yarn to use? I’m having a real hard time with this, the sizing is different here and shop assistents can’t help me either.
Shop assistants were useless for me too, no one seemed to know anything about older patterns. I ended up doing hell of a lot of research and pieced different snippets of information together to come to the right conclusion. I’m a natural researcher, I love hunting out the clues and piecing it all together. If you have a specific pattern in mind that you want to try, just give me a shout and I’ll see if I can point you in the right direction for hook and yarn sizes. I’d be happy to help xx
I would love to be added to your list. I have several thousand vintage Crochet Patterns in my shop, as well as over 1000 Mail Order (and growing) crochet patterns.
http://www.vintageknitcrochet.net/
Thank you for letting me know about your site Lorrie, I hadn’t come across it before. You’ve got a great selection of patterns and I’m sure I’ll be back to purchase a few at some point. I’ve added the site to my post for you. xx
Thanks so much!
I am more of a knitter but am tackling New Moon Dress #1169 and was wondering who I can ask about the pattern?
It isn’t really clear to me and I really want to make this dress.
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Thank you!