Because my first Edwardian crochet lace yoke turned out so well, I made another Edwardian crochet yoke after an antique free Edwardian crochet pattern! 😀
The first Edwardian crochet yoke that I made was a floral crochet yoke. But this Edwardian crochet yoke with the leaf (or flower) vines looks tropical to me! 😀 It also looks very modern with the checkerboard pattern.
‘The vine effect of this design is very charming.’ (The Priscilla Yoke Book, 1916)
Antique Free Crochet Yoke Pattern
I used this antique free crochet yoke pattern. But I had to adjust the crochet pattern slightly.
Adjusting The Edwardian Crochet Yoke Pattern
I’ve already had to adjust the other Edwardian crochet yoke to make it smaller. But this Edwardian yoke also turned out too big!
So I omitted some of the leaves to make the crochet yoke the right size. I crocheted 13 leaves instead of 17 for the front, 11 instead of 15 for the back and 16 instead of 24 for the sleeves.
Unravelled Cotton Crochet Thread
I used the same off-white cotton crochet thread that I also used for my other Edwardian crochet lace yoke: The yarn was leftover from my refashioned crochet tablecloth dress.
Related: Refashioned Crochet Tablecloth Dress
Antique Edwardian yokes were usually made of non-mercerized (non-shiny) cotton crochet thread. But thin non-mercerized cotton crochet thread is almost impossible to find nowadays! And because the leftover crochet lace scraps were made of non-mercerized cotton thread, I unravelled the scraps and used the yarn for my two Edwardian crochet yokes! 🙂
Pros & Cons Of The Crochet Yoke Pattern
Unlike other antique crochet patterns, this one is fairly easy to understand. I also liked that the Edwardian crochet yoke is quick to make.
But I didn’t enjoy making the yoke: it was fiddly and I found it annoying to always count to the eighth chain stitch etc. Also, crocheting into the tiny chain stitches is no fun! 😉
And even though I used a very thin crochet thread – thinner than cotton embroidery thread or linen sewing thread – the Edwardian crochet yoke still turned out too big. So the antique Edwardian crochet yoke was obviously made with a still thinner crochet thread!
Edwardian Camisole – Sewing Details
I used sheer white cotton batiste for my Edwardian camisole. I added 5 pintucks at the back as embellishment. Also, pintucks help to keep the back flat.
The side seams are feather-stitched flat felled seams like on this antique Edwardian camisole. I used the same cotton crochet thread for the feather stitching that I used to crochet the yoke. By the way, feather stitching was were popular in the Edwardian era. And I’ve wanted to try feather-stitched seams for a long time! 😀
I finished the top of the Edwardian camisole with a hand-rolled hem at the back and the sides, and whipped gathers at the front.
Then I finished the bottom of the camisole with a drawstring to create the fashionable Edwardian pouter pigeon shape! 😀
Attaching The Edwardian Crochet Yoke
After finishing the top of the camisole with a hand-rolled hem and whipped gathers, I attached the crochet yoke with a combination of running and back stitches by hand. This hand sewing stitch was known as “combination stitch” in the Edwardian era.
Blue Silk Ribbon
I had some pure silk ribbon in my stash which I had dyed blue. For some of the photos I threaded this blue silk ribbon through the Edwardian crochet yoke. But I don’t know if I prefer the crochet yoke with or without the silk ribbon.
What do you think: Do you prefer the Edwardian crochet yoke with the blue silk ribbon or without?
Historybounding
The camisole turned out too pretty to only wear it as Edwardian corset cover hidden under Edwardian clothing. So I also wear the Edwardian crochet yoke camisole as historybounding summer top!
Related: 11 Tips On How To Dress Vintage & Historical Without Looking Too Costumey