Where there's some wool, theres a way

Lucy Manley
Sep 19, 2018
3 min read

PERSONAL ITEMS: SERVICE KNITS

When we think of WW2 many things come to mind, one being knitting. Much like some say that the sharing of food can be seen as an expression of love (not necessarily romantic), knitting something for someone during wartime or at any difficult time, can also be seen as an alternative way of saying those three special words.

The nations enthusiasm when it came to knitting plays a significant role in the ‘war effort’ too, as the rapid production line that Britain’s women and also men too (my great grandmother taught all 5 of her children, 4 of which were boys, to knit in the 1910s) kept Britain fighting in warm, homely garments. A hand knitted jumper, scarf of for that matter, anything that is going to keep you nice and warm at the bleakest of times, made with love and at this time, a hefty spoonful of patriotism and belief allows both parties to gain some good vibes out of one simple garment.

Mother’s, sisters, wives and grannies knitted for their loved ones, little loved ones and loved ones out serving in the RAF, Army and Navy, even in the home front based services such as the ARP. They even knitted for people that they didn’t know as a part of the war effort. The Armed forces requested knitted items to keep the troops warm and dry throughout the duration of the war. This was primarily carried out by the WVS (Women’s Voluntary Service) and W.I (Women’s Institute) but also by groups of ladies who decided to hold their own knitting circles after possibly being inspired by the ‘If you can knit, you can do your bit’ campaign.

I will admit that after more than five years of collecting second world war uniforms, I have seldom seen specifically women’s knitted items but plenty of tank tops and khaki cable knit cards for men. Whist these knitted items such as jumpers, pull overs, gloves, socks and scarves were if you like, mass produced for the lads serving in the RAF, Army and Navy, Eileen Davidson, who was in the WAAF (Women's Auxiliary Air Force) during the war states that there were no items donated for the women’s services. Upon bringing this up with the padre, she was told that women could knit their own. It turns out that he wasn’t such a stingy so and so and managed to wangle them some wool, which was produced by ‘Sidar’ in service colours, minus the needles and patterns that she also requested so that they could go and knit their own service woolies. This teamed with the fact that the women’s services were much smaller in numbers than then mens’, means that there are obviously less around.

A lovely service knit is something that we all love in the world of living history, it gives you that much needed warmth after sleeping in damp tents for an entire weekend and can also add a personal touch to your impression. This is reflected in the two original knits pictured. One is a hand knit waistcoat, with a personal touch of the ladies Motor Transport patch stitched onto the pocket, the other is a standard issue jumper with the

owners name embroidered onto the chest.