I hope you have enjoyed National Crochet Month and Crochetville's designer blog tour.  Join me in thanking Amy Shelton and Donna Hulka in putting this all together!

All the winners have been notified, they have selected their winnings, which have been packed/mailed, and all tracking numbers sent out to winners. Congratulations Sharon, Regina, Jessica, Julie, Maria, Amanda, & Dana!!!

As a textile/crochet historian and designer, I collect crochet books and often end up with duplicates.  I have tried selling on eBay, but that was unsatisfactory and have learned that I prefer to give my duplicates to go to those who would appreciate them most.  I have seven lots of books for give-away (free to anyone in the US, and for the cost of postage for anyone outside of the US). To be eligible to be randomly selected, leave a "NatCroMo" note to me on this blog or Facebook private message, by midnight April 1, 2016.  If you receive a "good luck" note from me, you will know that you have been entered.  The seven lots are below and the randomly selected winners will get their choice in order of their selection.

1) Raffino, Jonelle & Mapstone, Prudence.  Freeform Style (2009)
                      North Light Books, Cincinnati, OH.
2) Wiseman, Nancie M. Crochet with Wire (2005) Interweave Press,
                      Loveland, CO.
3) Fisch, Arline. Crocheted Wire Jewelry (2009) Lark Books, Asheville,
                      NC.
4) Dowde, Jenny. Freeform Knitting & Crochet (2004) Sally Milner
                       Publishing Pty Ltd, Bowral, Australia.
5) Six crochet booklets in varying condition:
                       Spool Cotton Co. Pot holders to the Rescue #164
Nun's Crochet Twist Instruction Book #852
Clark's Ruffled Doilies #253
Spool Cotton Co. Doilies #184
Clark's Pineapples on Parade #241
J&P Coats & Clark's The Pick of the Pineapples #287
6) Six crochet booklets in varying condition:
                       Laura Bed Dolls & Sweet Dreams
Lily Smart Crochet
J&P Coats & Clark's Quick Crochet #300
Weldon's Crochet Accessories
Lily Crochet Book 1300
Nat'l Crochet Bureau Prize Winning Crochet Designs
7) Six crochet booklets in varying condition:
                       Fuchs' Dress & Suit Fashions in Wool Vol. 108
Fuch's Fun Fashions in Wool Vol. 121
J&P Coats & Clark's Priscilla Filet Crochet #317
Nat'l Crochet Bureau Prize Winning Crochet Designs
J&P Coats & Clark's Prize Winners #257
Ely's Pointers for Crocheting & Knitting

By the way, I had intended to provide a free pattern, but life got in the way.  I am sorry.  Check out my website: http://threadwinder.info/ for more information about my designs and publications.  Nothing for sale at this time.

Volume 26, Number 2 of the Crochet Guild of America (CGOA) Chain Link newsleter, dated Summer 2016 contains my article on The National Crochet Contest 1937 - 1958. In that article I promised more pictures to be published here.

First are five pictures from the crochet booklet: Prize Winning Crochet Designs National Crochet Contest - 1937, from the very first annual contest.  (For those of you following the National Crochet Month {NatCroMo} blog tour and who plan to participate in my giveaway on 31 March, I will be offering a couple of these booklets.) You see here the cover with an inset of the "National Queen of Crochet," Mrs. Frank E. Hayward.  That is followed by a picture of Mrs. Hayward holding her winning blanket.

 







Next you see a page with details of the first contest & depicting the showroom with the contest entries, followed by a page listing all the winners and depicting Mrs. Hayward demonstrating crochet tips.

 

The back cover lists the details for the upcoming 1938 Second Annual National Crochet Contest.  And here is a press-release photograph of Mrs. Hayward receiving her winning citation.

Next are both sides of a postcard given to a state or county fair blue-ribbon-winner, authorizing the recipient to enter the National contest.  Apparently, the blue-ribbon-winner who got this card decided not to enter the National contest.

Here's a press release picture of John Miller, identified as a California lumberjack (what could be more manly?), the winner of the Men's Division of the 3rd National Crochet Contest, being congratulated by Mrs. Theodore Roosevelt, Jr., a contest patroness.  Despite having competed in a much smaller field of 15 male contestants, out of a total of over 2,300 entries, newspaper articles gave more attention to Mr. Miller and his lovely bedspread than they did to the National Champion, Mrs. E. N. Noble of Minneapolis.  However, I did find a comment that Mrs. Roosevelt declared Mrs Noble's banquet cloth to be "the most remarkable piece of crochet she had ever seen."  Unfortunately I have yet to find a photo of that banquet cloth.

Mrs. Adolph E. Burkhardt of Poland, OH, fared better.  Here is a press release photo of her with her entry (hard to see but looks like it might be Irish Crochet in the center).  She was the Grand Champion in the 1940 4th Annual National Crochet Contest of 350,000 contestants, then sponsored by the National Needlecraft Bureau.  Harry Troxell of Cleveland, OH, won the Men's Division.  His 23rd Psalm bedspread was prominently displayed in back of Mrs. Burkhardt and Mr. Troxell in a newspaper article I found.

In 1949, Mrs. Thomas L. Nightingale of Sacramento, CA, won the Crocheting Championship for the third time, previously having won the title in 1938 & 1942 with relatively little press recognition.  Mrs. Thomas won her rewards with size 150 thread filet crochet creations.  After this win, contest rules were changed so that prior year's winners were no longer eligible for future entries.   I wonder how many more contests the 71-year-old, Mrs. Nightingale would have won had the rules not been changed.

Industrial Foreman, George Link of Bunker Hill, IL, won the 1951 Men's Division of the National Crochet Contest.  The press reported simply that "The Grand Championship reward at the contest went to a woman."

In 1952 the title of the contest was changed to the Nationwide Crochet Contest.  Here is a poster advertising the 1953 contest.

Here's a press release photograph of Mail Carrier Anthony White of Portland, OR, winner of the Men's Division of the 1954 Nationwide Crochet Contest.  The trend of highlighting interesting Men's Division winners more than the Champions continued through the last contest in 1957.

Oooops!  The latest issue of Crochet! Magazine with its CGOA Chain Link newsletter (for members only) just arrived on my doorstep.  I didn't expect it to be distributed until after the first weekend of April.  And the article I wrote for the newsletter on the National Crochet Contests promises more pictures of the National Crochet Contest Here.

Here is one picture.  I will post more with explanations tomorrow.