Tuesday, August 5, 2008

APPLE OR CHERRY PIE?

These knitters are a very close relative to
the spool knitter - same principle, only
for larger sized projects.
A main feature of these sets are
the patterns to make your own
dolls' clothes - Barbie, Cindy, Pepper,
Skipper, Skooter, Tressy, Tammy, all
dolls sizes up to 11 1/2 inches.



Above - Apple Pie Knitter by Lisbeth Whiting
Co., Inc., Litho in U.S.A. is dated 1966.


Above - Cherry Pie Knitter - Milton Bradley -
Crafts by Whiting (is this connected to the
previous Apple Pie Knitter?)


Above and Below - Wendy's Knitter by Peter Pan
Playthings - Made in England (no date)



Above and Below - French Knitting Petite by Hansa
Toy Co. Melbourne - Sydney (no date)


Below - Busy Betsy Carry Crafts
Bumblebee Knitter by Remco Industries Inc.
Harrison N.J. - Made and Printed in the
U.S.A.
This also included the plastic spool
knitter and knitting needles.
The instructions found in this
container are the same as
the Apple Pie Knitter!


Below - this is a vintage advertisement for
a Bizzy Bee Knitter from 1967 by
Transogram.
While it looks like a sewing machine,
it is a knitting machine where by
turning a handle, it does the
work (loop lifting) for you
and produces a cord just like
a spool knitter!


There are now many toy knitting
machines for children - some
produce a cord, while others produce
the wider tube knitted fabric.



Added September 2010 -
My dear UK friend has some of
these "pie knitters" 
that are by Minimodels UK.











12 comments:

Kim said...

This is so strange. I just posted photos on flickr of my Bizzzy Bee Knitter and then went to your blog. And there was your post of the same knitter. As you can see in the photo it works but the movement was a little stiff.

crazyhaberdasher said...

We must be on the same wave length ~~~~~~~~~ !!!
It is a great novel knitter!

Christine said...

Where does one find these little looms? I had one as a kid, although not the kind in your post, but similar. The instructions were poorly written and I grew frustrated with it, like any kid would. I couldn't make the doll dresses on the package :-) It seems if I search for "knitter" I don't get relevant search results.

crazyhaberdasher said...

Hi Purple Pony Art! Usually you would find these on Ebay under Apple Pie Knitter or just Pie knitter - but you have to keep looking regularly. Also take a look at my side column - and click on "How to knit needle free" and you will find the instructions for knitting on these looms. There are also pattern sites in my list.
If you want the smaller type of loom - a spool knitter - they usually go under the heading of "knitting Nancy" or "french knitting". Good luck and please let me know how you get on!

Christine said...

Thanks! I lucked out and found a cherry pie knitter for sale in my own country (Canada). I can't wait for it to arrive!

I also had great luck on eBay and won a little flower loom. My mom had one with two rounds of pegs, but us kids broke them off. I can't wait until that comes too. I'm sure it will bring back a lot of memories for mom!

I find your blog so interesting btw. I have a "corker" from a Klutz kit as well as a little one by Lion Brand. I like Knifty Knitters a lot too...somehow these little looms intrigue me quite a bit.

crazyhaberdasher said...

That's fantastic! I hope it arrives quickly for you to be able to start working on some great projects. Please do let us know what you make - I see that you have joined the Spoolknitter group of Flickr - that's fantastic! We would love to see lots of pictures posted of your work and the looms!
There is also a group of collectors of these flower looms on Flickr - and lots of terrific photos to see! ...... HAVE FUN!

Christine said...

It came on Friday and was I was I surprised! The box is huge in comparison to the toy. All the pieces were there, including the pin, bobbins and a sewing needle. There were also some projects from the previous owner :-D

I'm making some swatches right now with different yarn. I'm so happy to have one of these again. I read the instructions and still felt a little confused by them. I think the main problem was that my old one didn't have a starting line.

It's too bad the pattern section wasn't imaginative enough to suggest making flat panels (doll blankets and capes?).

I think this little loom would be a great thumb maker for mitts on my smallest Knifty Knitter. I'll try to get some pictures of everything soon!

Now I'll have to get a Barbie too! Mine are long gone.

crazyhaberdasher said...

Wow Purple Pony Art! .... you are having so much fun. That is great! Looking forward to seeing pictures soon!

skippercollector said...

Until I discovered this page, I didn't realize that these spool knitters had been sold for many years and by different companies. I am including the pictures of the front and back of a box I recently acquired at a garage sale. The box is dated 1971 and it shows mod Barbie dolls and friends, plus a Remco Dawn doll. My sister had this version as a child.
Purple Pony, you mentioned a round loom with pegs. That's what I got for Christmas in 1971, but I don't have it anymore. It was called the Snowflake Loom by Lizbeth Whiting, although they made three-layer daisies. You could sew them together to make an afghan.
You also mentioned having trouble understanding the directions. About the same time as I got the Snowflake Loom, I also received a set of orange plastic knitting needles. These were the same needles that came with the spool knitter, and THOSE instructions were horrible! I figured out how to cast on stitches, but the instructions did not match up with the drawings. My next door neighbor--an older German lady--showed me how to knit, and what she showed me bore no relationship to the instructions (I learned just recently--35 years later--that she showed me the European method of knitting, and the Whiting instructions were probably the American method).
This is the front of the box:
http://www1.snapfish.com/slideshow/AlbumID=185768962/PictureID=27982692015/a=7908976_7908976
This is the back of the box:
http://www1.snapfish.com/slideshow/AlbumID=185768962/PictureID=27982694015//a=7908976_7908976
If the links don't work, you can try copying and pasting.

eva said...

Hello ! I am searching for a BIZZZY BEE KNITTER. is there any way, any webside or shop where i can buy one? - i had no luck on ebay...

Thanks a lot, greetings for Berlin, Germany,

Eva

evaswob@gmx.de

crazyhaberdasher said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Unknown said...

so where can I buy one? there are a couple on ebay but they cost $25 to $50.