Jane Gaugain

Jane Gaugain (née Alison; born, early 19th century) was a Scottish knitter and writer. She built up a successful business in Edinburgh, Scotland and published 16 volumes on knitting that helped make it a popular pastime for ladies and a source of income for lower classes of women. Her unusually written pattern books are important in the history of textiles in Scotland.

Gaugain was born in the early 1800s and was the daughter of a tailor. After marrying, she worked in her husband's shop at 63 George Street and helped turn it into a thriving haberdashery. Gaugain wrote and disseminated knitting patterns throughout the 1830s from her shop and published her first pattern book in 1840. It was called 'Lady's Assistant in Knitting, Netting and Crochet.' She had a particular way of writing her patterns with full instructions at the beginning detailing the meanings of abbreviations. The book was very popular. To see the 1842 edition of this book click here. The book reached a massive audience in the UK and America and was the best-selling knitting book of the period. It ran to 22 editions. Throughout the 1840s and 50s, she published a great many titles. In response to reader's feedback, she began to produce charted paper and instructions that allowed knitters to create their own designs and began accepting mail orders at the Edinburgh shop. She died in 1860. She is buried in Edinburgh’s Dean Cemetery near the waters of Leith.

Selected works

The Accompaniment to Second Volume of Mrs Gaugain's Work on Knitting, Netting and Crochet, Illustrating the Open Patterns and Stitches; To Which are Added Several Elegant and New Receipts (third thousand; Edinburgh: I. J. Gaugain; London: Ackermann and Co., 1845)
The Knitters' Friend: Being a Selection of Receipts for the Most Useful and Saleable Articles in Knitting, Netting and Crochet work (second thousand; Edinburgh: J. Gaugain; London: Ackermann and Co., 1846)
The Lady's Assistant for Executing Useful and Fancy Designs in Knitting, Netting, and Crochet Work (Edinburgh: I. J. Gaugain, 1840) (PDF in the UK)
The Lady's Assistant for Executing Useful and Fancy Designs in Knitting, Netting, and Crochet Work (fifth edition; Edinburgh: I. J. Gaugain; London: Ackermann and Co., 1842)
The Lady's Assistant for Executing Useful and Fancy Designs in Knitting, Netting, and Crochet Work (eighth thousand; Edinburgh: I. J. Gaugain; London: Ackermann and Co., 1845)
The Lady's Assistant in Knitting, Netting, and Crochet Work (second volume; Edinburgh; I. J. Gaugain; London: Ackermann and Co., 1842)
Mrs. Gaugain's Knit Polka Book (Edinburgh: I. J. Gaugain; London: Ackermann and Co., 1847)
Mrs. Gaugain's Miniature Knitting, Netting, and Crochet Book (seventh thousand; some pages out of order; Edinburgh: I. J. Gaugain; London: Ackermann and Co., ca. 1843)

References

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