Knitted baby shawl

This hand-knitted baby shawl or blanket is an excellent example of the type made during the 1920s - 1940s.

Baby shawls could be knitted, crocheted or woven.  Square shaped ones were usually folded into a triangle, and then wrapped around the baby for warmth.

Lace knitting, like that used to make this shawl, originated in Shetland in 1830. The patterns used then, were copied from a piece of European lace. By the 1920s when this shawl was made a large variety of patterns were available and the production of baby shawls as part of a handmade layette was a regular but highly valued item.