Finding a vintage knit in wearable condition is hard. Moths get to yarn, colors fade, and odors...well, they linger. Not to mention the tiny sizes they wore back then. Still, the draped silhouettes of the 30s, 40s and 50s are irresistible, so we kept pawing through odd racks at the back of vintage shops, hoping for that one lucky find.

We did finally get lucky, but what we found was a book, not a sweater. Vintage Knitwear for Modern Knitters by Lise-Lotte Lystrup is filed with exactly the kind of knit jackets and shrugs that Joan Holloway or Betty Draper would wear on Mad Men.

Lystrup's company, Knitted Purls, specializes in recreating vintage knitwear for costumes, so she has a lot of experience finding the perfect item, and then figuring out how to make it with the modern tools available now.

In the book she's adjusted patterns for size (it's not our imagination, we are bigger now, thanks calcium in the water!) and simplified the directions and yarns.

The beautifully done images in the book are fascinating. Lystrup pairs a photo of the modern creation with vintage images of the knitwear as worn by women of the time. It really gives you a sense of what the finished piece will look like.

We must admit, we do not knit, so now our search is for someone with the skills to create the "Light As Air Wrap" or the "Tube Top and Bolero." Certain talented folks, take note: if you receive this book as a gift from us, consider it a hint.