Seeking Info about "Magic Crochet" magazine

[silverbelle29]

Can someone tell me when the last "Magic Crochet" magazine was published please? What was it's issue number?

 

Also, was it merged into another magazine or just left to die?

I wonder too if any of their beautiful patterns were ever republished in other magazines.

 

Thank you so much!

 

Sandy

[MaryPat]

I have every Magic Crochet magazine published from # 1 through #155 (April 2005).

If I recall Issues #1-22 don't have years. Issue #23 is definitely February 1983.

 

After they ceased publication, there were a number of issues of a UK crochet magazine that had two titles. I'm not at home, so I can't look, but I own something called Magic Crochet #156 and #157 that is a British crochet magazine. I think it's called "Crochet Monthly" but am not positive.

[Red67]

Can someone tell me when the last "Magic Crochet" magazine was published please? What was it's issue number?

 

Also, was it merged into another magazine or just left to die?

I wonder too if any of their beautiful patterns were ever republished in other magazines.

 

Thank you so much!

 

Sandy

 

It was merged into Crochet Monthly published in England..not sure if it still exists...

 

There are past issues of Magic crochet on sale on Ebay...i have bought quite a few at garage sales and antique stores......Here is ebay linky

Best wishes on your search:hook

 

http://shop.ebay.com/?_from=R40&_trksid=p5197.m570.l1313&_nkw=magic+crochet+magazine&_sacat=See-All-Categories

[silverbelle29]

MaryPat...Thank you so much for the info and quick reply. This was such a fascinating magazine and it's a shame it is no longer published. And like you... I want them all too.

 

Oh...and I did find an issue #314 of Crochet Monthly on ebay with Magic Crochet's logo on it. Under it,it states that this was issue #159 for USA subscribers.

 

Red67... Thank you so much for letting me know about the merger and for the ebay link. I now have several of these in my "Watch" list.

I wonder how many issues of Crochet Monthly included USA subscribers and if it IS still in existance? I am determined to find out now.

 

Thank you again, ladies for your help! Sandy

[Jsilvers]

Crochet Monthly and the Decorative\Magic Crochet magazines published the same patterns, just not in the same order.

[silverbelle29]

Crochet Monthly and the Decorative\Magic Crochet magazines published the same patterns, just not in the same order.

 

Oh thank you! I do have just a few issues of this magazine but I didn't know that they did that.

[MaryPat]

Surprisingly, I didn't make very many doilies; they had great sweater patterns.

[Krakovianka]

IIRC, there was a French editor for those magazines. I think the publishers were based in Europe, or at least, that they sold their rights/patterns to a European publisher, because I have run across patterns in my Polish editions of Diana/Sabrina magazines that are exactly the same as some that were published in Decorative Crochet/Magic Crochet. They are the same photographs, even.

 

I do realize that this doesn't help US customers much, because those magazines don't even published in English in the UK, but they are published in a number of European countries, and they apparently still draw from the same pattern collection that was used by Magic Crochet.

[HomekeepingGran]

IIRC, there was a French editor for those magazines. I think the publishers were based in Europe, or at least, that they sold their rights/patterns to a European publisher, because I have run across patterns in my Polish editions of Diana/Sabrina magazines that are exactly the same as some that were published in Decorative Crochet/Magic Crochet. They are the same photographs, even.

 

I do realize that this doesn't help US customers much, because those magazines don't even published in English in the UK, but they are published in a number of European countries, and they apparently still draw from the same pattern collection that was used by Magic Crochet.

They were French. You do remember right, Karen. I bought a year's worth of early M.C. a while back and the editorial information shows it published by the French and also put out for English-speaking readers. From the August 1988 edition:

 

MAGIC CROCHET (ISSN 0246-5957)

published bi-monthly

by Les Editions de Saxe S.A.

69364 Lyon Cedex 7 France

 

They had a U.S. subscription department out of Patterson, New York.

 

You know, Magic Crochet came out before I was interested in thread crochet. I remember picking them up at the newsstand and looking them over, but putting them right back on the shelf. I was not interested in thread then and the charts looked so strange. How I wish now that I had bought every one I ran across!

 

(Off Topic: I have borrowed a couple of old Ondori's from a friend. At some point Susan Bates became some kind of a U.S. distributor for them. — The things you learn by reading dull information! )

[silverbelle29]

IIRC, there was a French editor for those magazines. I think the publishers were based in Europe, or at least, that they sold their rights/patterns to a European publisher, because I have run across patterns in my Polish editions of Diana/Sabrina magazines that are exactly the same as some that were published in Decorative Crochet/Magic Crochet. They are the same photographs, even.

 

I do realize that this doesn't help US customers much, because those magazines don't even published in English in the UK, but they are published in a number of European countries, and they apparently still draw from the same pattern collection that was used by Magic Crochet.

 

Thank you for that information! Their patterns are just too beautiful not to be republished.

[Jsilvers]

I bought the first issue of Magic Crochet and decided I couldn't be bothered with graphs! Several years later I bought one of the Ondori pattern books and made an elaborate doily from one of the graphs. And I was hooked. No more written patterns.

 

So I bought the current MC magazine and ordered all the back issues Saxe had available. Decorative Crochet began and I bought that too. To continue the adventure, eBay came along and I was able to fill my collection, so I have a complete set of both magazines At least I think so. The numbering of the first few MC's was somewhat erratic and they didn't always have date information.

[mattenylou]

I had a wonderful collection of all the early Magic Crochet mags, more than ten years worth, all kept in order in a giant plastic tub. Funny thing, I started thread crochet when I was a newly divorced single Mom and couldn't afford to buy nice yarn... a big ball of thread would keep me quite busy for many lonely evenings.

 

My big splurge was to buy these Magic Crochet magazines, they were my "entertainment" so I easily justified their cost in my tiny budget, lol, along with a few balls of thread.

 

A few years ago at Christmas, while quickly getting rid of all the extra clutter, I put that tub in the basement..... Wouldn't you know it, the darn water heater sprang a leak and flooded everything down there. I didn't realize that tub was cracked and the water seeped in and soaked my collection.

 

I lost carpet, furniture, clothing and a bunch of other stuff, but what really upset me the most was losing this box of Magic Crochet magazines.

 

Don't tell anyone, but I saved them, now stored still in a trashbag, and all stuck together... totally unreadable. Darnit, I just can't bring myself to drag that bag out to the curb.

 

Luckily, I had a dozen or so still stashed around the house, but I'm still sick over losing them.

 

I've learned since, that putting a wet book in a frost free freezer will draw out the dampness and leave the book usable again. It takes a month or so but it works, not sure if it would have worked on my magazines.

[HomekeepingGran]

Oh, man! mattenylou, is there nothing you can do even now? I am heartsick just reading your story. Obviously I haven't seen your ruined mags, but...

 

[threadlover]

I also have a complete set of MC and DC thanks to ebay. I just love looking thru them and looking at all the different patterns. I have a couple of the Japanse books from the 80 also. There is a lifetime of patterns in these books and magazines.

 

Marcia

[Jsilvers]

It's comforting to know that you will outlive your pattern stash.

 

I have made copies of the MC\DC patterns I intend to make and collected them in binders so I can find them quickly when I need a fix and won't sully the actual magazines. Also, by now, I have made some more than once. I restrict myself by not repeating a pattern within 12 months.

 

Joan

[threadlover]

I also have made 2 binders of patterns I printed off to go with me when we travel. I never know what I'm going to be in the mood to do. It's funny, I am also drawn to the same ones over and over. I need to go thru the magazines again soon and find more to take with me. That is a project in itself.

 

Marcia

[Krakovianka]

Now you've got me wanting to browse through my pattern stash (it's huge)...I want some inspiration for spring and summer projects. I'm ALMOST done with the afghan I'm making for my daughter's birthday next month--the last of my 4 children who "needed" an afghan--and now that everything is all fair, I'm looking forward to getting back to my thread.

 

I'm teaching a young Polish woman how to crochet right now--she definitely has a knack for it and wants to work with thread, too.

[sunnywolfgar]

I also love Magic-Decorative-and all the others charted magazines. I don't have all the MC and DC magazines yet, but working on it slowly. Be nice if good ole USA started making Charted crochet--filet books. I be ordering the yearly magazines in a heart beat. Be nice if the other magazines would start getting them here so we can buy them or do the yearly magazine 1 a month thing. I am soooooo ready !

 

I used to get 1 in the mail. If I was home that day I put aside everything except the kids, but they are all grown now and out of the house but anyways when they went down for their naps and whatever TV shows movies .... I get my cup of tea and a snack and browse and browse :yes .

 

I truly miss getting them in the mail. I still have a few here and there missing,,I will get the collection finished all in time.

[babs272]

I have not seen these magazines in the stores for years.

I find the odd issues at the Thrift Stores or eve at the flea markets.