The young chemist at work

Now, I was never very good at Chemistry at school (miraculously scraped an E in my O Level) but I can confidently say that that is an enormous test tube full of copper sulphate. When we used copper sulphate in our Chemistry lessons, it was only ever dispensed in tiny, tiny quantities. Maybe that's because I went to a comprehensive school. This lad must be reaping the benefits of a private education: enough copper sulphate to bathe in.

I don't like the way he's looking so smug about it. Nice 4-ply hand-knitted v-neck jumper, though. I can't imagine hand-knitting school uniform these days.

Kids in the pub

I initially thought that these two schoolkids were standing behind the bar in a pub, showing off their 4 ply acrylic round-necked school pullovers. But no, at second glance they appear to be in the middle of some sort of chemistry lesson.

I suppose the irony is that they are actually trying to alchemically create the secret recipe for WKD Blue Alcopops, which they are then going to bottle and flog behind the bike sheds at break time. It's all terribly Grange Hill.

Knitted school uniform

Knitted school uniform - both tops and pinafore skirts. Doesn't really bear thinking about in this hot weather, really.

Were kids really sent to school in skirts this short in the 1960s? I think you'd be sent straight home if you tried this today.

The pattern is stamped by Bellmans Wools, 21 Station Road, Portslade - which is now a Help The Aged charity shop. I wish that I could say that I'd bought this pattern there, in a cosmic moment of vintage knitting pattern kismet. But I didn't. Sorry.