1884 Knitted Lace Sample Book

2.5 Knitted Ruching

2011-06-25T22:45:00.002-04:00

I associate "ruching" with a trim of gathered ruffles or pleats. Here the term seems to be used simply as an alternative for "edging."

The 4-row repeat produces a medium-wide garter stitch border with two rows of ladder eyelets running horizontally along the top and two staggered rows of large eyelets in the saw-tooth lower edge. Four stitches are adding in the first row and are maintained in the stitch count until they are bound off in the last row.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Up next: I have absolutely no idea. Making sense of this Victorian knitter's patterns is proving to be considerably more frustrating than those of the previous one. My apologies for the long delays in between posts.

2.4 Star Stitch for a Shawl

2011-05-06T22:32:00.000-04:00

I am downright baffled by the name of this pattern. Polka Dot Lace, yes. Checkerboard Lace, sure. Even Windowpane Plaid. But Star? I just don't see it.

Unsuitable nomenclature aside, this stockingnet lace design produces a triangular fabric suitable for shawls. (I can also see it used as a kerchief or as an insertion for a neckline, creating a spot of openwork over the upper breastbone.) The simple pattern is easy to memorize and might be a good first project for the lace novice. After casting on three stitches and working two rows to get started, the 4-row repeat begins. Every right side row starts with a yarn over that is not worked off with a corresponding decrease and every other RS row ends similarly, resulting in the growth and shaping of the piece. The "star stitch" decrease, symbolized on the chart by an asterisk, reduces every three stitches to two and does not produce a bias fabric like o, k2tog.

My doll-size sample was knit with fingering weight wool on 3.75mm needles. I worked 60 rows and the piece blocked to 11¾" wide, 6" long.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Bonus Pattern for Crocheters

On the page opposite "Star Stitch for a Shawl" is "Star Stitch. Croched [sic]." It is the lone crochet pattern in the notebook. I am not much of a crocheter and I have not proofed the pattern, so I present it here verbatim and without illustration. (If any crocheters out there try it out, we would love to see your results. You can share photos of your work on the flickr 1884 Knitted Lace Sample Book group page.)

A chain of 20 stitches. Without putting the thread over first put the needle into the 2nd chain, thread over, and draw through leaving the two loops on the needle. Do the same in the next 3 chains successively drawing the wool up longer. Having 5 loops on the needle put wool over and draw through all, make 1 chain to hold it.
* Put needle into stitch where 5 loops are, draw thread through, put needle into back part of last loop of the star before. Draw through, put needle into the next two chain, just the same, drawing them up longer and thread over, draw through all 5 loops, and make one chain.*
Repeat between stars.

Next time: Knitted Ruching

2.3 Knitted Skirt

2011-03-18T17:38:00.000-04:00

Like our Victorian knitter's mitten pattern, Knitted Skirt is not sufficiently coherent to derive step-by-step instructions for a complete project. The entry, however, has a number of interesting elements which make it worth sharing "as is."

Unlike most knitting patterns of the era, Knitted Skirt begins with notes on materials, calling for 2oz. Germantown wool in red for the lower border and 5-6oz. in grey or white for the body of the skirt. The writer recommends the fiber be prepared prior to knitting by pouring boiling water over it, wringing and hanging to dry. Presumably this is to felt the yarn somewhat and lessen the chance of the skirt stretching out with wear. Although no gauge is given, the needles should be "a little smaller than a pen holder." (Don't you just love it!)

The skirt is worked in two pieces, front and back, and then seamed at the sides. Both pieces begin at the lower edge with a simple lace border. The front is shaped near the top with a series of decreases; the back is knit as a plain rectangle.

154 stitches are cast on for the skirt front, 150 for the border pattern (15 repeats of the 10-stitch lace) and 2 stitches worked in what might be called reverse garter stitch (purl on both the right and wrong sides) along each selvedge to be taken up in the side seams. For my swatch I cast on 44 stitches. As the border developed, I had this nagging feeling I'd seen the pattern before, but where...?

Then it struck me-- the design bore a remarkable resemblance to 8. Wristlets. In fact, an examination of the stitch pattern reveals that it is actually a mirror image of the same motif. (The charts below show only the 10-stitch lace repeat without edge stitches.)

Although the two patterns use different decreases (P3tog for the skirt border, Sl1 K2tog psso for the wristlets), it is the placement of the decrease at the beginning or end of the sequence that determines the slant of the fabric. As illustrated below, even when the other decrease is substituted, the bias remains the same.

In charts for color or texture designs, stitches are arranged above the analogous stitches of the row below. Not so in the conventions of knitted lace charting and this can make it difficult to visualize the relationship between stitches in different rows. But when working the samples, the significance of the decrease placement becomes clear. When each right side row ends with the decrease (Knitted Skirt border), the o K1 o section is worked into the stitch formed by the the first yarn over of the previous right side row. However, when the decrease is first (Wristlets), o K1 o is shifted to the second yarn over. In other words, the former continually adds new stitches on the right and the latter adds them on the left, resulting in their respective slants.

Once the border is "as deep as you like," the main color yarn is picked up to work the body of the skirt. And this is where everything becomes muddled. I continued my swatch, but I have little-- really, no-- confidence that it resembles what was intended.

Here is the skirt body pattern verbatim [Note: "seam" was a common Victorian term for "purl"]:

Knit 8 plain, seam 8 so on making a plaid of 6 rows of

blocks, 8 rows make a square. Then seam 3 and knit 3.

My first problem with these instructions is the stitch count. Initially I interpreted this section to mean one would work a series of blocks, 8 stitches by 8 rows each, alternating knit and purl squares. After the first tier of squares, i.e., at row 9, one would switch to P3, K3. This is how I worked my swatch. But the 150 pattern stitches do not divide evenly into 16-stitch segments. If the pattern is reinterpreted to mean *K8, P8* to the last 6 sts, P3, K3, the stitch count comes out even. (K8, P8)6X, (P3, K3)9X also works. However, neither alone would produce a plaid, only thick and thin stripes. If there are to be squares 8 rows high, there must be some other pattern starting at row 9 in order to delineate the top of the squares, but what? If row 9 begins P8, K8, the outcome would be a checkerboard-- again, not a plaid. A horizontal stripe of stockingnet, garter stitch or reverse stockingnet in between each tier of squares might suggest a plaid, but the pattern says nothing about this. And what about that word "plaid" anyway? Is the skirt body a monochromatic texture or worked with both colors of yarn? After the last right side row of the border, did she purl back with the main color to avoid that white dotted line below the purled squares? So many questions, so few answers.

"After the plaids," the top of the front is shaped by working a series of decreases on right side rows "making gores." There is no mention of which decrease(s) to use, how many to work or how to space them across the front. For my swatch I chose 3 evenly spaced, balanced (vertical) double decreases (Sl2, K1, psso), resulting in a precipitous narrowing-- again, probably not what was intended.

The back of the skirt is to be knit the same as the front, omitting the shaping at the top.

Next time: Star Stitch for a Shawl, plus a surprise bonus pattern!

2.2 Lace for Either Thread or Yarn

2011-03-01T10:37:00.002-05:00

A simple saw-tooth lace with a row of faggoting along the upper edge is given a bold look by the line of large eyelets cascading down to each point. Double yarn overs increase the stitch count by two in the first three right side rows and another stitch in row seven before the added stitches are bound off in the final row of the 8-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next time: Knitted Skirt

2.1 Lace

2011-02-18T19:10:00.004-05:00

Astute readers will note that this is not in fact the mittens promised as the first pattern from our second knitting notebook. When I sat down to transcribe the "Directions for a Mitten," I discovered they were very sketchy, the kind of idiosyncratic notes one makes for oneself when the question of anyone else being able to follow them is not a concern. After limited headway in making sense of them, I have decided to move ahead with the other patterns and return to the mittens at some future date.

Our new first pattern is a medium-wide garter stitch edging titled simply "Lace." The upper panel is graced with diagonal rows of eyelets and bordered above and below by faggoting, while the lower edge features a curved leaf motif. Double yarn overs add two stitches to the original 20 every right-side row until a stitch count of 28 is reached, and the added stitches are bound off in the final row of the 10-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next: Lace for Either Thread or Yarn

An Invitation

2010-11-21T15:17:00.009-05:00

Several readers have mentioned incorporating the Victorian knitted lace patterns from this blog in their own projects-- selecting one of the sample book's edgings to border a shawl, for example. I think it might be fun to have a venue for sharing photos of these creations. With that in mind, I have set up an 1884 Knitted Lace Sample Book group on flickr.

All are invited to join and post photos. Since several patterns share names or were presented as "Untitled Edging," tag your photos with both the name of the pattern and the corresponding number from its blog post to facilitate visitors searching the group photo pool. Please limit contributions to photos of items that use the knitted lace designs from the sample book.

I can't wait to see your needlework!

* * * * * * *

A Regretful Acknowledgment

The holidays, general busyness and the quirky way our next anonymous knitter has made notes to herself will delay the launch of patterns from the second Victorian knitting notebook until the new year.

Son of The Project

2010-08-30T21:12:00.025-04:00

When I announced two years ago that I had set up this blog to share my 1884 knitted lace sample book project with knitters around the world, my brother-in-law had just one question: What are you going to do with the blog after the mission is complete? At the time I didn't have any idea. Abandon it in cyperspace as a finished work? Chronicle other knitting projects? Take it in a whole different direction? It wasn't long before the answer presented itself. One day while searching for something else among my textile arts books, I stumbled on the perfect thing. It had been right under my nose, and I had completely forgotten about its existence. But there it was on my shelf: another late Victorian knitter's pattern notebook!

The slim volume is bound in tawny brown leather and filled with gilt-edged, lined paper. The flyleaf and possibly a few pages are missing from the front, but by and large the pocket-size (3¾" X 5¾") notebook is in good condition, the pages showing very little signs of age.

There are no samples and no clippings. All of the patterns are copied out in the same hand, and a few include the source, usually a magazine. The dates of publication, where noted, range from 1878 to 1894.

The patterns are more varied than in the previous sample book. There is knitted lace, yes, but also mittens, baby socks, afghans, slippers, even a knitted skirt and an outfit for a boy doll!

A few pages here and there are filled with other notations. There are several grocery lists, but some are more intriguing. A list of money received and spent in early July 1884. Names and addresses, including a source for "indestructible heads for dolls." Also "3 yds - Mrs. Saunders" and similar notes. And then there's this:

Received from Miss B April 19th 3 skeins of yarn

1033 Bedford Avenue Brooklyn

Sent to Miss B one pair of socks and sample on April 23rd 1889

Might the owner of the notebook have made a living with her needlework?

Most tantalizing of all is a page with a floor plan drawing of "862 River St."

Troy NY is mentioned several times in the notebook, including at the head of the received/spent list mentioned above, so that seemed like a good place to start the search for the house. Through the Wonders of Modern Technology (specifically Google Earth), much to my surprise and delight I was able to find the actual building still standing!

It cannot be proved, but I like to think of this as the home of our second anonymous knitter. Here she may have written in this very notebook by gas- or candlelight, and here she may have practiced her art.

And so I propose to embark on a new journey. Going forward I will share in this space the patterns she collected. I will continue to work my own samples of the lace patterns, but I expect many of the larger works such as the afghans will appear without illustration. The adventure continues!

Next time: Directions for a Mitten

40. New Fancy Work

2010-08-21T20:56:00.006-04:00

At the conclusion of my last post, way back at the beginning of the year, I teased that the final pattern in the 1884 knitted lace sample book would be "worth the wait." Little did I know just how long that wait would prove to be. As it turned out, life came between me and my knitting and I am just now getting back on track. Thanks to all who have hung in there.

Our grand finale pattern was published in the newspaper under the title "New Fancy Work" and was submitted by M.M. Niles of East Gloucester, Massachusetts. It appears first among the patterns in the sample book, but I have saved it for last because it is in a class by itself. In the accompanying notes the contributor suggests using it to make a tidy (for more on tidies, see 37. Vine Tidy), but my first thought upon seeing the instructions was "counterpane square." Worked from corner to opposite corner, the design features a raised leaf motif against a garter stitch ground in the lower half of the square and rows of eyelets alternating with reverse stockingnet stripes above.

The edges of the lower triangle of each square are rimmed with eyelets to use in sewing four squares together to form a block with the leaves at the center.

And when multiple blocks are sewn together, the full pattern is revealed: the eyelet rows come together as nested diamonds. A minimum of four blocks (16 squares) are needed to properly show off the arrangement. Since January I have managed to knit only a single block, so in the interest of expediting this post, the image below is actually a digitally created collage.

The rate the stitch count increases varies greatly-- the count rapidly rises in the first 15 rows, remains steady as the leaf motif tapers, and then increases again one stitch per row before reaching 38 at the center of the square. By contrast, the upper half of the square narrows one stitch per row throughout. The disparities make for a rather oddly shaped piece, but it is easily blocked into a uniform square. The 74 rows may seem excessive for what amounts to a little swatch, but since many rows are knit with just a handful of stitches, it is not as daunting as that number may suggest.

Only rarely do the sample book newspaper clippings include recommendations for materials, but Ms. Niles has several suggestions for her pattern. First and foremost: "In doing fancy work always use the best materials." She advises using very fine steel double pointed needles, No. 16 in the sizing system of her day, the equivalent of 1.25mm (US 0000) today. For thread she recommends either Morse & Kaley's four-ply No. 10 knitting cotton ("I can recommend this cotton highly. It is manufactured at Milford, N.H.") or Barbaric Drab Linen Thread No. 30. She continues

Sixteen of these pieces, or four squares ... makes a very pretty tidy, when bordered with some pretty edge. Line the tidy with some bright color.

For a coverlet, the fingering weight cotton and 2.25mm needles I used for my sample would be ideal. The individual squares blocked to 3½" along each side.

If used for a project today, some refinement of the pattern may be in order. Although paired decreases are used to taper the leaf, only K2tog is used to shape the upper half of the square where a left-leaning decrease might be preferred along one side. (And while we're at it, I think I would set the decreases in from the edge, slipping the edge stitch, for a smoother selvedge and easier sewing of the blocks together.) The tip of the leaf would also benefit from a change. As written, the leaf narrows by one stitch per side every other row until it is down to three. From there only one stitch is worked off on each of the next two right side rows. The resulting leaf tip lacks definition. The obvious substitution would be a single double decrease.

This pattern is so large it would be unintelligible without a powerful magnifying glass if the chart, verbal instructions, notes and photos were laid out on a single page as I have done in the past. So I have divided it up in two parts. You can download the chart here and everything else here.

Next week: But wait! There's more!

39. Sea Shell Lace

2010-01-15T00:18:00.001-05:00

At the end of the last pattern I referred to this next post as "Loose Ends" because I anticipated presenting Sea Shell Lace as an incomplete pattern. I simply could not make heads nor tails of the final row. It begins with 11 stitches and needs to end up with 8 in order to be ready to start again at Row 1, and yet it appeared that far more than 3 stitches were bound off. The sample that had once accompanied the pattern provided no clues-- it was missing and all that was left was the line of glue where it had been attached.

When an internet search failed to turn up a corrected version of the pattern I debated whether to include it at all, but finally decided that someone reading this might recognize the design and share it with us. So I knit the repeat as far as I could, pinned out and photographed the little swatch, and prepared to write my post. In place of a chart I planned to use a scan of the original page of the sample book for illustration, and as I got the book ready to place on the scanner, my eyes fell on the last few words: pick over k6. Oops. I had been knitting from my transcription in which I omitted that all-important "k," making it seem that six stitches were passed over one to cup the fabric in the manner of 13. Shell Pattern. Small mistake, but what a difference. So it was back to knitting to finish the sample, and without further ado I offer for your consideration "Sea Shell Lace."

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next time: The Grand Finale (and it will be worth the wait!)

38. Untitled Edging

2010-01-01T15:24:00.003-05:00

This is another pattern our Victorian knitter copied down in her sample book without including its name. Two rows of ladder eyelets run along the top. Slightly overlapping raised leaves, worked in stockingnet and offset by a narrow band of reverse stockingnet above and below the motifs, are laid end to end. The contour of the leaves tends to pull the eyelet rows into a soft curve, which can be enhanced or discouraged in the blocking process. Again with this pattern we see the tendency of 19th Century designers to use K2tog on both sides of a tapering motif, where a modern lace knitter would employ balanced decreases. The lower garter stitch portion of the design might make a good Rorschach test-- I see sideways Christmas trees and pawprints...

After a big jump in the first row due to the double yarn overs, the stitch count rises steadily as the leaf widens, from 22 to 33 by row 8. Some of the added stitches are bound off in rows 9 and 11, before more double yarn overs increase the count again. From row 16 on, the tapering of the leaf tip decreases the stitch count evenly, and the last few added stitches are cast off in the final row of the 20-row repeat, creating the smaller notch along the lower edge.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next week: Loose Ends

37. Vine Tidy

2009-11-29T20:15:00.007-05:00

"Vine Tidy" is in a class by itself among the patterns of the sample book. Not only is it one of a mere handful of stockingnet designs, but it is the sole example of an all-over lace pattern. Rather than an edging or insertion intended as a component in a larger work, it produces a fabric that can be adapted for a wide variety of knitting projects where lace is desired. The ropy vine motifs alternate with trios of zigzagging lines to form a trellis effect. The pattern has a 12-row repeat and is worked on a multiple of 19 stitches for circular knitting, 19 + 12 for flat fabric.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Variations of the pattern can be found in many modern day texts. Knitting Counterpanes: Traditional Coverlet Patterns for Contemporary Knitters by Mary Walker Phillips, for example, includes "Braided Leaf Insert." While designed as a panel, the pattern is essentially the same as Vine Tidy (more about that "tidy" in a moment), the only difference being that the two vines at the center of the insertion, while flanked by trellises on the right and left, are separated from one another by a single eyelet.

Note the scalloped cast-on edge. Worked without a border, the Vine Tidy pattern also has this feature.

I have charted the pattern as it would appear in a knitting stitch dictionary, but the instructions in the sample book were written to create a specific household article, the tidy. In some Victorian sources, the tidy is a receptacle of some kind-- a box to set in the bathroom and hold toiletries, a bag to hang from a doorknob and organize mail. Here, however, the tidy is a square or rectangular doily (antimacassar, dresser scarf, placemat, etc.) knit back and forth rather than from the center.

Worked across 89 stitches and featuring three repeats of the vine pattern, the tidy includes a stockingnet border, a curious selection given the tendency for the ends to curl up and the selvedges to curl under, as evidenced in the photo. A border of garter or seed stitch would have been a better choice. My sample was knit in fingering weight cotton on 2.25mm needles. With 16 pattern repeats, the finished piece blocked to 11¼" X 17½".

In the sample book Vine Tidy was hand-written by our anonymous knitter with no attribution, but I couldn't help but notice that it is identical in every respect (same width, same border, same three vines, everything) to a pattern found in my favorite book in my knitted lace library, Fancy Work Recreations: A Complete Guide to Knitting, Crochet, and Home Adornment published in 1884 (there's that date again!) by Buckeye Publishing Co., Minneapolis, and written by Eva Marie Niles, shown below in the frontispiece.

Ms. Niles must have been a lace knitter first and foremost. Although the text covers a wide variety of needlework including crochet, patchwork, embroidery, drawn thread, macramé, darned lace and netting, not to mention crafts such as skeletonizing leaves, splatter pictures, leather work, brass repoussé and others, fully a third of the 433-page work is devoted to knitted designs, mostly lace. An explanatory note at the back of the book cites the Housekeeper, Peterson's Magazine and the New York Tribune as sources for some of the instructions, but adds that "a greater part of the knitting and crochet is original with the author."

In this period the technology of reproducing photographs in books and newspapers was advancing, although online sources disagree on the exact date the first of such illustrations appeared. Photographic images in publications may have made their debut a few years before or shortly after Fancy Work Recreations, but whatever the fact of the matter, the process surely must have remained prohibitively expensive for some years, and drawings and etchings continued to be the most common illustrations in needlework books and magazines. The image accompanying Ms. Niles' "Vine Tidy" pattern shows a detail of the design. The swatch is presented with the cast-on edge at the top, in contrast to current practice where stitch pattern photos reflect the conventions of charting, with row 1 at the bottom.

Although the drawings are usually notable for their accurate rendering of the smallest detail, note the inexplicable eyelet in each leaf lobe-- there is no yarn over in the pattern at that point.

Up next: Untitled Edging

36. Wheat-Ear Lace

2009-10-16T00:02:00.004-04:00

"Wheat-Ear Lace" is a relatively narrow garter stitch edging, blocking to 7/8" when knit in fingering weight yarn on 2.25mm needles. It features pairs of eyelets tipped diagonally to create the motif. The lower edge is scalloped and rimmed with eyelets formed by beginning each wrong side row with a yarn over. The stitch count rises from five to eight over the first five rows, and the added stitches are worked off with the diabolical P5tog in the final row of the 8-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next time: Vine Tidy

35. Normandy Lace

2009-10-09T00:04:00.008-04:00

"Normandy Lace" is from a newspaper clipping accompanied by this note:

Sisters of the Home: Here are directions for knitting Normandy lace. I know you will like it. Be sure to knit it loosely. It comes in points and wheels. The points are solid, but the wheels are open. - Julie Beers.

The garter stitch edging is a "true" knitted lace with every row a pattern row. The stitch count rises steadily in the first half of the pattern, but the added stitches are worked off in a less orderly fashion in the second half of the 12-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next time: Wheat-Ear Lace

34. French Lace

2009-10-02T00:02:00.006-04:00

"French Lace" is a garter stitch edging featuring a spot design of eyelet clusters formed by short segments of faggoting. A single large eyelet adorns each "sawtooth" of the lower edge. The stitch count jumps by four in the second row and thereafter remains constant until the added stitches are bound off in the last row of the 8-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next week: Normandy Lace

33. Second Pattern

2009-09-26T12:59:00.004-04:00

Simple and sweet, "Second Pattern" (from a newspaper clipping, the name implies there having been another design published at the same time) is a narrow saw-tooth trim with diagonal rows of eyelets. The stitch count rises steadily from four to seven before the added stitches are bound off in the final row of the 6-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next week: French Lace

32. Knitted Lace Insertion

2009-09-11T00:11:00.005-04:00

D.P.A. of Cassopolis MI submitted "Knitted Lace Insertion" to the newspaper to match a previously published edging. A trio of eyelets zigzags across the panel and back again. The yarn over/decrease pairs shift one stitch over each right side row. Here the change in direction is achieved solely by the position of the yarn over relative to its corresponding decrease, i.e., before or after the decrease, while a modern designer would most likely employ a different decrease as well. The garter stitch panel of 15 stitches has a 26-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next up: Second Pattern

31. Aunt Mary's Lace

2009-09-04T00:01:00.002-04:00

"Aunt Mary's Lace" features a plain garter stitch upper edge, a lozenge-shaped motif and eyelets outlining the scalloped lower edge. The stitch count varies a great deal from row to row due to the placement of the yarn overs in relation to their corresponding decreases.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

This is another pattern from a newspaper clipping, the design sent in by subscriber Mrs. J. L. I. She wrote:

My sister and I have knitted many pretty designs given and would now like to make some return to the fair knitters. I send herewith a specimen and directions for edge unlike anything I have yet seen. It is my sister's design and we call it 'Aunt Mary's Lace.'

Next up: Knitted Lace Insertion

30. Knife Pleated Edging

2009-08-28T01:33:00.004-04:00

After an August hiatus (while I settled into a new job and tended to other matters), our parade of Victorian designs returns with the only non-lace pattern in the sample book. "Knife Pleated Edging" features a knit-and-purl texture and uses short rows to create the pleats.

Like 5. Knitted Trimming the sample had a tendency to curve as it was knit. Since the pleats had more rows than the upper edge, the lower area wanted to fan out before blocking.

However, unlike the earlier pattern, where blocking straight would have obscured the lace pattern, bringing the upper edge of this design in line enhanced the pleated effect. I blocked the same sample two ways. First, without stretching the fabric in either direction, I pinned the upper edge in a straight line and pinned the pleats in place directly below. This maximized the depth of the folds.

Then I reblocked the edging, gently stretching the width and height. This version highlighted the knit/purl surface design.

While most modern short row instructions call for "wrap and turn"--- i.e., at the end of the short row: 1) bring yarn forward, 2) slip the next stitch, 3) yarn back, 4) return slipped stitch to left needle before turning the work--- to prevent a gap in the knitting, the sample book makes no mention of the technique. I knit my swatch of the pattern as written, simply turning the work with three stitches unworked and proceeding to the next row. The resulting holes are fairly small and are noticeable only when the sample was blocked stretched out. In this case, they can serve as a design feature, offsetting the lower pleats from the narrow band along the upper edge.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next week: Aunt Mary's Lace

29. Smyrna Lace

2009-07-31T14:13:00.006-04:00

"Smyrna Lace" is a classic: diamonds framed by two rows of eyelets. One stitch is added every other row in the first half of the pattern, and then the added stitches are worked off in the same way in the second half, forming a gently scalloped lower edge. Unlike most of the patterns we have seen, only one stitch is worked into each double yarn over on the subsequent row.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Glancing at the chart one might expect all-pattern knitted lace (aka knitted lace) as discussed in the 12. Tunician Lace post, because both right-side and wrong-side rows employ yarn overs to form the design. However, Smyrna Lace falls into the alternating-pattern knitted lace category (aka lace knitting). A closer examination of the chart reveals that the eyelets above the diamond motifs are worked on wrong-side rows and the eyelets below the diamonds are worked on the right side. In the first half of a given row the yarn overs (lower eyelets or upper eyelets) of the previous row are knitted across plain, and in the second half of the row new yarn overs create the other part of the pattern. Thus instead of separate pattern rows and plain-knit rows, each row serves both functions.

Despite having been knit with the same yarn and needles as all the other samples, this one strikes me as looser, stretchier, perhaps due to the double yarn overs being worked as single stitches.

Next Week: Knife Pleated Edging

28. Lemon Seed Lace

2009-07-24T06:25:00.002-04:00

"Lemon Seed Lace" features diamonds flanked by faggoting and ladder eyelets in the upper half and the eponymous motifs lined up diagonally along the lower scalloped edge. The stitch count jumps from 23 to 28 in the first row. Two of the added stitches are worked off halfway through the pattern, before the other three are bound off in the final row of the 12-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next Week: Smyrna Lace

27. Rose Leaf Lace

2009-07-17T00:11:00.003-04:00

Pairs of leaves running horizontally, faggoting, large eyelets, cascading eyelets and a gently scalloped lower edge combine to make "Rose Leaf Lace" one of the most complex compositions in the sample book. This is relatively large edging, with a stitch count of 34 to 39 and measuring 3¾" wide after blocking when knit in fingering weight yarn on 2.25mm needles.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Rose Leaf Lace would work well with any of the twin leaf patterns such as Barbara Walker's Double Rose Leaf insertion.

Next time: Lemon Seed Lace

26. Narrow Edge

2009-07-10T00:17:00.002-04:00

"Narrow Edge" is a fraternal twin of 17. Lace Edging, the only significant difference in appearance being the substitution of ladder eyelets along the upper edge in place of the earlier pattern's herringbone faggoting. The stitch count rises from seven to nine before the extra stitches are bound off in the final row of the 6-row repeat. Although the sample's width is on the low side of average, I wouldn't put it in the same class as the other designs of the same name we have seen previously (3. Narrow Edging and 15. Narrow Edging). Those samples measured 7/8" knit in fingering weight cotton on 2.25mm needles, while this one is 1¼" wide.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next week: Rose Leaf Lace

25. Lace Pattern

2009-07-03T00:10:00.007-04:00

"Lace Pattern" is a relative of 13. Shell Pattern, in that the solid areas are gathered at the lower left by slipping multiple stitches over one. However, here the bind off does not result in a cupped effect. This may be due to the double yarn overs, giving the slipped stitches room to spread out. The first two rows of the chart are preparatory and are not worked on subsequent repeats of the pattern.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

While knitting the sample, I was appalled by the unsightly bumps created along both the upper and lower edges by beginning every row with p2tog. So I knit another, adding an additional edge stitch on each side and using the selvedge technique from 19. Knitted Lace (Wide).

Aaah. Much better.

Next time: Narrow Edge

24. Untitled Edging

2009-06-26T01:01:00.001-04:00

Here's another pattern without a name. The garter stitch edging combines fagotting along the top with large eyelets arranged within the saw-tooth lower edge. The stitch count increases with every eyelet row, from 11 to 19, and the added stitches are bound off in the last row of the 12-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

The right side and wrong side of this pattern are indistinguishable from one another, making it suitable for a wide variety of purposes.

Next time: Lace Pattern

23. Untitled Edging

2009-06-19T00:27:00.015-04:00

This is one of a few patterns which our Victorian knitter copied down without a heading. A nearly identical trim can be found in Classic Knitted Cotton Edgings by Furze Hewitt and Billie Daley. Unfortunately, the book's patterns are identified only by number, not by name (the similar design is #78), so the mystery remains. There can be no doubt, however, that whatever its original name, the word "leaf" must have figured prominently.

The pattern features triangles of large eyelets alternating with solid squares set on their points, each with a puffed leaf against a garter stitch ground. The design is topped off with a row of fagotting set apart from the rest of the arrangement by a narrow band of reverse stockingnet. While not reaching the epic dimensions of 19. Knitted Lace (Wide), this pattern falls outside the average in size, blocking at 4¼" wide when knit in fingering weight cotton on 2.25mm needles. In the first half of the pattern the stitch count steadily rises from 27 to 48. Some of the added stitches are worked off in the process of tapering the leaf motif, and the remainder are bound off in the last row of the 28-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

I find the use of p2tog in place of a left-leaning decrease (SSK, s1-k1-psso, etc.) when tapering the leaf a curious choice. It creates a series of bumps along the right side of the leaf. And the k3tog at the top of the leaf produces a tip that is less defined than would be had with a balanced double decrease (sl2-k1-p2sso). It seems as if the designer knew only one way to decrease-- knit or purl two or more stitches together-- or she considered other decreases unnecessary. Whatever the case, if used for a project, this pattern would definitely benefit from those substitutions in shaping the leaf.

Next week: Untitled Edging No. 2

22. Palm Leaf Insertion

2009-06-12T05:25:00.002-04:00

"Palm Leaf Insertion" has faggoting on each side and single large eyelets alternating with diagonal lines of eyelets running down the middle. The effect is suggestive of a tipped diamond with a center hole. The panel is 13 stitches wide and has a 14-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

This is another pattern sent into the newspaper by a reader. In this case the contributor designed it to correspond to a previously published edging:

"Etta" kindly sends these directions for making a handsome insertion matching the Palm Leaf Lace on Page 37 in Knitting Extra No. 62.

Next time: Untitled Edging

21. Oak Leaf

2009-06-05T00:19:00.007-04:00

"Oak Leaf" has a row of ladder eyelets along the upper edge and pairs of eyelets cascading down into the curved saw-tooth lower edge. The garter stitch edging begins with 10 stitches cast on, increases by 2 stitches every right side row, and the added stitches are bound off in the final row of the 12-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Addendum to 8. Wristlets: A reader has suggested wearing the wristlets with the scalloped edge at the hand, where it would catch the eye. I have added a new photograph to the post to illustrate this excellent idea. (Thanks, Jane!)

Next time: Palm Leaf Insertion

20. Parisian Lace

2009-05-29T00:06:00.011-04:00

The wagon wheel motif along the lower edge gives "Parisian Lace" a strikingly different look. The garter stitch design also features a stockingnet horizontal lozenge shape and a row of ladder eyelets along the upper edge. The stitch count rises from 17 to 21 by the end of the fourth row. One of the added stitches is worked off in row 7 and the remainder are bound off in the final row of the 10-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next time: Oak Leaf

19. Knitted Lace (Wide)

2009-05-22T00:29:00.016-04:00

"Knitted Lace (Wide)" is aptly named. It is over twice as wide as its nearest challenger among the edgings we have seen to date. I have knit all of the samples with the same fingering weight cotton on 2.25mm needles. Each of the other edgings has fallen into one of three groups: just under 1", 1¼"-1½" and 2"-2½". By comparison, Knitted Lace (Wide) comes in at a whopping 5¾"!

The design has two rows of faggoting alternating with two rows of single eyelets along the upper edge, and garter stitch triangles separated by multiple diagonal rows of eyelets running down into the saw-tooth lower edge. The stitch count steadily rises from 31 to 47 before the added stitches are bound off in the final row of the 34-row repeat. The bind-off is achieved by knitting two stitches together, replacing the stitch on the left needle and repeating the process until only the original 31 stitches remain.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

I absolutely love the selvage created in this pattern. I have always slipped the first stitch of every row, thinking that the best option for a neat selvage. But here you knit to the last stitch of each row and bring the yarn forward before slipping it. The result resembles a line of knit stitches running up the side of the piece, not unlike a bound-off edge.

So exquisitely even, definitely a technique after this perfectionist's heart! I can see that this method will loom large in my future for any project not knit in the round.

Like Making Knitted Edging and Another Pretty Pattern before, this design was submitted by S.G.H. of Monmouth IL for publication in the newspaper.

Next week: Parisian Lace

18. Double Diamond

2009-05-15T01:13:00.008-04:00

"Double Diamond" is a variation of a previous pattern, 6. Torchon Edge. In this version

there is only one knit stitch instead of two after the yarn over at the end of each right side row
the yarn overs are purled on the next row
and, as the name suggests, the top of the solid diamonds are framed with two rows of eyelets instead of one

The garter stitch edging begins with a stitch count of 9, increases one stitch every right side row to 12, and then steadily decreases to the original number in the course of the 12-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next time: Knitted Lace (Wide)

17. Lace Edging

2009-05-08T00:43:00.013-04:00

"Lace Edging" features faggoting along the upper edge and a row of widely spaced large eyelets against a garter stitch ground. The pattern gains 2 stitches in the first row and returns to the original number in the last of the 6-row repeat. However, as with 12. Tunician Lace, the contour of the lower edge is not affected by the stitch count change, because the first stitch of the row is slipped before the extra stitches are bound off inside the edge.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next week: Double Diamond

16. English Point

2009-05-01T21:00:00.009-04:00

"English Point" is a garter stitch edging with two rows of ladder eyelets on either side of a panel of eyelets arranged in diagonal lines. These lines are again echoed in the saw-tooth lower edge. The stitch count rises from 15 to 18 before returning to the original number in the last row of the 8-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

The design was published in a newspaper with the note "This pretty pattern is contributed by Mrs. W.L. Gallaudet."

Next week: Lace Edging

15. Narrow Edging

2009-04-24T00:04:00.002-04:00

"Narrow Edging" features eyelets along the upper edge, a row of very large eyelets below and a saw-tooth lower edge. The stitch count increases from 5 to 9 in the first row and the added stitches are bound off in the last row of the 4-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

This pattern is another from a newspaper clipping, contributed to the paper by a certain "Mrs. L. McW."

Next week: English Point

14. Another Insertion

2009-04-17T00:19:00.012-04:00

"Another Insertion" is a chevron motif stockingnet panel with ladder eyelet borders in garter stitch along the sides. The pattern is worked over 13 stitches with an 8-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next time: Narrow Edging

13. Shell Pattern

2009-04-10T00:27:00.002-04:00

"Shell Pattern" is my personal favorite thus far. Triangles of large eyelets separate the shell motifs, which are edged with dainty eyelets. The stitch count rises from 15 to 25 and returns to the original number in the final row of the 16-row repeat. The bind-off is different than we have seen to date (noted on the chart with an asterisk). After 11 stitches of R16 are worked, the first 10 are slipped over the 11th one at a time before continuing with the remainder of the row. The result is a very pleasing cupped effect, adding dimension and elegance to the design.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next week: Another Insertion

12. Tunician Lace

2009-04-03T00:44:00.024-04:00

"Tunician Lace" is a garter stitch edging featuring faggoting along the upper edge and a diamond motif. Although the stitch count varies from 15 to 20 and back down again, the lower edge does not form a scallop or saw-tooth design. Because the increased stitches are bound off inside of the edge, the bottom of the border remains a straight line below a row of somewhat triangular eyelets formed by the bound-off stitches.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Knitted lace can be classified in two groups: 1) designs of pattern rows alternating with plain knit or purl rows and 2) designs of all pattern rows. This pattern is the first we have seen that falls squarely in the latter category. (Although many of the previous patterns have had a bit of patterning on the wrong side rows, it has been confined to secondary features such as faggoting along the top, and not related to the main motif of the lace.) The result is less roundness to the eyelets and a more spidery effect-- the yarn overs appear as straight lines of single threads connecting the solid areas. In Creating Original Hand-knitted Lace, Margaret Stove writes that "it is generally accepted" that the term lace knitting refers to alternating-pattern-row designs, while knitted lace is reserved for all-pattern-row designs.

Well. Ah... hmm.

Although I agree with the need for terminology distinguishing between the two structures, I can't help but question the usefulness of this choice. "Lace knitting" vs. "knitted lace" strikes me as far too arbitrary (and, therefore, hard to remember which is which) to serve the purpose. Maybe something along the lines of all-pattern knitted lace and alternating-pattern knitted lace? A little cumbersome, perhaps, but at least they get the idea across. Help me out here. Any ideas for what we can call these things?

Next time: Shell Pattern

11. Another Pretty Pattern

2009-03-27T01:09:00.010-04:00

This design is from the same newspaper clipping as last week's pattern, thus the "another" of the title. However, it is not another pattern at all, but rather the same pattern worked on a smaller scale. The garter stitch edging has an 8-row repeat and a stitch count of 10 increasing to 13, returning to the original number in the final row.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Up next: Tunician Lace

10. Knitted Edging

2009-03-20T00:18:00.012-04:00

This week's pattern appeared in The Inter Ocean, a Chicago newspaper published from 1872 to 1907, under the title "Making Knitted Edging." A row of faggoting along the very top forms a tiny scallop of eyelets above a row of "ladder" holes. Large eyelets arranged in triangles are interspersed with solid garter stitch squares set on their points, forming a saw-tooth lower edge. The stitch count increases from 14 to 20 before the added stitches are bound off in the final row of the 12-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

This pattern is one of two contributed by "S.G.H." of Monmouth IL and published in the same issue of the newspaper. The editor shares some of the letter accompanying the submission, in which the writer addresses another contributor to the paper with whom she appears to have corresponded:

I hope you will try these patterns, as they are speedy to knit, and I think you will like them. F.M.S., your pattern is very pretty. Would be glad to hear from you again. I hope our kind editor will give the bees of our home a chance. It is strange how many blue-stockings and reformers are in our family.

"Bluestockings" can be characterized as early feminists, particularly in the area of education for women. The name comes from the Blue Stockings Society, a literary group formed in 18th Century Europe. I think "the bees of our home" might refer to women who are industriously occupied with homemaking pursuits-- such as knitting-- and if that interpretation is correct, S.G.H.'s remarks may be commentary on the debate still ongoing today on the role of women in society.

Next time: Another Pretty Pattern

9. Torchon Lace

2009-03-13T01:25:00.007-04:00

In which I am reminded yet again

why it is a bad idea to jump to conclusions

When I first started knitting the sample for this pattern, I assumed it was another version of the design we saw in 7. Seed Point-- a scalloped border with rows of eyelets echoing the contour of the lower edge. And as such, this pattern is a mess.

Fewer eyelet rows in the second half of the pattern than the first? Huh? Half of the pattern rows worked on the right side of the fabric and then switching to the wrong side? What the... ? I could only conclude that the pattern was half-baked, to put it charitably.

This mind-set persisted as I knit, and indeed throughout the blocking process. But the moment I removed the pins once the sample was dry, I saw it.

Something in my perception clicked, like the instant when you see the vase instead of the faces (or vice versa) in the classic optical illusion.

For an optical illusion it is. The name should have clued me in. As I mentioned in an earlier post, Torchon lace is characterized by geometric patterns. And the geometric shape in this design: the cube. This pattern is knitted lace's answer to the Tumbling Blocks quilt design. I have seen other cube motifs in knitting where areas of stockingnet and garter stitch define the different surfaces of the cube, but this pattern does it all with only the eyelets. And the aspects of the structure that had so troubled me-- the changes in the number of eyelet rows and the side of the fabric on which the pattern is worked-- are precisely what achieves the effect. Far from half-baked, the pattern's creative use of these elements is pure genius. The center of the design is the corner of the cube, closest to the observer. The eyelets on the right are more numerous and on the surface, making that side more dominant as if illuminated by a light source. The left side, with its fewer rows and deeply set eyelets, is receding. Cool, huh?

So I reblocked the swatch to accentuate the angular nature of the design.

"Torchon Lace" is a garter stitch edging with a stitch count steadily increasing from 13 to 20 and back down again in the course of a 30-row repeat.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Next week: Making Knitted Edging

8. Wristlets

2009-03-06T00:13:00.010-05:00

"Wristlets" are knit in the round and feature a simple spiral (bias) lace design with a scalloped lower edge. The original pattern has nine 10-stitch repeats and a single purled stitch per round.

You can download the chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Gauge is not specified in any of the patterns in the sample book, and until now it wasn't of concern in knitting my swatches. But this design is intended for wear, so I had to experiment some to get it right. The pattern called for "Zephyr" yarn, and given the number of stitches cast on (91), I assumed that meant laceweight. But then the March/April 2009 PieceWork magazine landed in my mailbox. The issue centers around knitting for historical reenactment and includes a list of Victorian yarn terms and their modern equivalents. According to the chart "Zephyr" was a fingering weight yarn. The article also points out that 19th Century knitters tended to use a tighter gauge for a given type of yarn than is now customary. Indeed, to knit a 91-stitch tube that would fit anything smaller than a bulging-muscle bodybuilder's arm, one would have to use much smaller needles than we would likely choose for fingering weight. I did not want such a firm fabric, so I made my sample with 2.75mm needles and cast on 61 stitches, working 6 pattern repeats per round instead of nine.

The photo below shows the lace pattern worked in rows.

Next week: Torchon Lace

Postscript: A reader has suggested wearing the wristlets with the scalloped edge at the hand where it would catch the eye. Here is a new photograph to illustrate this excellent idea. (Thanks, Jane!)

7. Seed Point

2009-02-13T00:20:00.041-05:00

"Seed Point" is the widest edging we have seen so far with a stitch count ranging from 16 to 22. Worked in garter stitch, it features three rows of spaced eyelets parallel to the upper edge and three rows of close eyelets mirroring the contour of the lower scalloped edge. There are many variations of this classic design.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Nineteenth Century knitting terminology can be puzzling to the modern knitter. The most common terms that differ from current usage are narrow and seam. Narrow is equivalent to K2tog and is abbreviated as n. Seam refers to purling, and may have taken its name from the practice of purling a stitch down the back of a sock leg to imitate a seam line. S is the common abbreviation and n-s (narrow by seaming) is P2tog. S was also used, as today, for slip, which could lead to some confusion-- in at least one instance in the book, it is clear from our anonymous knitter's notes that she mistook the seam s in a newspaper clipping for a slip s and was confounded by the error. Purl is also used, but seam is encountered more frequently in the sample book. Knit plain is so common that the shortened plain often substitutes for knit, so p1, k1 becomes seam 1, 1 plain. Yarn overs usually appear as over or o, but a few patterns use other terms such as t over 1 (thread over once) and make 1. I have previously mentioned that left-leaning decreases are rare in these patterns. The few times they appear the process is always spelled out without shorthand notation: slip & bind or slip 1, 1 plain, pull slipped stitch over, for example. A couple patterns employ the familiar phrase pass slipped stitch over, but psso doesn't seem to be in use in this era. Likewise, double and other multiple decreases are always described explicitly.

Next time: Wristlets

6. Torchon Edge

2009-02-06T01:04:00.017-05:00

"Torchon Edge" is a garter stitch border with eyelets framing solid diamonds nestled in a saw-tooth lower edge. The stitch count changes with every row of the 12-row repeat, steadily increasing from 8 to 11 and then back down again.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

This is the second pattern we have seen characterized in its title as "torchon." It is a term borrowed from the European bobbin lace tradition, indicating a lace worked in coarse thread with simple geometric designs.

Next week: Seed Point

5. Knitted Trimming

2009-01-30T01:56:00.022-05:00

"Knitted Trimming," a garter stitch curved edging, features faggoting along the upper edge, two rows of large eyelets below formed by working two stitches into double yarn overs, and a shallow saw-tooth lower edge. The stitch count increases from 11 to 13 in the first row and returns to the original number in the fourth.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

As I was knitting the sample I could see that the edging wanted to curve and would, therefore, be a good choice to border a round doily, tablecloth or shawl. I thought, however, that I would be able to block it straight for the photo. This proved not to be the case. When the sample was pinned as a conventional edging, there was no way to stretch the lower section sufficiently for the eyelets to open up. So I have concluded that this pattern is not merely suitable for round pieces, but in fact can be used only for such designs. If attached to a straight edge it might form a ruffle, but I think it would have to be blocked (curving) prior to being joined to the piece.

Next time: Torchon Edge

4. Torchon Insertion

2009-01-23T00:11:00.019-05:00

This week's pattern is "Torchon Insertion," a garter stitch panel of 17 stitches with a 10-row repeat. The number of eyelets on either side of the central stitch decreases with each row and then increases again to form a horizontally stretched diamond in the center. Each row of stitches is pulled into an arch which becomes less and less pronounced the further it is from the cast-on edge.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Tweaking the Pattern

The absence of balanced decreases is notable. Left-leaning decreases (SSK, sl1 k1 psso, K2tog tbl, et al.) are rare in 19th Century patterns, even in a symmetrical design like this one where they could be expected. A modern designer would likely use opposing decreases on each side as the center diamond grows and then reverse the order as the diamond tapers, like this

where \ is a left-leaning decrease. On the rare occasions where a left-leaning decrease is found in the patterns in this sample book, sl1 k1 psso is always the version used.

Next week: Knitted Trimming

3. Narrow Edging

2009-01-16T00:13:00.022-05:00

This week's pattern is "Narrow Edging," a garter stitch border with a close row of eyelets above and a spaced row of larger eyelets below formed by working two stitches into the double yarn overs. The stitch count increases by one in the first pattern row and returns to the original number in the fourth, creating a barely perceptible notch in the lower edge.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

Although many knitters today associate lace knitting with cobweb shawls of wool, the surge in the popularity of knitted lace in 1880s America was part of a larger trend in "whitework" for the home. Most of the designs we will see were primarily used to trim curtains, table linens, counterpanes and the like. One can easily imagine Narrow Edging, worked in fine cotton or linen thread, embellishing a bread cloth or a lady's dainty handkerchief.

Next week: Torchon Insertion

2. Fence Row Insertion

2009-01-09T00:57:00.018-05:00

The next pattern is "Fence Row Insertion," a garter stitch panel with 14 stitches across and a 12-row repeat featuring eyelets arranged in two diagonal lines. Each double yarn over is worked as a single stitch on the next row.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

I find I don't have much to say about this one, so I will leave it at that.

Next time: Narrow Edging

1. Knitted Edging

2008-12-31T09:27:00.035-05:00

Happy New Year to all!

Christmas knitting is done, holiday dishes washed and put away (well, almost), and I turn now to the sample book patterns.

Our first design is titled simply "Knitted Edging," a saw-tooth, garter stitch edge. The pattern is worked in a 10-row repeat, and the stitch count steadily increases from 12 to 16 before returning to the original number in the final row.

You can download the full-size chart, verbal instructions and notes here.

With this pattern I encountered my first anomaly of 19th Century knitting instructions. Row 1 of the pattern as written begins k2, yo2, p2tog. (This is the modern equivalent. I will cover Victorian knitting terms and notation in a future post.) When working my sample, I found I had one too many stitches for the second row. I kept going over the numbers-- how many stitches you end with on row 1, how many you need for row 2-- and the discrepancy always remained. Then it occurred to me: there wasn't a double yarn over at all, just a single followed by bringing the yarn forward again to purl. I looked at some of the other patterns I have transcribed, and found the same phenomenon. Although there never is any mention of yarn forward for k1, p1, add a yarn over between them and it invariably becomes "yarn over twice."

A note about my samples: I originally thought I would be using thread for the samples illustrating this project. I usually work knitted lace patterns in size 40 or 50 cotton cordonnet. It has a hard finish that gives a good definition, doesn't fuzz up with handling, and is sufficiently fine to produce "lacy" lace. However, the majority of patterns in the book are in garter stitch-- a good choice for edgings in particular, since it prevents curling, but one I find unattractive in fine thread. So although from time to time I may show samples in thread, most will be worked in fingering weight cotton.

Epilog

Oops. The photo originally illustrating this design showed the wrong side of the edging. Sheesh. With all these garter stitch patterns, I am really going to have to watch that. The download page has been updated to include both views.

Next up: Fence Row Insertion

The Project

2008-10-16T10:52:00.006-04:00

A number of years ago I purchased a 19th Century composition book at an antique store in Rantoul IL. The book measures 6" X 7½", and while the back cover is missing, the front cover with its marbled paper is still attached.

The first half of the pages are filled with schoolwork in a flowing Victorian hand-- dates of Revolutionary War battles, algebraic theorems, etc. A list of the admission of states to the Union ends with Colorado, dating this section to 1876.

A large section of newspaper clippings with recipes and household hints follows. And at the back... pure gold for the lace knitter! Twenty-five pages with clippings and handwritten instructions for knitted lace patterns, about 40 in all, primarily edgings and insertions. Most are accompanied by small samples worked in fine thread.

The clippings are glued only along the top, enabling me to lift them up to read the articles on the reverse side. I have been able to trace some of the news events to the year 1884, the height of the "Golden Age" of lace knitting in America.

I will never know the identity of the book's original owner. The handwriting in the earlier history and math notes is the same as in the later sections, suggesting that she was a schoolgirl in the mid-1870s, and a decade later a young bride collecting items useful in running her household. And although the book ended up in east-central Illinois, the place cannot be pinned down with any certainty. The few clues that exist, however, point to that region.

The book is in delicate condition with loose pages, yellowing and crumbling paper, fading ink. It has long been my intention to transcribe, chart and knit the patterns to create my own sample book, so the original may be forever stored away safely in a clamshell box and not be subjected to any more damage by handling.

That time has finally arrived. Throughout 2009 I will be working through the patterns and posting my charts and samples here. (I hope to be able to keep up the pace of posting a new pattern every one to two weeks.) Join me in January for an adventure in historical needlework!