Monday 13 May 2013

Egg Cosy


This pattern comes from Weldon’s Practical Knitter, Number 114, Twenty-Eighth Series (1895). It is also published in Weldon’s Practical Needlework, Volume 10, Interweave Press, 2004.


The original pattern called for three colours of “single Berlin wool” and “four No. 16 or No. 17 steel knitting needles” (modern equivalent for both are 1.75mm/US 00.)

Although I have registered a few complaints about projects here, I mostly enjoy making things or I would probably would not be knitting, sewing, stitching, etc. In 2012, The Year of Completion, this egg cosy turned out to be one of the most delightful items I ever made in terms of pattern and materials. I did start out with Paternayan crewel wool (single strand) but had I continued, the cosy would have fit a small bird’s egg, not the common breakfast one. I then switched to Knit Picks’s Palette in Blush, Peony and Bison, still on the original size of needles.




The knitting is done from the top down, the last “rounds” making a solid rim for the cosy to stand upon.” The final touch is a “tuft of rose-coloured wool,” although the one on mine is rather more of a pom-pom than a little tuft of strands of wool.

The cosy measures 3”tall, or 4” counting the tuft, and almost 2 ¾” wide, just above the rim. It would make a nice companion to my other one from Weldon’s (http://historyknits.blogspot.com/2012/08/egg-cosy-fluted-pattern_13.html) For the moment, however, I think we will use these modern versions I made earlier this year.*





All quotations are from Weldon’s Practical Needlework, Volume 10, Interweave Press, 2004

4 comments:

Renee Anne said...

So now I'm left wondering what is the point of an egg cozy? I mean it's cute and all of that but I've found that most things served some sort of purpose (or just to show that you had enough money to have frilly things).

One More Stitch said...

Its purpose was to keep the egg as hot as possible on its journey from the kitchen to the table in a time when there might have been more distance between the two or in an environment that was not centrally heated. We used and still use them in our household to keep the eggs very hot right out of the boiling water rather than on their journey through the house since the distance from the pan to the table was and is never more than a matter of steps. Depending on how one likes one's eggs, the temperature and consistency of the egg has to be just right for dipping one's bread soldiers - yummy!

Mette said...

Your choice of yarn would have satisfied the author of my knitting book from 1850. Many of her patterne call for five to six shades of the same color. Cute.

=Tamar said...

I've never used an egg cozy, but it seems logical that it ought to cover not only the top of the egg but also the holder, as otherwise heat would be lost through the holder. Possibly there's a balance between keeping the top warm and letting it cool just a little. The design you made is cute enough; I think it could be adapted and enlarged to make a hat.