Wednesday, March 07, 2012

How Green Was My Bottom

I must be spring, because Knitty says so. The new issue is up.

I'm ready for spring. We have had a shockingly mild winter in Chicago, by Chicago standards. Mild, in our case, means there have been multiple winter days during one has been able to step outside without bursting into tears which immediately freeze to the side of your face.

Listen, you want to know how crummy winter is in Chicago? Winter in Chicago is so crummy that when I told a bunch of Icelanders what our January is like, they gaped at me.

"No," said one of them. "I think we are not calculating this correctly."

I repeated our average January low, and he whipped out an iPhone to confirm the converstion from Farenheit to Celsius. There was a collective gasp.

"This is inhuman. This is like Greenland. How do you stand this?"

Yup. A typical Chicago winter is shockingly cold to people from  Iceland.

And please don't start in with the "Oh, but you can wear all your wonderful sweaters and hats and mittens and...". One of the reasons I love being a knitter is that making my own winter gear gives me a false but comforting sense of being in control of the season, but I hate, hate, hate being buried under 16 layers of clothing. Do you know 16 layers of clothing do to a short, broad man? Do you? They make him look like a laundry pile with boots, that's what.

When it's time to retire, kids, I'm moving to the desert and I'm never going to wear anything with a #@$*! sleeve on it, ever again.

So, as I was saying, this is a blog post about the Spring 2012 issue of Knitty.

My contribution is an antique pattern, as usual. Voilà.

Bag

It's a bag in the shape of a pineapple. Of course it is.

Pineapple purses were a bit of a fad for part of the 19th century, probably because the fruit–being tropical and therefore exotic–fit perfectly into a more general mania for All Things Oriental, with the "Orient," in this case, encompassing pretty much everything from Japan to North Africa.

One of the most pleasing things about knitting a pineapple is that it's like knitting cables. The whole world thinks you've pulled off the most amazing feat of virtuoso yarn-based legerdemain, when actually all you've done is have a whacking great time with a very bewitching pattern.

Believe it or not, there's more going on in a plain vanilla sock than there is in this pineapple. The whole thing is based on one stitch motif, 16 stitches wide. Once I got going, I absolutely flew through the leaves and the fruit.

Then came the bottom, which is written out thus in the original:

P6, A all around.
Plain, all around.
Repeat these two rounds till the bag is almost closed, then draw it together with a needle.

Translated, this means:

Round 1: (Knit 6, sl1-k2tog-psso) around.
Round 2: Knit.
Repeat rounds 1 and 2 until you have a bag instead of a tube.

But there's a wee hitch. You're starting out with 320 stitches, and the first round is asking you work a repeat of 9 stitches evenly around it.

320 divided by 9 = 35.555555555555556. For those of you non-knitters reading this,* that's a big negatory.

So what to do?

In this case, we have to find a way to close the bag that a) works and b) will be as close as possible to what Jane Gaugain intended.

However, we cannot call, text, e-mail, Tweet or otherwise harass Jane Gaugain to find out what she intended, because even the worms that devoured the worms that devoured her mortal body have long since gone to dust.

We cannot reverse-engineer from the picture, because there is no picture.

We can have a look at a few photographs of extant examples of pineapple bags, though frustratingly few show the bottom and all are obviously knit from patterns that, while similar to hers, are by no means identical.

And we can guess.

We can consider the practical requirements of a bag, such as that a flattish bottom will be more practical than a long, conical bottom.

We can consider the aesthetics of the bag, which is heavily sculpted for three-quarters of its surface and would probably look best with a bottom that matches.

So, we begin by listing theoretical solutions.
  1. What if, instead of beginning with 320 stitches, we began with a near-ish number of stitches into which 9 would divide evenly?
  2. What if the use of "A" (for the double decrease) in Round 1 is a typo? Did Jane mean to put in a T, her symbol for for k2tog? The repeat would take up 8 stitches, and 8 stitches does fit evenly into 320! Ooh!
  3. What if the "6" in Round 1 is a typo? If we substitute a 5, the motif uses 8 stitches, and 8 stitches does fit evenly into 320! Ooh! Ooh!
With a little testing–by which I mean calculations that make my head hurt, followed by a great deal of knitting and then a great deal of ripping out–these three solutions proved unworkable. They all assume that there is some combination of plain stitches, followed by a decrease,  that will close up the bag in an attractive fashion.

As it turns out, no there isn't. Or if there is, somebody who is not trying to meet a Knitty deadline will have to find it. Some of the test-knits did begin to close up the bag, yes; but the closure looked like ass. (In this case, "ass" and "bottom" are not synonymous.) The math never worked, either. There always came a point at which the number of stitches in the repeat no longer fit evenly into the number of stitches remaining. Further adjustments could be made at that point, but it would have meant a set of decrease instructions so convoluted that they seemed way out of step with the succinct nature of the rest of the pattern.

Plus, did I mention it looked like ass?

The next option is drift further from Mrs G's two-round instructions. They look so elegant on the page–but if they don't work, they don't work. Hey, it happens. Then, as now, sometimes the instructions aren't just a little off, they're completely broken.

I decided to see what would happen if I had another shot at both Theory 2 and Theory 3–but instead of maintaining the same number of stitches between decreases, I'd have 1 (or 2, in the case of double decreases) fewer stitches between them in every decrease round. This is, of course, the common method for decreasing the tops of hats.

I started with Theory 2, and yup, the bag began to close. Slowly. Slooooowwwwwwwwllllyyy. I looked at the theoretical numbers again, counted the number of rounds they required, and realized I'd end up with a plain green cone, three inches deep, at the end of my pineapple. Not pretty, not practical, and way out of line with the look of the rest of the piece.

Rip.

Finally, Theory 3, plus consistently reducing the number of stitches between decreases, yielded this:

Bag

If that ain't what she meant, she's welcome to come back from the dead and tell me so. I love it.

I don't love her final finish, though, with the bunch of green silk satin ribbon.** That's coming off and I'm replacing it with a tassel–Lisa Souza's yardage in a hank of Sylvie is so generous that I have plenty left.

I may even knit a mini-pineapple with the leftovers. (It's easy. Pick a multiple of 16 as your cast-on and go for it.)

*I'm not fooling myself. There are no non-knitters reading about how to troubleshoot the decreases at the bottom of a pineapple. I know.

**I dyed that flippin' ribbon myself because it was hard enough just to find silk ribbon, let alone silk in a green that matched. I want extra credit for that, dammit.

108 comments:

  1. Well, non-knitters would probably be charmed were they reading it.

    The gauge alone might make me back away. Well, that and my lack of need for a shiny pineapple bag versus, say, another sweater. . .

    On the other hand, I'm quite glad YOU knitted it.

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  2. Oh huzzah, you're back from Deadline Hell! This silly bag actually looks cute; my nieces would love it.

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  3. I salute your efforts to decipher these old patterns. I'm having a go at one now, the gauntlet having been thrown down in the Jan/Feb issue of Piecework to have a go at a Victorian stocking pattern in which no information is given about yarn, needles, gauge, actual size, etc. It's fun, but aggravating, too!

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  4. My eyes cross, thinking of how hard an earnest knitter must work, to make sense (to say nothing of beauty) of old patterns. I can just SEE my fashionista friends drooling over this bag.

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  5. laura bryant1:01 PM

    Love it, Franklin. Elegant solution.

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  6. before I even knew it was your pattern I had it queued! can't you just see me carrying it? yes, yes you can. Nicely done, my friend.

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  7. I've always thought about making one of these...and now you've done all the hard work! HA! (Including the search for silk ribbon, eh?)

    Of course, first I will have to find a way to make my new, put-on-after-finishing-stocking stocking top work. Oh, and look good.

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  8. What a beautiful bag, no wonder you were so quiet lol.

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  9. i like how short and broad you are. it works for you.

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  10. KallieKY1:19 PM

    I see your winter and raise you the lake effect snow that we get on this side of the lake ;)

    Glorious bag! I have a whole room decorated with pineapples. One of these must join the party.

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  11. Crap, now I need a pineapple bag to go with my other antique 1900s handbags. Thanks, Franklin ;)

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  12. Ann Elisabeth1:33 PM

    I grew-up in Colorado and the most miserable Winter of my life was spent in Wisconsin. Sweet Jesus, I have never been so cold. University of Colorado-Boulder looked really good after that experience.

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  13. Obviously since pineapple patterns are appearing all around my I must knit one. I really enjoy reading about the process you used to arrive at your very pretty bottom (I don't like the ribbons either, although maybe looped...)especially since I will never never do this level of processing for myself.

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  14. I LOVE it!! Went to Knitty (or tried) to see if this was the project on the 00000s. Their website is OVERLOADED. Teach them to have a Franklin Habit pattern!! I hope they know I will come back later.

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  15. Anonymous2:00 PM

    hey,

    if i see a short and broad dude in a leather jacket carrying a pineapple bag i'll stop to say 'hi'.

    I think a head to head comparison of winter in Chicago vs. the Canadian Prairies is in order. I heading to the west coast (Victoria, BC) this weekend to look a green grass and find a flower or two.

    jake

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  16. I agree, you do deserve extra credit for finding actual silk ribbon and dying it. I also agree the resulting finish is hideous. Actually, it kind of looks like an ass, which is what you were trying to avoid to begin with.

    I'm casting on tomorrow. I'm sure I have something in my stash that'll work just fine. Thanks!

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  17. I must make a pineapple. Last month I was in Savannah (warm...not like Chicago - or Calgary, my home) and learned that long ago a person would put out a pineapple to welcome their house guests. If, after a few weeks or months, it was time for the guests to leave, they would take down the pineapple. It all seems rather nice and so civilized. I think I'll make a pineapple to put it up when friends come over to knit. I'm not expecting anyone to stay for weeks or months, by the way!

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  18. I just saw the picture this morning and oohed and ahhed over it - and behold, YOU did it! Brilliant work despite freezing fingers. I can relate to the 16 layers, having spent 5 days outside in Alaska taking photos of the start of the Iditarod, but there was no wind such as that which comes off the lake in Chi Town. Been there, done that! Stay warm, I hope spring comes soon so you don't have to wear so many layers and you can knit outside in the warm sun.

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  19. Franklin, hilarious! And all this for a bag! You rock dude!
    Hugzzz 8-)

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  20. Franklin, hilarious! And all this for a bag! You rock dude!
    Hugzzz 8-)

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  21. You know people who would have happily dyed that ribbon for you.

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  22. Www.woodedhamlet.com or www.burnleyandtrowbridge.com
    Both carry silk ribbon.

    Lovely, lovely pineapple! Well done!

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  23. I love it. Had your blog up, but also had knitty up and read there first. But I do love it. I love what you can do with your creativity and two needles and that math that must come out of the closet once in a while. Love it. Now, let me see what I can come up with for this pattern. Stash Bust or Yarn Shopping?

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  24. Efforts duly noted and extra credit granted. Well done!

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  25. Hahaha Franklin you do get extra credit for the ribbon....in the form of a warm CHicago 2days in a row eh?

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  26. Oh Franklin! THANK YOU :)

    I have wanted a pineapple reticule ever since I saw the one from the Kyoto museum. I go to Jane Austen festivals / events so I have quite a little assortment of Regency accessories.

    A pineapple reticule will make me the belle of the ball.

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  27. Anita5:36 PM

    I love it too - but now I can't stop thinking of:
    "I've got a lovely bunch of coconuts....."

    Go Figure.

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  28. Franklin. Love the bag. Sadly I think you will find summers in the desert to be as evil as a Chicago winter in a whole new and thoroughly horrible way. I thought , as you might ,that 121 was bearable if I merely drank enough water. Most emphatically, it is not. It's like passing through a blast furnace while being roasted over an open flame.

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  29. On the Victorian pineapple fetish... Here in Newfoundland, tropical fruit was terribly expensive in the eighten and early nineteen hundreds. Everything was brought in by ships and many of the outports were not linked to anything by road.

    Pineapples were so expensive, in fact, that they became a status symbol and a weird sort of gift. People ordered them or had relatives send them and then NEVER ever ATE them. They would set them on the table and admire them for weeks. Sometimes, after a few months had passed, they would gift the fruit to someone else and it would adorn another table or mantlepiece for a while.

    I have spoken to old men who remember being caned as boys for attempting to cut up a pineapple.

    Very odd.

    I like the purse and will make one for the mantle of my 120-year-old house. And will not cut it.

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  30. Franklin - have you seen the most recent Piecework magazine? There's an article on that same pattern! I don't know if it will help with pineapple bum - when I read the pattern this morning over breakfast, my eyes glazed over.
    I've been to Chicago in the winter; nothing compared to Winnipeg, where I grew up! Another "windy city".

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  31. Catherine6:00 PM

    Franklin, you are a "supahstah"!!!
    ...and yes, you get extra credit and kudos for dying the ribbon :-)

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  32. Is that pineapple under your jacket, or are you just happy to see me?

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  33. JoAnn6:55 PM

    Someone else already suggested it, but my vote goes to louping the ribbon into a sort of flower shape and then attaching it. I can see it it 2 layers - larger next to the purse and then a smaller one with the last loup a very small ball in the center.

    Perhaps you've heard the saying "Perfect is a good place to start"?

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  34. Gudrun7:09 PM

    I moved to Chicago in 1993. I knew I was in trouble the second I actually *looked* at the clock/temperature signs in front of the banks. It was springtime, and all of the temps had plus signs in front of them... This implied that the temps were in the minuses far too often for me! I was right, that winter had a low temp of -27F!

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  35. Anonymous7:23 PM

    Psst... There are indeed non-knitters reading about how to troubleshoot the decreases at the bottom of a pineapple. At least one.

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  36. You're damn right you get extra credit. So there.

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  37. Bravo, Franklin, bravo. Fascinatin' concept and wonderful to share your journey. (Not altogether sure I'll be knittin' one though.) Nevertheless, well done!!!

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  38. You lost me at "a laundry pile with boots"...is that YOU in the corner of my kid's bedroom?!

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  39. You have to find the right dessert. I recommend a mountainous one. It's very nice here in Salt Lake City. We have some cold days, but nothing that freezes tears. Lots of extra credit for the dyed ribbon.

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  40. DBChen on Twitter10:01 PM

    Love!

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  41. Franklin, I live north of Quebec city, I do understand your plight...
    On another note, big yarn and easy patterns are fine for a quick fix, but for a more satisfying knit, hurray for challenges!
    I love all those old patterns. If someone was able to make them a hundred years ago, why shouldn't we?
    I downloaded a whole lot from http://www.antiquepatternlibrary.org/.

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  42. zptlisa10:52 PM

    F#%king fabulous! Just read the pattern on knitty. Yours are the only patterns that make me howl. We need more of those. You rock, Franklin.

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  43. I love the pattern. I might need to make it for my 16 year old son.

    Years ago I made a pineapple hat from a Fiber Trends pattern for a silent auction at his school (he modelled it; it made a lot of money). Since 6th grade one of his friends has given him a pineapple for his birthday each year (some sort of private joke).

    So despite the fact that he is far too interested in girls to consider carrying an old fashioned purse, I just might need to make him one -- one of those family jokes (plus, it looks like fun now that you've done the hard work, Franklin).

    Thanks for the entertainment!

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  44. Anonymous11:38 PM

    "Do you know 16 layers of clothing do to a short, broad man? Do you? They make him look like a laundry pile with boots, that's what."

    Brilliant line! I am SO thankful I don't live in Chicago. In Los Angeles we think 30 degrees F is getting cold.

    And the pineapple is brilliant. Even if your photo makes the silk ribbon look blue (though we can blame my monitor if you like)

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  45. Anonymous12:00 AM

    Franklin, i love the pineapple i also love antique things, like patterns, but i never could figure them out like you can.

    You think winter in Chicago is bad? Try winter in the suburbs of Chicago, which is where I grew up. Temperatures are even more extreme when you get away from the lake. I have a clear memory of walking to school on a windy day when it was -30 degrees at 7:30 am. Through the recently-fallen and blowing snow.

    Wearing the 14 layers is even worse when you're a kid and not yet in complete control of your bladder.

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  46. I wonder if there was no picture because she never actually made one? Just thought "hey, that would be cool" and never tested the math to see if it worked?

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  47. You are, as always, brilliant. Another adoring fan. Extra credit for sure! (and revl's comment "You lost me at "a laundry pile with boots"...is that YOU in the corner of my kid's bedroom?!"--so perfect... my kid's bedroom too!)

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  48. Firstly, born and raised in Chicagoland, and I have to say we have been so spoiled this winter, I just know there is a 3 ft snowfall waiting to blindside us. Our winters play dirty.
    Secondly, I should've known as soon as I saw the pineapple bag on the Knitty pattern page that I would see your name at the bottom! :)
    Thirdly, this pineapple bag is made of win, and you totally get extra credit for the ribbon, which I love. The first warm day with no tornadoes is in your honor!

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  49. I loved reading about your pineapple bag, and I might've enjoyed reading about it enough to knit the thing... without the beads.

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  50. As a mathematician by trade an a noob of a knitter, even I would have quailed at implementing the math! Bravo, Franklin, bravo!

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  51. A pineapple is a perfect project for a Midwestern Winter. Awesome work deciphering the pattern.

    I bet it would be easier in crochet!

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  52. You're telling me that I can get this awesome pointy texture just by knitting those rows, no complicated blocking?? I have GOT to try this. I'm thinking baby hat so it's a smaller project. And I'll use your bottom as the top of the hat! Also I totally agree that a tassel will look way better than that ribbon :-)

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  53. Anonymous8:44 AM

    Well I hate to burst your bubble (not really), but I don't knit and I LOVE reading your blog. Don't get me wrong, I know how to knit, but I don't. I crochet (I know evil, pure evil). However, I read your blog because I think you are brillant and funny. Besides, I am pretty sure we are soul sisters who share an infinity for the Victorian era and cute boys.

    By the way, great work on the pineapple purse. It almost intrigues me enough to try and knit it (okay who am I kidding).

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  54. Oh my goodness, I love it!

    Oh, and at a mere 5'2", I feel the exact same way about wearing 16 layers... welcome, spring!

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  55. The pineapple bag is being added to my queue (which may be longer than my life expectancy).

    Of course I'll give you extra credit for the ribbon, who wouldn't?

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  56. It's a good thingk you were already bald, because by the time you figured all of that out you would be anyway. :)

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  57. this post reminds me once again that if I don't want to become addicted to aspirin for non-stop headaches, we should all get down on bent knees and "hail" all of you who design for us. And hopefully get you all paid more, too.

    My eyes were swimming just READING about what you had to do.

    But ... THANKS. Gorgeous piece!

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  58. Anonymous12:01 PM

    So, now, if I knit it in worsted weight and didn't close the bottom (since it seems to be a problem), could it be a tea cozy extraordinaire? Just thinking - and I'm glad you are posting again.

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  59. Anonymous12:29 PM

    The pineapple is the best - I love pineapple imagery and may have to make this to go with a shawl version of Teva Durham's crocheted pineapple-motif hammock.

    The image of you as a boot-wearing laundry pile is hilarious, but the Icelanders' comment is the funniest of all: "This is like Greenland!"

    If it helps, my mother (born and raised in the Montana Rockies) said that Chicago was the second-coldest place she'd ever lived; the first was Rochester, Minnesota. So things could be worse?

    -- stashdragon

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  60. Martha005112:34 PM

    Well, now, dagnabbit, I am going to have to knit this pineapple thing because the bottom is too intriguing to pass up. Just like I have to knit the Giovannina because the corners are intriguing.

    Oh, and by the way? Broad and broad-shouldered are two different things. Just sayin'. Sleeveless is going to work just fine for you, but in the meantime you have nothing to worry about.

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  61. I'm a non-knitter, and I read all of your posts religiously. More religiously than I take religion, even.

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  62. Thanks for writing two charming articles about the same purse, one for your blog and one for knitty! Also, thank you for including all the "crazy person" directions for the purse silk and the beads and the multiple colors. Since I have a set of 0/5s, I don't see how I'll be able to resist.

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  63. Love it! Absolutely love it! And who gives a rat's patootie if non-knitters get the idea of different ways to decrease.

    I cannot wait to make one. I'm thinking it will make an interesting Christmas gift for someone. Maybe as a project bag. Love the tassel, but I am fond of them over other finishing forms.


    Double credit for the dyed ribbon. I'd have been tempted to just use a brown.

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  64. What a beautiful thing! Super job you did, thanks for recreating a quirky piece of history.

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  65. I know exactly what you mean about the cold. When I lived in MN I had a friend from Norway whose vocabulary was stunned by the cold. She could do little more than swear on the really cold days.

    Cute pineapple purse, btw. I love the stories you tell behind the pattern. Thanks for the post!

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  66. Martha Henderson8:40 PM

    Here's one non-knitter who read your article. ;-)

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  67. Anonymous3:18 AM

    You are wonderful! I've missed your posts terribly.

    Melissa

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  68. Maryanne in SC7:43 AM

    Dear Sir,
    I love you. I have always loved you. And now, with the pineapple bag, I love you even more.
    (Signed)
    A fan

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  69. I am so glad you are a blogger and I get to know you that way! LOVE your posts!

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  70. Anonymous9:53 AM

    Don't move to the desert if you want to avoid sleeves. The temperature plummets when the sun goes down in dry climates. Stay near the ocean; large bodies of water hold heat and moderate the temperature.

    Near-Desert Dweller

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  71. Hey, your pineapple is super cute. I think your fix worked just fine, though I do admit that I did spend a bit of time trying to come up with an alternative. Not very hard, mind, because my brain has been fuzzed completely until lunchtime happens.

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  72. Cute bag. Don't move to Alberta. Chicago sounds fine.

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  73. Tracy2:32 PM

    I love this bag, and I love you for working out the pattern for it! I saw it in it's original form a few years ago and didn't want to tackle it! Thank you! I already ordered my silk from Lisa Souza...

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  74. Anonymous4:16 PM

    I have indeed admired your bottom, and you are quite right to be proud of it!!

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  75. Jennifer S6:48 PM

    Just read your article and pattern in Knitty. Excellent work! The pineapple is lovely.

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  76. Anomymous, too11:51 PM

    Choose your desert carefully -- the Gobi gets quite frigid. You want one where the most you ever have to wear consists of a kilt, footwear, and sunscreen.

    The bag looks neat. Gladys Ormphby gone formal.

    And all this talk of bags and bottoms make me wonder if you had to kick your old bag (Dolores) in her bottom lately. . .

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  77. Anonymous1:55 AM

    You deserve all the credit you can get! Mia Self

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  78. Love the pineapple! Love the thought process! It's sort of amazing that some gal from long ago wrote this pineapple pattern that languished until you gave it new vim and vigor.

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  79. I do sooo admire your bottom! The timing on this is just too much. for a Victorian weekend, I have been working the bag in the Jan. issue of Piecework - sort of. I am not fond of the adaptation, so am kind of winging it. My bottom is different, but I am following the instructions provided by a Miss Lambert for the pineapple. I am using a size 5 perle cotton and 3 ought needles. I did a sample on 5 oughts - get a life! This is a really interesting and fun project.

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  80. What an amazing bag! But even more amazing was that right after I read your blog and went to Knitty I found this URL for a site with more historical patterns (including Mrs Gaugain's)

    http://onlinebooks.library.upenn.edu/webbin/book/browse?type=lcsubc&key=Knitting

    I know that having the actual book is a real plus but for those of us who don't have those resources this is pretty cool!

    Hope you enjoy this!

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  81. Extra credit granted!

    The collection I work in has a lot of "misers' purses" - I believe knitted. Must go an re-inspect. Do not believe we have a pineapple, though.

    And an aside -- in this age of fruit all year round, remember when a pineapple was an expensive fruit? something my mother only bought when she was hosting the weekly Mah Jong game? and she had I(and I now have) a wooden tray shaped like a pineapple.

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  82. And you call ME insane? AND, I think you need to seek treatment for a fruit fetish. Remember the orange? ;-)

    Truth - you know I love it. Not sure you can make me bead it however.

    Bravo.

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  83. I admire your tenacity. I may give this pattern a try!

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  84. Susan in Katonah (SusanM on Ravelry)9:22 AM

    I LOVE the pineapple bag, and even though I have no earthly use for a pineapple bag, I am already planning a yarn skirmish. Thanks for the great pattern.

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  85. U r amazing. I have a feeling you drank a lot of Piña Coladas with extra shots while making that bag.

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  86. I found your blog through the latest issue of knitty --- I not only laughed while reading the blog entry, I promptly had to send the link off to some knitting friends! However, I did find that I had to give them a correction on the link . . . knitty has it as ...panopticon dash blogspot (instead of panopticon dot blogspot.

    Thank you for this delightful blog entry --- especially the warning about knitting this item in public!

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  87. Why do I suddenly feel the overwhelming need to knit a pineapple now?

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  88. So Icelanders are weather wimps. Fun read, fellow winter badass!

    -Helen in Wisconsin

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  89. I lived in Great Lakes as a child. I totally understand what you're saying about winter in Chicago. The only Great Lakes weather memories I have are of winter. My parents claim there WAS other weather, but I don't remember it. School used to close because it was too cold & exposed flesh would (quickly) become frostbitten. I don't miss winter in Chicago.

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  90. Yeah, I'd prefer a tassel too.

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  91. Anonymous9:16 PM

    Was that Dolores skinny dipping off Oak St Beach this afternoon?

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  92. Well, this non-knitter (i.e. crocheter) did read all about decreasing knit stitches because we get into areas like that as well.

    And then there was this quote "(In this case, "ass" and "bottom" are not synonymous.)" that I loved, because "ass" and "bottom" make me think first of A Midsummer Night's Dream, and Titania (Queen of the Fairies) would have rocked that purse :)

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  93. Funnily enough, I was reading another favorite blog, that was also talking about Knitted pineapples. They started with the same ladie's pattern as you did. Here's the link, just to see someone else's take on solving the bottom quandry.
    http://www.gancedo.eu/Pine_Apple_Bag.pdf

    Love love your pineapple! I'd like to knit one as well, but what would I do with it once done?

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  94. This comment has been removed by the author.

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  95. Anonymous8:07 PM

    phoenix is a fantastic place to live (as long as you are not actually in phoenix proper).

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  96. You inspired me to dig out a few of my Bear Brand "Blue Books", which caused me to ponder turn-of-the-century knitters and their mental status. None the less, I think 'The Penrod' would look smashing on you, posed by the fireplace whilst clenching your pipe.
    As always, thanks for the laugh.

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  97. The silk ribbon definitely gets extra credit.

    The lab techs from Kiev that My husband worked with in Buffalo Grove used to complain about Chicago winters too.

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  98. KatKruse7:09 PM

    First I want to say Yay! for Montse Stanley! Her's was the first, and still is, my primary go to book. Anything I get confused on is probably touched on in her book.

    Next, love the bag. It's much larger than I thought. I thought it would be smallish reticule.

    And thanks for working it out. I read the Ladies' Work-Table version and was stunned.

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  99. While Iceland gets a lot of snow, it's not particularly cold, as you noted. Because of the weather currents it's pretty mild year round. The summer's are mild too. It's lovely. :)

    I love this pattern and may have to give it a go. :)

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  100. Very neat work! It makes me think that you could do some amazing with a Romanesque cauliflower.

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  101. Franklin, Thank you so much for making this purse and submitting it to Knitty. For the past 2 days, I've been going back to Knitty and looking at your pineapple purse (and considering giving a try). You did a fantastic job on the knitting and the hard part of doing the math calculations to make the bag come out right.

    I enjoyed reading how it all came about, and got the shock of realizing that I have a copy of Montse Stanley's Readers Digest Book. I found the picture on pg.54. (the acorns and strawberries are cute too)

    I also was surprised to realize that I had downloaded on my iPad(for free) "The Ladies' Work-Table Book" It was found and is one of the books of the Gutenberg Project.I looked up the Pineapple purse, and found that the directions are very vague. I wondered if the ladies knitting this purse back then had an actual finished purse to look at - maybe it got passed around the neighborhood and got sent to female relatives?

    Thank you again!

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  102. I just discovered this pineapple on knitty and it struck me: it is the most beautiful thing I have ever seen. Thank you for your effort and providing the pattern to knitty

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  103. Your lacework is amazing. The Victorian women would be very satisfied with your perform. A fichu would be very appropriate.


    Adipex

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  104. The information and the detail were just perfect. I think that your perspective is deep, it’s just well thought out and really fantastic to see someone who knows how to put these thoughts down so well.
    toko sandal
    toko sendal

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