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I'm working on a pattern for a crocheted tobacco pouch. It was originally published in 1861. It'll appear in a future edition of the "A La Mode" volumes Polly Steenhagen & I have been bringing out.
The pattern calls for silk yarn in blue or brown and is fairly straightforward to work. It's just a basic design with some openwork trim at the top & a drawstring. The original pattern didn't indicate what sort of lining should be used, though. I assume that tobacco pouches had to be lined in some way, didn't they? A preliminary search for information on 19th century tobacco pouches didn't yield too much helpful material. I've been looking at museum catalogues & have found very few detailed descriptions. That is, I've found dozens of mentions of tobacco pouches -- I gather they were a popular gift -- but none of the descriptions explain what the lining was made of.
Beeton's needlework book shows many different styles of small purses and pouches made in a similar fashion to my pattern, but none indicate how they are to be lined. Same thing in Godey's and Peterson's (apparently they just assume that the reader will know how to finish the pouch.)
Now here's one particularly beautiful example, though, of a beaded tobacco pouch from the early 19th c.:
It's not clearly dated in the description, but it does look to be early 19th century. The owner explains that the red velvet lining was added later. (Red velvet doesn't seem to be appropriate for tobacco use, does it?)
All of the detailed descriptions of 19th century crocheted, embroidered, or knitted tobacco pouches I've found date from just after our period (1870s to 1890s). Most of those indicate that the pouch should be lined in kid leather.
So I thought I'd throw this open to you, especially those of you who may smoke pipes. Have you seen period tobacco pouches in museums or collections? How were they lined? About how large were they?
Thank you.
The pattern calls for silk yarn in blue or brown and is fairly straightforward to work. It's just a basic design with some openwork trim at the top & a drawstring. The original pattern didn't indicate what sort of lining should be used, though. I assume that tobacco pouches had to be lined in some way, didn't they? A preliminary search for information on 19th century tobacco pouches didn't yield too much helpful material. I've been looking at museum catalogues & have found very few detailed descriptions. That is, I've found dozens of mentions of tobacco pouches -- I gather they were a popular gift -- but none of the descriptions explain what the lining was made of.
Beeton's needlework book shows many different styles of small purses and pouches made in a similar fashion to my pattern, but none indicate how they are to be lined. Same thing in Godey's and Peterson's (apparently they just assume that the reader will know how to finish the pouch.)
Now here's one particularly beautiful example, though, of a beaded tobacco pouch from the early 19th c.:
It's not clearly dated in the description, but it does look to be early 19th century. The owner explains that the red velvet lining was added later. (Red velvet doesn't seem to be appropriate for tobacco use, does it?)
All of the detailed descriptions of 19th century crocheted, embroidered, or knitted tobacco pouches I've found date from just after our period (1870s to 1890s). Most of those indicate that the pouch should be lined in kid leather.
So I thought I'd throw this open to you, especially those of you who may smoke pipes. Have you seen period tobacco pouches in museums or collections? How were they lined? About how large were they?
Thank you.
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