Ball-band Purse Pattern
Body of purse follows the Ball Band dishcloth pattern in
Mason-Dixon Knitting: The Curious Knitters' Guide: Stories, Patterns, Advice, Opinions, Questions, Answers, Jokes, and Pictures by Kay Gardner and Ann Meador Shayne (they can’t sue me for this, can they?)
This purse was made with two colors of Lamb’s Pride Bulky and size 13 needles.
The ball band dishcloth pattern can be modified to any width using a multiply of 6, plus 3 for casting on. For instance, I cast on 51 stitches for my bag (6x8, plus 3). For my purse I decided to have the stripes run vertically. Referring to the pattern as printed in MD, I did rows 1-12 three times followed by rows 1-8, and then bind off.
For my purse I decided to have the stripes run vertically. This is how you will sew your purse if you want it to look like mine: Fold your rectangle in half with the cast on and bound off edges touching and the right and left sides at the top. Mattress stitch the co/bo edges from what will be the bottom of the bag up toward where the handles will be, on both sides. I left about and inch and half free at the top, so there is more room in the top opening.
If you are doing a fabric lining, you will need about a half and inch seam allowance all the way around. Thing before you sew your lining that you want to have the pretty side of the fabric showing inside the purse. I know this sounds elementary, but I’m not a big sewer… its something I could very easily mess up. I left a matching inch and a half open along the top sides of the lining to match the part I left open on the sides of the purse.
When the lining is sewn up, stitch the outside bottom corners of the lining to the inside bottom corners of the purse. This will hold your lining in place. Then stitch the top of the lining to the top edges of the purse, on each side. I used clear thread that looks like fishing line, because the stitches are visible and my hand sewing isn’t neat and pretty. You should attach your lining about ¾ inches from the top, leaving space to attach the handles.
About the handles: I crocheted them on, and it’s just too hard for me to think about how to write out instructions. If you crochet, I think you’ll figure something out. If not, just use a strand of your yarn and a needle to wrap yarn around the handle and through the top of the purse, where you left that ¾ inch without lining at the top of the purse. I’m sure you could also somehow leave the lining long and use that to go over and around your handles.
Hope you enjoy your purse, and thanks to Ann and Kay for writing the book that inspired it!
