# Cable Twist Egg Cosy



## FireballDave (Mar 18, 2011)

Well it took me a while to remember how it went, I had to try three different twists before I was sure I had the right one! But here is the other egg cosy design I was taught as a boy. It's a little harder to make than the basic design, but it still takes under two hours.

*Cable Twist Cosy*

_*Materials:*_
Oddments of DK or similar weight yarn in two colours
4mm (US size 6) needles
Cable needle
Darning needle
Pom-Pom ring

_*Tension/Guage:*_
Not critical but around 22sts across 4" in stocking stitch will be fine.

_*Abbreviations:*_
*CT3*: Cable Twist over 3 stitches
Slip the next two stitches onto a cable needle and hold to back of work, knit the next stitch from the lefthand needle, then the two stitches from the cable needle.
*S1*: Slip one stitch from the lefthand needle to the righthand needle.
*K3tog*: Knit 3 stitches together
*P3tog*: Purl 3 stitches together
*K2tog*: Knit 2 stitches together

_*Instructions:*_
With yarn *A*, cast on 38 stitches using the thumb method (US = long tail)
Rows 1 to 5: Knit
Break yarn *A* and join yarn *B*
Row 6: Purl
Row 7: S1, *CT3, P3, repeat from * to last stitch, K1
Row 8: S1, *K3, P3, repeat from * to last stitch, K1
Rows 9, 11, 13, 15: as row 7
Rows 10, 12, 14, 16: as row 8
_Shape top:_
Row 17: S1, *CT3, P3tog, repeat from * to last stitch, K1 (26sts)
Row 18: S1, *K1, P3, repeat from * to last stitch, K1
Row 19: S1, *K3tog, P1, repeat from * to last stitch, K1 (14sts)
Row 20: S1, *K1, P1, repeat from * to last stitch, K1
Row 21: S1, K2tog (6 times), K1 (8sts)
Row 22: S1, Purl to end
Row 23: K2tog (4 times) (4sts)
Break yarn leaving about 6" for seam, run tail through loops of last four stitches and pull tight.

_*Finishing:*_
Seam side edges and weave in ends to neaten.

Make a small pom-pom with yarn *A* and attach to top of cosy.

It's not too hard to make, but be careful on the first twist row (#7) when establishing the pattern.

Have fun and let me know how it works out for you.

Dave


----------



## barb1957 (Feb 17, 2011)

thanks Dave Have a nice Day Barb USA


----------



## siouxann (Mar 5, 2011)

Thanks for the pattern, Dave. Really cool project.


----------



## Omaest (Feb 3, 2011)

Cute!


----------



## dorisgene (Mar 30, 2011)

The sequel was worth waiting for, very cute and...

okay, I have to say it, cosy!!! : }


----------



## SailorRae (Feb 7, 2011)

Another great "cosy" :thumbup:


----------



## glnwhi (Jan 19, 2011)

Thanks,Dave I will sure try this,its so cute. Glenda


----------



## jberg (Mar 23, 2011)

Almost too cute for just an egg! Really nice job. Thanks for sharing. Happy Needling! jb


----------



## FireballDave (Mar 18, 2011)

Thanks for all the compliments, I hope you enjoying making and using them! 

I'm looking forward to seeing all your colour schemes. This year's colour for my friends is blue, last year it was pale grey and burgundy and the year before I made them in mid-grey and daffodil yellow; the variations are endless!

Have fun with the patterns, version three will be out on Thursday so you'll just have time to make a few last minute presents by Sunday.

Dave


----------



## FireballDave (Mar 18, 2011)

jberg said:


> Almost too cute for just an egg! Really nice job. Thanks for sharing. Happy Needling! jb


Not 'just an egg', brekkers is a marvellous institution and a very special meal. A day without eggy soldiers would start all wrong!

Have fun
Dave


----------



## maryinvt (Feb 21, 2011)

Re: Blue Cable Twist Cosy with Blue Willow Eggcup picture.

I love the way you take pictures. It is not a photo. It is art. You have a wonderful way of seeing things and capturing it. The expressive ways of capturing shadows brings everything to life.
Mary in VT


----------



## FireballDave (Mar 18, 2011)

maryinvt said:


> Re: Blue Cable Twist Cosy with Blue Willow Eggcup picture.
> 
> I love the way you take pictures. It is not a photo. It is art. You have a wonderful way of seeing things and capturing it. The expressive ways of capturing shadows brings everything to life.
> Mary in VT


Thank you so much Mary.

I try to make things look interesting, the quality of the light at this time of year in wonderful. I have a real love of raking sunlight and stark contrast. The angles mean I don't have have to work very hard, the big yellow thing in the sky does it all for me and I only have to press the button.

Dave


----------



## Elaine.Fitz (Mar 27, 2011)

Thank you Dave for the egg cosy patterns. I love them both. They are so cute and practical!


----------



## liketalk (Apr 2, 2011)

I have a feeling egg cosys are a British thing. Do you really use these once they are done and how and why?


----------



## carolyn tolo (Feb 7, 2011)

Thanks again Dave, your instructions are always so clear and FUN. Carolyn


----------



## tallieu (Feb 10, 2011)

How cute. I took one look at the photo and thought what a cute preemie hat that would make. Thank you.


----------



## FireballDave (Mar 18, 2011)

liketalk said:


> I have a feeling egg cosys are a British thing. Do you really use these once they are done and how and why?


I think they may be British, although I have been served breakfast in my room in a Belgian hotel which uses a cleverly folded napkin to do the same job.

In the days before central heating, they were a necessity; now they are a nicety.The English like boiled eggs for beakfast, served with toast cut into fingers. The eggs must cooked so the whites are just set and the yolks are still runny, everything must be served warm so we can dip the toast in the yolks and have 'eggy soldiers', it just doesn't work cold.

I don't know about you, but breakfast for me is a leisurely affair, over which I plan my day, open the post and read the newspaper. So one sets the table and prepares breakfast. I might start with cereal or a grapefruit cocktail and then move on to a boiled egg, then toast and marmalade. Even if I'm on my own, I don't want to have to disrupt the flow of the meal by having to go to the kitchen to cook my eggs so they'll be at the right temperature, a cosy solves the problem by keeping my eggs nice and warm.

Or one might be making a breakfast tray, the same applies, how many times do you want to run up and down stairs?

Also when I have _Breakfast Parties_, I want to spend time with my guests, not racing off to the kitchen every five minutes. We sometimes gather to enjoy the MotoGP, which when the races are in Europe, the 125cc race coverage starts at 9:40 a.m., the hunble egg cosy means I don't miss any of the action!

Finally, there is their decorative value, they're fun and look good!

Do they sit in the linen drawer? No, they get used on a daily basis.

Those are my reasons for making them, hope that answers your question

Dave


----------



## kippyfure (Apr 9, 2011)

way cute......


----------



## liketalk (Apr 2, 2011)

Oh yes I totally understand and honestly thought it might be something like that. My godmother's family was from England and many years ago when I was born, her gift to my parents was a beautiful sterling egg cup. A very unusual gift for the US.


----------



## raelkcol (Feb 5, 2011)

Thank you for sharing.


----------



## FireballDave (Mar 18, 2011)

liketalk said:


> Oh yes I totally understand and honestly thought it might be something like that. My godmother's family was from England and many years ago when I was born, her gift to my parents was a beautiful sterling egg cup. A very unusual gift for the US.


There is an old saying, _born with a silver spoon in his mouth_, meaning a child was born into a wealthy family. A silver eggcup and spoon is a traditional christening gift, along with a silver napkin ring and a silver 3/4-size 'training cutlery' place setting.

My silver eggcup, has been in daily use all my life and has travelled with me around the world. It was given me by my Great Aunt Nance, a very grand and formidable lady, born in 1893.

I have many happy childhood memories of being whisked off by her for holidays. Every year we would spend a couple of weeks in Deauville, we regularly took the _Sea Leopard_ to Paris to visit exhibitions, one year she took me to Canada for a month, another we took the newly launched _QE2_ to New York. Great Aunt Nance was brilliant, I learned so much from her, I'll never forget her taking me to the Cote d'Azure on _Le Mistral_, she loved trains and ships, we also took the _L'Etoile du Nord_ and our last big European trip together was on the ultra modern, at that time, _TEE_. Although we did fly sometimes, but she always said, "It's far more civilised to eat one's way across Europe"!

Sadly she died before the restoration of the _Venice-Simplon Orient Express_, she had used the original before WWII, I would have dearly loved to have taken her on it.

When she died, she specifically left her cutlery and crockery, "To the boy who understands every meal should be _an occassion_"! It's an extensive collection and the tea service and accessories include such delights as a solid silver muffin-warmer, toasting forks, jam spoons, porcelain strawberry baskets, cake stands and her truly spectacular set of glass _Crystal Palace_ jelly moulds and server. That last really is impressive, I only get the opportunity to use it a couple of times a year, but as a Summer dessert it's a show-stopper!

I grew up with set meal-times and I find the modern custom of 'grazing' and wandering around swigging from bottles of water distateful in the extreme. To me, it advertises a person's lack of will and a complete inabilty to plan; it was firmly instilled in me, "Plan your day and work your plan". The Victorians knew a thing or two, through _method and order_ they achieved much!

Dave


----------



## siouxann (Mar 5, 2011)

What a marvelous person she must have been! Your memories are delightful - Thanks for sharing them with us.


----------



## FireballDave (Mar 18, 2011)

siouxann said:


> What a marvelous person she must have been! Your memories are delightful - Thanks for sharing them with us.


Great Aunt Nance was brilliant and although very Victorian, she was willing embrace the modern, she positively adored _Concorde_, the lady had style!

Dave


----------



## Elaine.Fitz (Mar 27, 2011)

Dave,

Your Aunt must have loved you very much and recognized your high civility. It is wonderful to hear of the refinements from yesterday. I, too, wish they were in wider display today. I think there is nothing better than a proper good cup of tea. I will remember that adage about "planning your day and working the plan" and will pass it on to my grandchildren. Thanks for sharing.
Elaine


----------



## liketalk (Apr 2, 2011)

Dave,
Do you write a blog? You have such a wonderful way with words. It puts you in the scene as I could picture your well set table using the beautiful silver and china. 

My grandmother always had a set table too. I remember staying at her house and coming down the stairs to the kitchen with places set. Depending on the time of year, she would have a grapefruit with sugar on top all ready to eat or a wedge of a melon. Yum. I can taste it now. 

Martha


----------



## glnwhi (Jan 19, 2011)

Dave,I to believe in the things that were instilled in us as children,I was the product of the old school where we had meal-time and you were there!You ate at the dinner table and were taught proper eticate and be sure you used the proper utinsel.Dinner was a family thing you didnot eat in front of the T.V. you learned the art of conversation,not to grunt and make motions. O.K. I'm off the soap box for this time. Glenda


----------



## carolyn tolo (Feb 7, 2011)

Darling Dave, We do so enjoy your writing that we keep it and go over it again. 

I came from a family that had very hurt feelings over who got what beautiful silver or hand-painted china treasure.

I was a teen-ager at the time and promptly handed the valuable thing over to my mother, and proudly kept a bathrobe worn by a beloved ancestor.

Please keep writing. I think my nephew's daughter was in one of your English History classes. She liked England so much she brought an English husband back here. Carolyn


----------



## dorisgene (Mar 30, 2011)

When my aunt passed all I wanted was a lap board someone made for my grandmother to play cards. No value to others, all the memories and love in the world to me!

They are correct Dave. See what comes from your works and it just keeps going!!! :thumbup:


----------



## FireballDave (Mar 18, 2011)

For anyone interested, my _Eggy Scrambler Cosy_ is now available at:

http://www.knittingparadise.com/t-8542-1.html#94264

Apologies for the delay, it took a while to get right and also to compose clear instructions.

Have fun
Dave


----------



## tigaby (Aug 5, 2011)

Maybe they are British; perhaps we just don't have enough time to use little things like this any more, making tea in cups with bags and not in pots anymore, you know the sort of thing! I believe these would make great presents! And when my son takes ages to get to the breakfast table, they keep the eggs warm too. Kind regards!


----------



## FireballDave (Mar 18, 2011)

tigaby said:


> Maybe they are British; perhaps we just don't have enough time to use little things like this any more, making tea in cups with bags and not in pots anymore, you know the sort of thing! I believe these would make great presents! And when my son takes ages to get to the breakfast table, they keep the eggs warm too. Kind regards!


Egg cosies are very British, it's our love of eggy soldiers! With regard to time, the 'too-busy lifestyle' is pretty much a myth, it all depends on our priorities and our ability to manage time. I choose to set aside an hour or so for breakfast and use the time to plan my day. Far from being 'time-wasted', this exercise enables me to arrange a realistic schedule which includes mealtimes, but is still productive. I am absolutely convinced that modern social phenomena like _road rage_ or the ridiculous _trolley rage_ in supermarket queues, have little to do with a lack of time, they merely advertise a person's inability to plan.

In the case of your son, one is reminded of large households or house parties, where breakfast is set out on a sideboard for people to use as a buffet as and when they come down. Less common these days, except when entertaining a large number of guests and 'breakfast' covers a number of hours, perhaps he's caught in a 1930s time-warp!

Cosies do make great gifts, they brighten up the breakfast table and as you may have noticed from the timing of my posts, can reflect topical events. I sometimes give breakfast parties and invite my guests to keep their cosy as a memento, it seems quite popular!

Dave


----------



## AryaT75 (Nov 5, 2019)

[No message]


----------

