In many eras before this one, women were forced to wear corsets: tight tubelike garments which, when laced tight, trimmed their waists to supposedly make them look attractive. Of course, the corset is now outdated and modern-day women wouldnt lace themselves into one (except where Victoria’s Secret is involved). But if you ignore the fact that they squeezed waists to barbie-like proportions, corsets are actually attractive. I’ve always secretly liked the look of the lacings in the back, and so a while ago, I tried to knit one.

Now, I’m not the most patient knitter and I don’t have any sort of talent for planning, so this yarn was meant for a scarf. I got sick with a bug, probably almost a year ago, and decided to try and make (of all things) a corset. Since it’s made of a lovely bulky yarn, thanks to my relatively short attention span for sweaters and my relatively high doses of cold meds, it’s probably the only corset ever that actually makes the wearer look fatter. When I finished it and came out of the haze of sickness enough to try it on, I realized this and shoved it into the bottom of my knitting drawer.Now, it just so happens that yesterday I saw a play called How Shakespeare Won the West, and whenever I go to the theater I always get some sort of wardrobe envy. This time, one of the actresses wore a loose long-sleeved shirt and over it a beautiful red corset. I found myself remembering the wad of pink wool that was my “corset”, in the “can-I-please-forget-this-happened” part of my yarn drawer.

Five minutes after digging it out today, I now have a “corset” with a decidedly nontraditional feel.