Many thousands of small purses were knitted, embroidered or crocheted in the nineteenth century, intended either for personal use or as a gift or donated to a worthy fundraising cause. Crocheting, incorporating brightly coloured beadwork, was popular in the 1830s, but it was knitting as a domestic craft that thrived as a elegant drawing-room occupation. Much time was devoted to making intricate and delicate items of fancy work without obvious use.