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Infant's Bonnet with Roll Brim (1850): vintage crochet pattern
An 1850 bonnet for a baby of five or six months, worked in rounds of single crochet and open double-crochet mesh in drab crochet-thread, with a separate roll for the edge, made up over a blue-silk-covered foundation. Originally published as "Infant's Bonnet" in The Lady's Album of Fancy Work for 1850 by Not printed (the Address names only.
By the crochetpatterns.io editorial team · Updated · Editorial policy · pattern testing in progress
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Skill level | Intermediate |
| Yarn weight | Lace (#0) |
| Yardage | Not printed. (as printed; yardage not given) |
| Hook | 1.75 mm |
| Gauge | Not printed. Work to the size of the article. |
| Finished size | For an infant of five or six months (as printed); no measurements are given. The book says a larger size can be made by working more rounds and more rows for the roll. |
| Time | about 6 hours |
Materials
- Cotton crochet thread in drab (greyish brown); no thread number is printed — size 10 is a reasonable starting point
- A bonnet foundation (buckram or stiff interfacing) covered with blue silk; wadding for the roll
- A small plume of blue feathers, or blue ribbon for a rosette
- Tapestry needle for weaving in ends
- Hook: Start with a 1.75 mm (US steel 4) hook and adjust to suit your thread; the book says only “a middle-sized hook”, and no gauge is printed.
Yarn Kit & Substitution Options
This pattern calls for 350 yards of weight #0 yarn. Select a suggested yarn to see required skeins and estimated cost:
Caron Simply Soft · 100% Acrylic
315 yds per skein · High-yield yardage, silky no-scratch texture
2 skeins required
approx. $$10.98 total
Abbreviations (US terms)
- chain
- single crochet
- double crochet
- stitch
- stitches
- round
- row
- repeat
- skip
Notes before you start
- Source: "Infant's Bonnet", The Lady's Album of Fancy Work for 1850, Not printed (the Address names only “the Publishers of the Lady's Album of Fancy-Work”), 1850. Public domain in the USA.
- As printed — materials: Drab crochet-thread and a middle-sized hook. Gauge: Not given.
- Modernisation note: Stitch names converted to modern US terms strictly by the book's own “Explanation of the Various Terms used in Crochet”, not by modern UK usage: “double crochet” / “close double crochet” / “d c” = sc; “single crochet” / “single” / “s c” = sl st; “long stitch” / “long” / “l s” = dc; “double long stitch” / “d l s” = tr; “treble long stitch” / “t l s” = dtr; “chain” / “c s” = ch; “single open crochet” = dc, ch 1, sk 1; “chain-stitch open crochet” = ch loops (5 or another odd number) joined into every 3rd st, then into the centre of each loop below; “three chain crochet” = the same with ch-3 loops; “miss” = sk; “unite” = join (the joining stitch is not named). Note that the book's “double crochet” is a modern sc and its “single crochet” a modern sl st.
- Modernisation note: Period wording modernised: “needle” / “tambour-needle” written as “hook”; “commence” as “begin”; “cotton” / “thread” as “thread”; “receipt” as “directions”. Round and row numbers are kept as printed.
- Modernisation note: Printed paragraphs split into one step per row, round or instruction; no stitches, counts or rows added, removed or reordered. Words in square brackets or marked “Check:” are ours.
- Modernisation note: No hook size and no gauge is printed. The modern starting hook is an approximate suggestion only.
- Modernisation note: No yardage is printed and none is estimated.
- Modernisation note: Colour swatches are approximate modern readings of the period colour names; they are not in the book. “Drab” is a dull greyish brown; “puce” a dark purplish brown; “cerise” a deep cherry pink; “geranium” a bright scarlet-pink.
- Modernisation note: “Increasing in every loop” written as 2 sc in every st; the book does not say how an increase is made.
- Modernisation note: Check: “work 1 l, 2 ch, miss 2 three times” is read as three rounds, because the book then says “work these last six rounds” (3 open rounds + 3 sc rounds).
- Modernisation note: Check: the book does not say whether the rounds are joined or worked in a spiral, nor whether the roll rows are turned.
- Modernisation note: Check: “increasing a stitch at the beginning and end of each row” is printed in the middle of the roll directions; it is not clear whether it applies from Row 7 only or to every repeat.
- Modernisation note: Check: no thread number is printed; “middle-sized hook” is the book's only guide.
Row progress: 0 of 2 done (0%)
Stitches
0 of 2 done- Double crochet (book's definition): “having made a chain, pass the needle through the first loop on the chain, draw the cotton through the loop, there will now be two loops on the needle, through these draw the cotton.” = single crochet (sc). “Close double crochet” = sc worked in every st with no chain between.Mark row complete
- Long stitch (book's definition): “Twist the cotton round the needle, pass it through the loop, draw the cotton through the first two loops on the needle, then catch the cotton again and draw it through the next two loops; there will be one loop left on the needle.” = double crochet (dc).Mark row complete
Working on:
Double crochet (book's definition): “having made a chain, pass the needle through the first loop on the chain, draw the cotton through the loop, there will now be two loops on the needle, through these draw the cotton.” = single crochet (sc). “Close double crochet” = sc worked in every st with no chain between.
Continue this pattern
The rest of the Infant's Bonnet with Roll Brim (1850) pattern is in the Vintage Crochet Baby & Kids' Patterns
Still to come in the full pattern:
- Bonnet
- Roll
- Finishing
Included with 133 patterns for $12 — $0.09 per pattern.
Errata
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Frequently asked questions
Where is the Infant's Bonnet pattern from?
It was published as "Infant's Bonnet" in The Lady's Album of Fancy Work for 1850 by Not printed (the Address names only “the Publishers of the Lady's Album of Fancy-Work”) in 1850. The publication is in the public domain in the United States; this version is transcribed and modernised by crochetpatterns.io.
What yarn or thread do I need for the Infant's Bonnet?
Cotton crochet thread about size 10 (period: drab crochet-thread, number not printed). Not printed.
What hook should I use?
Start with a 1.75 mm (US steel 4) hook and adjust to suit your thread; the book says only “a middle-sized hook”, and no gauge is printed. Gauge: Not printed. Work to the size of the article.
