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Lace for Cap (1850): vintage crochet pattern
A deep lace border for the 1850 baby's cap in Raworth's threads Nos. 90 and 100, worked on one side in rows of chain-loop net with double-crochet fans and open bars. Originally published as "Lace for Cap" in The Lady's Album of Fancy Work for 1850 by Not printed (the Address names only “the Publishers of the Lady's.
By the crochetpatterns.io editorial team · Updated · Editorial policy · pattern testing in progress
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Skill level | Advanced |
| Yarn weight | Lace (#0) |
| Yardage | Not printed. (as printed; yardage not given) |
| Hook | 0.75 mm |
| Gauge | Not printed. Work to the size of the article. |
| Finished size | Length as required; depth not printed. |
| Time | about 8 hours |
Materials
- White cotton crochet thread about size 80–100 (the directions use Raworth's threads No. 90 and No. 100)
- Tapestry needle for weaving in ends
- Hook: Start with a 0.75 mm (US steel 14) hook and adjust to suit your thread; 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
- row
- repeat
- skip
- loop
Notes before you start
- Source: "Lace for Cap", 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: Not given. 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: Check: the joining “plain stitch” of the chain loops (from the book's definition of chain-stitch open crochet) is written as sc; a sl st may have been meant.
- 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: Raworth's crochet-thread (and Manlove's) was a period English cotton sold by number; the numbers do not match modern crochet-thread sizes exactly. The modern size given is an approximate equivalent only.
- Modernisation note: No hook is named for the lace; the Baby's Cap it trims uses Penelope crochet No. 4. The book names Penelope crochet hooks by number (No. 1 thickest used here, No. 4 finest). Penelope numbers have no exact modern equivalent; the modern hook is an approximate starting point. No gauge is printed.
- Modernisation note: No yardage is printed and none is estimated.
- Modernisation note: No materials are printed for the lace on its own; the thread numbers come from the directions.
- Modernisation note: Check: “5-chain crochet” (Row 18) is read as chain-stitch open crochet with ch-5 loops, by analogy with the book's “three chain crochet”.
- Modernisation note: Check: Row 2 says “every alternate loop of foundation” although it follows Row 1; kept as printed.
- Modernisation note: “Weave in ends” and sewing to the cap added.
Row progress: 0 of 4 done (0%)
Stitches
0 of 4 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
- Chain-stitch open crochet (book's definition): “This consists of five or any uneven number of loops attached by a plain stitch to every third stitch of the foundation, and in the succeeding rows to the centre loop of the chain of previous row.” = *ch 5 (or the odd number given), sc in the 3rd st of the foundation; rep from *; on following rows the sc goes into the centre ch of each chain loop below (a chain-loop net). The joining “plain stitch” is not defined — see the Check note on “plain”.Mark row complete
- Three chain crochet (book's definition): “Work a chain of three loops as in chain-stitch open crochet.” = chain-stitch open crochet with ch-3 loops: *ch 3, sc into the foundation (or into the centre ch of the ch-3 below); rep from *. One “3-chain crochet stitch” = one ch-3 loop with its joining sc.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 Lace for Cap (1850) pattern is in the Vintage Crochet Edgings & Trims
Still to come in the full pattern:
- Lace
- Finishing
Included with 618 patterns for $9 — $0.01 per pattern.
Errata
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Frequently asked questions
Where is the Lace for Cap pattern from?
It was published as "Lace for Cap" 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 Lace for Cap?
Cotton crochet thread about size 80–100 (period: Raworth's Nos. 90 and 100). Not printed.
What hook should I use?
Start with a 0.75 mm (US steel 14) hook and adjust to suit your thread; no gauge is printed. Gauge: Not printed. Work to the size of the article.
