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Two Small Gimps in Crochet (1854): vintage crochet pattern
Two very narrow crochet gimps (braids) for trimming children's dresses or running on a skirt in place of braid: a chain worked back in double crochet, and a chain-and-double-crochet openwork strip. Printed for No. 6 crochet cotton, silk purse twist or wool.
By the crochetpatterns.io editorial team · Updated · Editorial policy · pattern testing in progress
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Skill level | Beginner |
| Yarn weight | Lace (#0) |
| Yardage | Not printed. (as printed; yardage not given) |
| Hook | 1.25 mm |
| Gauge | Not printed. |
| Finished size | Length as required. |
| Time | about 2 hours |
Materials
- Cotton crochet thread about size 3–5 (period: crochet cotton No. 6; approximate); or silk twist, or wool in a colour to match the dress
- Hook: Start with a 1.25 mm (US steel 10) hook and adjust to suit your thread (original: crochet hook No. 18, eagle card-board gauge; approximate conversion). No gauge is printed. Check: this hook is very fine for No. 6 cotton; use a larger hook if the thread will not pass easily.
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
- double crochet
- skip
- repeat
Notes before you start
- Source: "Small Gimps in Crochet", The Ladies' Complete Guide to Crochet, Fancy Knitting, and Needlework (Mrs. Ann S. Stephens), Dick & Fitzgerald, 1854. Public domain in the USA.
- As printed — materials: Crochet cotton, No. 6; crochet hook, No. 18.. Gauge: Not given.
- Modernisation note: Stitch names checked against the book's own definitions (pp. 22–23), which describe the same stitches as modern US terms, so they are kept: “ch.” = ch; “sl.” / “slip” = sl st; “sc.” = sc; “dc.” = dc (US, not UK); “tc.” (treble crochet) = tr; “l tc.” / “long tc.” (long treble crochet) = dtr; “miss” = sk. Note that the book's “tc.” is a modern US tr, not a UK treble (US dc).
- Modernisation note: Printed paragraphs split into one step per row, round or instruction; no stitches, counts, rows or rounds added, removed or reordered.
- Modernisation note: Crochet hook numbers belong to the book's “eagle card-board gauge”, a period bell-type gauge in which higher numbers are finer. The metric and US sizes given are approximate conversions only, and no gauge is printed.
- Modernisation note: Period cotton numbers (Evans's crochet cotton and “boar's-head” cotton) do not match modern thread sizes exactly; the modern thread size is a starting approximation. Choose the thread that suits the hook and gives lace of the right fineness.
- Modernisation note: No yardage or weight of thread is printed for this design, and none is estimated.
- Modernisation note: The book says gimp No. 1 makes “a very neat little trimming for children's dresses”; in silk (with purse twist) it answers for any narrow gimp, and in wool it can replace the braid run on a dress skirt, since wool comes in any shade.
- Modernisation note: “Sew on as a trimming” added as finishing.
Row progress: 0 of 2 done (0%)
Stitches
0 of 2 done- Chain (book's definition, “ch.”): “A loop of thread made on the hook, and through this the thread is drawn, forming the first chain stitch; draw the thread through this one, and a second is formed.” = ch.Mark row complete
- Double crochet (book's definition, “dc.”): “Raise the thread over the hook, so as to pass it round, before inserting the latter in the chain; draw the thread through, and you will find three loops on the hook; bring the cotton through two … finish the stitch by drawing the thread through these.” = modern US dc (not the UK dc).Mark row complete
Working on:
Chain (book's definition, “ch.”): “A loop of thread made on the hook, and through this the thread is drawn, forming the first chain stitch; draw the thread through this one, and a second is formed.” = ch.
Continue this pattern
The rest of the Two Small Gimps in Crochet (1854) pattern is in the Vintage Crochet Edgings & Trims
Still to come in the full pattern:
- Gimp No. 1
- Gimp No. 2
- Finishing
Included with 618 patterns for $9 — $0.01 per pattern.
Errata
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Frequently asked questions
Where is the Small Gimps in Crochet pattern from?
It was published as "Small Gimps in Crochet" in The Ladies' Complete Guide to Crochet, Fancy Knitting, and Needlework (Mrs. Ann S. Stephens) by Dick & Fitzgerald in 1854. 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 Small Gimps in Crochet?
Size 3–5 crochet cotton (approximate). Not printed.
What hook should I use?
Start with a 1.25 mm (US steel 10) hook and adjust to suit your thread (original: crochet hook No. 18, eagle card-board gauge; approximate conversion). No gauge is printed. Check: this hook is very fine for No. 6 cotton; use a larger hook if the thread will not pass easily. Gauge: Not printed.
