Free preview · full pattern in the Vintage Crochet Edgings & Trims
Shell Loop Edge, Fig. XVII (1926): vintage crochet pattern
A two-row edge: a foundation row of paired double crochet set into the linen at intervals, then a row that fills each loop with a small shell and anchors between them. Originally published as "Crocheted Edge, Fig. XVII" in Variety: Italian Cut Work and Filet Lace, Book No. 2 by Carmela Testa & Co., Inc., Boston, Mass. in.
By the crochetpatterns.io editorial team · Updated · Editorial policy · pattern testing in progress
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Skill level | Easy |
| Yarn weight | Lace (#0) |
| Yardage | the book gives no thread number for this design. (as printed; yardage not given) |
| Hook | 5 mm |
| Gauge | No gauge printed. |
| Finished size | Not printed. |
| Time | about 2 hours |
Materials
- Cotton or linen crochet thread — the book prints no thread number for this design
- Steel crochet hook to suit the thread
- Tapestry needle for the ends
- Hook: Check: the book prints no thread number and no needle number for this design, so no modern hook can be read across from a thread size. Match the hook to whatever thread is chosen.
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
- space
- chain space
- stitch
- stitches
- repeat
- row
- skip
- shell
- loop
Notes before you start
- Source: "Crocheted Edge, Fig. XVII" (Fig. XVII), Variety: Italian Cut Work and Filet Lace, Book No. 2, Carmela Testa & Co., Inc., Boston, Mass., 1926. Public domain in the USA.
- As printed — materials: No thread number printed for this design; No crochet needle number printed for this design; Linen, hemmed narrowly before starting. Gauge: Not given.
- Modernisation note: Stitches are converted by this book's own key (book page 29, image p-31.jpg), not by the look of the abbreviation. The key lists: ch.—chain; sl. st.—slip stitch; s.c.—single crochet; d.c.—double crochet; tr.c.—treble crochet; d.sl.st.—double slipstitch; p.—picot; o.m.—open mesh; s.m.—solid mesh. The same page defines the mesh: “Open mesh: 1 d.c.—ch. 2—skip 2 stitches of previous row—1 d.c.—repeat. Solid mesh: 1 d.c. into d.c. of previous row—1 d.c. into each chain—1 d.c. into next d.c. of previous row. One solid mesh is made up of 4 d.c. Two solid mesh are made up of 7 d.c.” A one-stitch-plus-two-chain space and a four-stitch block is the ordinary modern filet mesh, which is what settles the naming: this book's d.c. IS the modern US double crochet and its s.c. IS the modern US single crochet. That is a finding, not an assumption — a 1923 book already in this collection uses the older naming, where the same abbreviations mean stitches one step taller, and reading this book by that key would have made every design wrong.
- Modernisation note: The book's wording is written in modern US form: “needle” means the hook and is written hook; “the goods” means the linen the edge is worked onto and is written linen; “skip” = sk; “Repeat” = rep; st(s) = st(s). The scan's OCR garbles some of the printed ordinals and fractions; the excerpts keep what the page image actually prints.
- Modernisation note: The printed paragraphs are split into one row, round or step per line; stitch order and counts are unchanged. Section headings added for navigation. Ordinal row names (“1st row”, “2nd row”) are written Row 1, Row 2.
- Modernisation note: No gauge is printed for this design — the book prints no gauge, tension or mesh-per-inch count anywhere. Work a sample and change hook size until the piece lies flat.
- Modernisation note: Check: no colour is printed for this design. The plates photograph as a plain light thread on light linen, and the book names no shade for any of its crochet.
- Modernisation note: Check: the book prints no thread number and no crochet-needle number for this design. On book page 28 only the first edge (Fig. XV) and the last (Fig. XX) carry a thread number; the four between them are printed as bare directions under the page's shared opening paragraph. Nothing is invented here to fill the gap.
- Modernisation note: No yardage is printed for this design. The book prints no ball counts or thread quantities anywhere, so none is given here.
- Modernisation note: Check: the printed fraction is ¼ inch, read off the page image; the scan's OCR renders it as a percent sign. The metric figure is ours.
- Modernisation note: Check: the book prints Row 2 as “1 s.c. (into the first loop) 4 d.c., 1 s.c., 1 s.c. into the space between the loops.” The bracket is the book's, and it fixes where the row starts; the five stitches after it all go into that same ch-2 loop.
- Modernisation note: The book numbers only the second row, calling it “Second row”; the first is left unnumbered. Both are numbered here.
- Modernisation note: Check: the book's shared opening for the page does not name Fig. XVII among those where the linen may be turned back and trimmed off, so this one takes the narrow hem first.
- Modernisation note: No finished measurement is printed; the edge is worked to the length of the piece it trims.
Row progress: 0 of 2 done (0%)
Edge
0 of 2 done- Row 1: Dc into the linen, ch 2, dc into the same hole, ch 1, skip about ¼ inch (about 6 mm) and dc into the linen. Rep until all four edges are finished.Mark row complete
- Row 2: 1 sc into the first loop, 4 dc, 1 sc, then 1 sc into the space between the loops. Rep around.Mark row complete
Working on:
Row 1: Dc into the linen, ch 2, dc into the same hole, ch 1, skip about ¼ inch (about 6 mm) and dc into the linen. Rep until all four edges are finished.
Continue this pattern
The rest of the Shell Loop Edge, Fig. XVII (1926) pattern is in the Vintage Crochet Edgings & Trims
Still to come in the full pattern:
- Finishing
Included with 618 patterns for $9 — $0.01 per pattern.
Errata
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Your notes on this pattern
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Frequently asked questions
Where is the Crocheted Edge, Fig. XVII pattern from?
It was published as "Crocheted Edge, Fig. XVII" in Variety: Italian Cut Work and Filet Lace, Book No. 2 by Carmela Testa & Co., Inc., Boston, Mass. in 1926. 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 Crocheted Edge, Fig. XVII?
See the materials list. Not printed — the book gives no thread number for this design.
What hook should I use?
Check: the book prints no thread number and no needle number for this design, so no modern hook can be read across from a thread size. Match the hook to whatever thread is chosen. Gauge: No gauge printed.
