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Beaded Purse in Plain and Open Crochet (1847): vintage crochet pattern
A Victorian purse in fine emerald netting silk begun with a beaded star bottom, then bands of light green open crochet and charted steel-bead patterns on a ponceau ground, with a plain crochet centre. Originally published as "A Purse with Beads in Plain and Open Crochet" in My Crochet Sampler (Miss Lambert) by D. M. Peyser in 1847.
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 | 1.3 mm |
| Gauge | Not printed. Work to the size of the article; the book sizes by counted stitches or measurement. |
| Finished size | Not printed. |
| Time | about 3 hours |
Materials
- Fine silk thread about the thickness of size 20–30 crochet thread, approximating fine netting silk, in dark emerald green, light green and ponceau
- Small metal-finish seed beads (steel-grey and/or gold), strung on the silk before working — steel-grey
- Tapestry needle for weaving in (“running”) the ends
- Hook: Start with a 1.3 mm (US steel 10) hook and adjust to suit your thread; no hook size or 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
Notes before you start
- Source: "A Purse with Beads in Plain and Open Crochet", My Crochet Sampler (Miss Lambert), D. M. Peyser, 1847. Public domain in the USA.
- As printed — materials: steel beads; fine netting silk of a dark emerald green; light green; ponceau. Gauge: Not given.
- Modernisation note: Victorian stitch names converted to modern US terms strictly by the book's own definitions (pp. 15–21, 57), not by modern UK equivalents: “plain double crochet”, “plain crochet”, “plain stitch” and “plain stitch double crochet” = sc; “plain single crochet” = sl st; “chain” = ch; “open crochet” = dc with ch 1 over a skipped st; the “double stitches” / “long stitches” of open crochet = dc; “double open crochet” = pairs of dc with an open space; “treble open crochet” = groups of 3 dc alternating with open spaces; “plain stitch open crochet” = ch-5 loops joined by sc to the centre of the loops below; “dividing”, “seam” or “raised” stitch = 2 sc in one st under both loops, stacked; “treble increased stitch” = 3 sc in one st; “double stitch crochet” = sc under both loops; “raised” or “ribbed” crochet and “plain stitch elastic crochet” = sc in back loop only, turning each row; “to increase” = 2 sc in one st; “to decrease” = sc2tog or sk 1; “to make a stitch” = ch 1 at each end of the row; “fasten off” = draw the yarn through the last st; “fasten on” = lay the new end along the work and crochet over both; “run the ends” = weave in ends. Note that the book's “double crochet” is a modern sc, and its “treble” never means a modern tr.
- Modernisation note: The book implies that ordinary plain crochet picks up only one loop of the stitch below (the seam stitch is made “under both loops instead of one”, and “double stitch crochet” takes “both meshes”), but it never says which loop. Instructions say sc. Check: for the period texture, try working through one loop as the book implies.
- Modernisation note: Period wording modernised: “needle” / “crochet needle” written as “hook”; “commence” as “begin”; “unite the ends” / “join both ends together” as “join into a ring” (the book does not name the joining stitch); “a chain and first row” as “ch, then Row 1”; “cheques” as “checks”. The book says “row” even when working round and round; “row” is kept as printed.
- Modernisation note: Printed paragraphs split into one step per row or instruction; no colours, counts or rows added, removed or reordered. Colour-sequence rows are written as “Row 4 (sc): 1 light green, 1 black, 5 red brown …”, meaning that many sc in each colour, in order.
- Modernisation note: Period silks have no exact modern equivalent. The book's hints (p. 22) rank them: crochet silk is “the coarsest” and best for bags; second-sized netting silk is “prettiest for purses”; fine netting silk and reel silk are finer. The modern silk or crochet-thread sizes given are approximations.
- Modernisation note: “Steel” and “gold” beads were small metal beads; use small metal-finish seed beads (no size printed). The book says beads “should be strung on the silk with a needle” before working, and that “when beads are introduced, the wrong side of the work becomes the right.”
- Modernisation note: No hook (needle) size and no gauge is printed — the book names only “steel” or “ivory” needles. 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. “Gold colour” is a golden-yellow yarn, whereas “gold” on its own in the silk designs means metallic gold thread or cord. “Ponceau” is poppy red, “drab” a dull greyish brown, “stone colour” a pale greyish beige, “claret” a deep wine red. By the book's own definitions (p. 24), “chiné” yarn is dyed in two or more colours at intervals along one thread, and “ombré” yarn shades gradually from light to dark in one colour.
- Modernisation note: The book's cross-reference “as directed page 65” is given as the name of that design.
- Modernisation note: Check: the length of the plain centre, its colour, and the second end of the purse are not described; presumably the other end mirrors the first.
- Modernisation note: Check: the book gives colours but no stitch-by-stitch directions for this chart; the design cannot be followed without the original engraving.
- Modernisation note: “Weave in ends” added.
Row progress: 0 of 4 done (0%)
Stitches
0 of 4 done- Stitch (book's definition): “Plain double crochet,—where two loops are kept on the needle, and the wool drawn through both before the stitch is finished” = single crochet (sc). The book adds that “unless any other stitch be mentioned, the plain, or double crochet stitch, is always to be employed”, so every stitch in these directions is sc unless another stitch is named. A “plain row” is a row of sc in one colour.Mark row complete
- Seam stitch (book's definition, “A dividing, or seam stitch,—called also a raised stitch”): “made by putting the needle through both meshes of the chain, and working two stitches in the same hole. These stitches must always be made exactly over each other.” = 2 sc in the same st, inserting the hook under both loops, placed directly above the seam stitch of the previous round (a stacked increase that forms a raised line and, in a circle, a star). The book adds: “They should not be employed when working with chenille.”Mark row complete
- Stitch (book's definition, “Open crochet”): begin with “one plain stitch”; yo, insert hook in the first loop of the chain and draw the yarn through (3 loops on hook), yo and draw through 2 loops, yo and draw through the last 2 loops (= dc); “through this one, make one plain stitch” (= ch 1), then work the next dc in the third loop of the chain (sk 1). Open crochet = sc, *dc, ch 1, sk 1; rep from * — a dc-and-ch-1 mesh (engraving No. 2).Mark row complete
- Reading the engraving (book, p. 21): “The engravings of the patterns are placed in the book as they are intended to be worked; that is, by commencing at the lower part, on the right hand side.” Read each chart from the bottom row upward, starting at the right-hand edge; one square = 1 sc.Mark row complete
Working on:
Stitch (book's definition): “Plain double crochet,—where two loops are kept on the needle, and the wool drawn through both before the stitch is finished” = single crochet (sc). The book adds that “unless any other stitch be mentioned, the plain, or double crochet stitch, is always to be employed”, so every stitch in these directions is sc unless another stitch is named. A “plain row” is a row of sc in one colour.
Continue this pattern
The rest of the Beaded Purse in Plain and Open Crochet (1847) pattern is in the Vintage Crochet Hats, Bags & Accessories
Still to come in the full pattern:
- One end
- Centre
- Finishing
Included with 202 patterns for $12 — $0.06 per pattern.
Errata
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Frequently asked questions
Where is the A Purse with Beads in Plain and Open Crochet pattern from?
It was published as "A Purse with Beads in Plain and Open Crochet" in My Crochet Sampler (Miss Lambert) by D. M. Peyser in 1847. 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 A Purse with Beads in Plain and Open Crochet?
Silk thread comparable to size 20–30 crochet thread (period: fine netting silk). Not printed.
What hook should I use?
Start with a 1.3 mm (US steel 10) hook and adjust to suit your thread; no hook size or gauge is printed. Gauge: Not printed. Work to the size of the article; the book sizes by counted stitches or measurement.
