Free preview · full pattern in the Vintage Crochet Edgings & Trims
Honiton Sprig in Crochet (Victorian): vintage crochet pattern
A small Victorian crochet imitation of a Honiton lace sprig in Brooks' Goat's-head crochet cotton No. 60: a chain stem with a pair of leaves and a three-petalled flower, made to be laid on net or joined with others into lace.
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 | 0.6 mm |
| Gauge | Not printed. Work to the size of the article. |
| Finished size | Not printed. |
| Time | about 6 hours |
Materials
- White cotton crochet thread about size 60–80 (period: Brooks' Goat's-head Crochet Cotton No. 60)
- Fine sewing needle; Brussels (bobbinet) net if the sprigs are to be applied
- Hook: Start with a 0.6 mm (US steel 14 or finer) hook and adjust to suit your thread; the book names “Penelope Hook, No. 24”, 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
- slip stitch
- single crochet
- double crochet
- treble crochet
- double crochet two together
- stitch
- stitches
- skip
Notes before you start
- Source: "Honiton Sprig", The Ladies' Work-Book, John Cassell, La Belle Sauvage Yard, Ludgate Hill, London (no year printed). Public domain in the USA.
- As printed — materials: Brooks' Great Exhibition Prize Goat's-head Crochet Cotton, No. 60. Penelope Hook, No. 24. 6 ch. for the end of the stem.. Gauge: Not given.
- Modernisation note: Stitch names converted to modern US terms strictly by the book's own crochet lesson: “chain” / “ch.” = ch; “slip” / “slip-stitch” = sl st; “single crochet” / “s.c.” = sc; “double crochet” / “double” / “d.c.” = dc; “treble crochet” / “treble” / “t.c.” = tr; “long treble” / “long t.c.” = dtr; “long” / “l.” = dc (one wrap, from the book's “double long … twisting the cotton twice”); “open square” = dc, ch 2, sk 2; “close square” = 3 dc; “diminished” / “contracted” stitch = dc2tog; “miss” = sk; “loop” (of a chain or row) = st. In this book “double crochet” means the same stitch as the modern US dc, and “single crochet” the modern sc.
- Modernisation note: Period wording modernised: “needle” written as “hook”; “commence” as “begin”; “unite” / “close into a round” as “join into a ring”; “round loop” as “ring”; “receipt” as “directions”; “scollop” as “scallop”. Round and row numbers are kept as printed.
- Modernisation note: Printed paragraphs split into one step per round, row or instruction; no stitches, counts or rows added, removed or reordered. Words in square brackets or marked “Check:” are ours, and the printed wording is quoted wherever a reading was needed.
- Modernisation note: Brooks' Great Exhibition Prize Goat's-head Crochet Cotton (and its Knitting Cord) was a period English cotton sold by number; the lower the number, the thicker the cotton. Its numbers do not match modern crochet-thread sizes exactly; the modern size given is an approximate equivalent only.
- Modernisation note: The book's “Penelope Hook, No. 24” is out of line with the Penelope numbers used elsewhere in the book (Nos. 1–5); it was probably a very fine steel hook by gauge number. The modern hook is an approximate suggestion only.
- Modernisation note: No yardage is printed and none is estimated.
- Modernisation note: No illustration is given for this sprig.
- Modernisation note: Check: “2 contracted d.c. stitches on the next 4” is read as two dc2tog (each over 2 sts), by the book's “To contract an edge”.
- Modernisation note: Check: the text does not say where the flower's first petal chain (“10 ch., miss 4 d.c. in the fifth”) is worked back along; read it as worked back along the new chain, forming the open centre petal, with the second petal worked down the chain of 11.
- Modernisation note: Check: “Do 9 slip stitches up the last row” and “Sc on the seven chains of the stem, before you get to the leaf” are kept as printed; compare with the general directions for the order of working.
Row progress: 0 of 5 done (0%)
Stitches
0 of 5 done- Slip-stitch (book's definition): “made by drawing a thread at once through any given stitch and the loop which is on the needle.” = sl st.Mark row complete
- Single crochet, “s.c.” (book's definition): “Having a loop on the needle, insert the hook in a stitch, and draw the thread through in a loop. You then have two on the hook; draw the thread through both at once.” = sc.Mark row complete
- Double crochet, “d.c.” (book's definition): “Twist the thread round the hook before inserting it in the stitch, through which you draw the thread in a loop. Three loops being then on the needle, draw the thread through two, and then through the one just formed and the remaining one.” = dc.Mark row complete
- Treble crochet, “t.c.”, and long treble, “long t.c.” (book's definition): “worked in the same manner; in the former the thread is put twice, in the latter three times, round the hook, before inserting it into the stitch.” = tr and dtr.Mark row complete
- To contract an edge / diminished stitch (book's definition): “Having twisted the thread round the needle as often as the stitch may require, insert it in the work, and half-do a stitch. Instead of completing it, again twist the thread round, until the same number of loops are on, and work a stitch completely. Thus, for two stitches taken in the work, there is only one head.” = for d.c., a dc2tog.Mark row complete
Working on:
Slip-stitch (book's definition): “made by drawing a thread at once through any given stitch and the loop which is on the needle.” = sl st.
Continue this pattern
The rest of the Honiton Sprig in Crochet (Victorian) pattern is in the Vintage Crochet Edgings & Trims
Still to come in the full pattern:
- General directions for Honiton sprigs (book)
- Sprig
- Finishing
Included with 618 patterns for $9 — $0.01 per pattern.
Errata
No corrections have been published for this pattern. Found a mistake? Tell us and we will log the fix here with a date.
Your notes on this pattern
Keep track of the yarn, hook and changes you used. Saved in this browser only — nobody else can see it.
Frequently asked questions
Where is the Honiton Sprig pattern from?
It was published as "Honiton Sprig" in The Ladies' Work-Book by John Cassell, La Belle Sauvage Yard, Ludgate Hill, London (no year printed). 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 Honiton Sprig?
Cotton crochet thread about size 60–80 (period: Brooks' No. 60). Not printed.
What hook should I use?
Start with a 0.6 mm (US steel 14 or finer) hook and adjust to suit your thread; the book names “Penelope Hook, No. 24”, and no gauge is printed. Gauge: Not printed. Work to the size of the article.
