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Lounging Cap in Berlin Wool with Roses (Victorian): vintage crochet pattern
A Victorian gentleman's lounging (smoking) cap worked entirely in single crochet over cord: a black-and-scarlet band with a wreath of roses and leaves in white and gray floss silk and five greens, a matching round crown, and a shaded tassel.
By the crochetpatterns.io editorial team · Updated · Editorial policy · pattern testing in progress
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Skill level | Advanced |
| Yarn weight | Super fine (#1) |
| Yardage | As printed: skeins by colour (skein length not printed). |
| Hook | 3 mm |
| Gauge | Not printed. Work to the size of the article. |
| Finished size | Not printed. Band and crown are each 240 sts round. |
| Time | about 15 hours |
Materials
- Fingering-weight (CYC #1) soft wool, approximating Berlin wool: 6 skeins bright scarlet; 6 skeins each of 5 shades of green; 12 skeins black; 4 skeins gray, as printed
- Stranded silk embroidery floss (period: floss silk or filoselle): 4 skeins white and 4 skeins gray, as printed
- A ball of thin cotton cord to work over (period: crochet cord)
- A shaded tassel; scarlet lining silk if desired
- Tapestry needle for weaving in ends
- Hook: Start with 3.0 mm (US C-2/D-3) and adjust so the stitches cover the cord closely; no hook size or gauge is printed.
Yarn Kit & Substitution Options
This pattern calls for 350 yards of weight #1 yarn. Select a suggested yarn to see required skeins and estimated cost:
Knit Picks Stroll Sock · 75% Superwash Merino, 25% Nylon
231 yds per skein · Durable stitch definition, machine washable
2 skeins required
approx. $$13.98 total
Abbreviations (US terms)
- single crochet
- stitch
- stitches
- round
- repeat
Notes before you start
- Source: "Lounging Cap", The Ladies' Work-Book, John Cassell, La Belle Sauvage Yard, Ludgate Hill, London (no year printed). Public domain in the USA.
- As printed — materials: Six skeins of bright scarlet Berlin wool; 5 shades of green ditto, 6 skeins each; 12 skeins of black, and 4 of gray; 4 skeins of white, and 4 of gray floss silk, or filoselle. A handsome shaded tassel, and a ball of crochet cord.. 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: The book's colour letters are spelled out: “s.” = scarlet, “g.” = green (gray in the crown's Rnds 4–5, where the colours are “Black and gray”), “b.” = black, “w.” = white floss silk, “gray” = gray floss silk.
- Modernisation note: Berlin wool was a fine, soft worsted-spun wool; no thread count is printed for this cap, so fingering weight (CYC #1) is assumed. Floss silk or filoselle was a loosely twisted embroidery silk; modern stranded silk floss is the nearest equivalent. Check: approximate.
- Modernisation note: No hook size and no gauge is printed. 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. “Cerise” is a deep cherry pink; “maize” a soft yellow; “stone-colour” and “drab” pale greyish browns; “slate” a blue-grey.
- Modernisation note: Check: band Rnd 8 adds up to 52 sts per repeat and Rnd 12 to 47, instead of 48; compare with the engraving.
- Modernisation note: Check: the crown's Rnd 13 is missing from the book (Rnd 12 is followed by Rnd 14); work a round that moves the pattern from Rnd 12 to Rnd 14 with the illustration as a guide.
- Modernisation note: Check: the crown's increases are not stated between Rnds 12 and 18 (the repeats grow from 19 to 26 sts); keep the pattern centred as the book directs.
- Modernisation note: Check: the shades of green are named inconsistently (“darkest”, “second darkest”, “third shade”, “next lightest”, “lightest”); five shades are used, darkest at the edges of the band.
Row progress: 0 of 4 done (0%)
Stitches
0 of 4 done- 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
- To work over cord (book): “Hold it in the left hand, with the work, and work round it, as you would if it were merely an end of thread. The stitches must, however, be sufficiently close to cover it entirely.”Mark row complete
- To work with several colours (book): “Hold the threads not in use along the edge of the work, and work them in. When the colour is to be changed, begin the stitch with the old colour, and complete it with the new, which continue to work with, holding the other in.” = carry the unused strands inside the stitches and change colour on the last yo of the stitch before (tapestry crochet).Mark row complete
- Repeat marks (book): asterisks, crosses and daggers mark repeats — “in every row or round, if one of any kind is used, a second, similar one, is sure to be found; and that the repetition occurs between the two”. Written here with *…* and (…).Mark row complete
Working on:
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.
Continue this pattern
The rest of the Lounging Cap in Berlin Wool with Roses (Victorian) pattern is in the Vintage Crochet Hats, Bags & Accessories
Still to come in the full pattern:
- Colour key
- Band round the head
- Top of the cap
- Joining band and top
- Finishing
Included with 202 patterns for $12 — $0.06 per pattern.
Errata
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Frequently asked questions
Where is the Lounging Cap pattern from?
It was published as "Lounging Cap" 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 Lounging Cap?
super fine (#1) yarn. As printed: skeins by colour (skein length not printed).
What hook should I use?
Start with 3.0 mm (US C-2/D-3) and adjust so the stitches cover the cord closely; no hook size or gauge is printed. Gauge: Not printed. Work to the size of the article.
