Dainty knitted lace cap

 

I bought this pretty little lace cap a couple of months ago and have been trying to find out more about it since then. I think the thread is fine cotton and it was obviously knitted on very thin wire needles. I think it's homemade rather than something that would have been bought commercially. It seems to be a cap for special occasions rather than everyday wear as it is decorative rather than practical.

Tessa Lorant, in her book on knitted laces, includes an image of a Victorian eight-pointed star doily, which exactly matches the crown of this cap. The cap could therefore be Victorian or could have been made later from a Victorian pattern.

Tessa’s book also includes numerous patterns for lace edgings and one of them called ‘double rose leaf edging’ seems to have been used in two different sizes round the crown of the cap. It is interesting that all the edgings in the image naturally form curved lines rather than being straight, so are ideal for edging a cap.

The same pattern is also used along the base of the cap, forming the part that encircles the neck. This section seems to have been worked as a separate edging that was sewn on to the upper part. The two ends of the cap are slightly different though suggesting that the maker might have been using an existing strip of lace edging to form the neck part which wasn’t quite the right size. I can’t find any means of securing the cap when it is being worn. However, there is a line of open twisted bars above the lower rose leaf edging and I wonder if a fine ribbon was threaded through this line of faggoting, which could have been drawn up and tied in a bow under the chin to keep the cap in place. I think it’s a lovely little piece and will continue my research to find out more about it.