Lace crochet cape pattern to wear 3 ways

This delicate lace crochet cape pattern is quite literally three summer crochet garments in one. Made from 4 matching lace crochet panels, you can seam and tie them to create a shawl, cape or lace crochet poncho to wear.

However you style it you’re sure to add a touch of elegance to any outfit making it perfect for weddings, date nights and more. 

Scroll down for the free crochet cape pattern, or purchase an ad-free, printable PDF version here:

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About this Lace Crochet Cape Pattern

Using just three beginner crochet stitches, the lace on the cape is formed from repetitive chain spaces and stitches that grow with each row to form the quarter circle shape. These quarter circles are then easily joined to create the lace crochet top that you’d like it to be!

I designed this with beginners in mind as I thought that crocheting smaller pieces of lace might be more manageable than tackling a whole semi circle to start with. Plus it then means that you can join them and wear it as a cape, shawl or poncho – whichever you prefer.

Here’s what each Panel looks like:

What is crochet lace?

When designing the lace cape I realised I wasn’t quite sure exactly what crochet lace is so I looked it up so that I could share it with you. Turns out the definition is quite simple.

Crochet lace is a crochet stitch pattern that uses chains along with stitches (often US double crochet and treble stitches) to create openwork crochet designs.

There are lots of types of crochet lace including:

• hairpin lace
• broomstick lace
• filet lace
• Bruges lace
• Irish crochet lace
• pineapple stitch lace

They are all worked slightly differently but ultimately all create that open stitch work that crochet lace is famous for.

The main thing I think people worry about is that you need to be an advanced crocheter to make crochet lace. I’m here to tell you that you don’t! This design uses just beginner stitches and so although it may look tricky I know that you can achieve it.

How to wear the crochet lace cape

The most exciting part of the design to me is that you can wear it so many ways! It’s such a versatile crochet project that completely transforms itself and the outfit you wear it with. Let me show you some options:

Tie front crochet lace capelet

Style 1 is more formal perhaps and would be great for a wedding cape I think. After seaming the cape panels, you can tie them at the front and back to form a traditionally tied capelet (just a word for a shorter cape).

Semi circle lace summer top

Style 2 is my favourite I think. Equally easy to throw on over a dress or jeans, this completely transforms your outfit and lifts it to the next level. Simply rotate the cape so that the ties are sitting on your shoulders and you’re done. This makes the top longer with the full semi circle sitting at both the front and back.

Simple lace shawl

Style 3 is perfect if capes aren’t your thing – throw it on as a shawl! You can just remove one tie and style it as an open shawl or tuck the ends in as I have to create more of a lace cowl look.

However you choose to wear it you can be confident of one thing, it will look amazing! Part of this is thanks to the beautiful yarn and the drape that it creates. The cape hangs so beautifully in every direction.

If you’re a lover of drape and want to try out something in straight construction then you might love my summer crochet cardigan pattern too!

Yarn

To make the crochet cape I used Watercolours and Lace | Alpaca Silk Lace (80% baby alpaca, 20% silk, 100g/800m).

1 skein of Deep Purple Anemone.

I often get asked about ideas for alternative yarns. Here are some that I think would work really well for this lace crochet pattern in various price ranges:

1. Luminance Lace by WeCrochet, 100% Mulberry Silk, 439yds/50g
2. Malabrigo Silkpaca, 70% Baby Alpaca, 30% Silk, 384m, 420yds/50g
3. WYS Exquisite, 80% Merino Wool, 20% Silk, 800m, 875yds/100g

If you’re new to working with lace weight yarn then I’d love to share with you my tips for how to crochet with thin yarn. It might seem intimidating at first but I promise it’s worth it once you get the hang of it.

Tension and Sizing

The lace cape is one size fits all – approx 184cm (72.5in) in circumference.

You can easily add both width and depth to it though by continuing with the set pattern after the last row or making your ties or seam chains longer.

Rows 1 – 10 measure 10cm x 10cm (4in x 4in) across straight edges using a 3mm hook, or size needed to obtain correct tension.

Materials

Along with your yarn, you will need the following:

• A 3mm(US C/2 or D/3) crochet hook- my favourites are Furls Streamline Swirl crochet hooks or Clover Amour crochet hooks.
• Scissors
• Tapestry Needle

Pattern Options

Get this lace crochet cape pattern free in this blog post in US terms – just scroll down to find it! You can also purchase an ad-free, printable PDF in both UK an US terms with added extras in my pattern stores: 

Don’t forget to join HanJan Crochet to receive regular discount codes (and more free patterns!) and Pin this delicate crochet lace top pattern to your crochet Pinterest board!

Glossary and Abbreviations

ch(s) – chain(s)

sp – space

ss – slip stitch

RS – right side

WS – wrong side

sk – skip

rep – repeat

yoh – yarn over hook

Crochet Stitches

UK Crochet Terminology	US Crochet Terminology
dc – double crochet	sc – single crochet
tr – treble crochet	dc – double crochet
dtr- double treble crochet	tr – treble crochet

Special Stitches

3 double crochet cluster stitch / US 3dc-cl

Yarn over, insert hook into st, yarn over and pull through, yarn over and pull through 2 loops] 3 times into same st or space, yarn over, pull through all loops on hook.

Tks (Tunisian knit stitch)

Loop on hook counts as first st, *insert hook through fabric from RS to WS going between the vertical strands on next st, yoh and pull through to RS, leave loop on hook; rep from * to end.

RetP (return pass)

Yoh and pull through one loop, (yoh and pull through 2 loops) rep across until 1 loop remains on hook.

The Tunisian stitches are used for the little ties but if you prefer you can use regular slip stitches or single crochet. If you’ve never tried Tunisian crochet before though this is a great place to start as you can do it on a regular crochet hook!

Watercolour Lace Cape Pattern Notes

The cape is made up of 4 identical Panels.

Each Panel is worked in rows throughout.

Turn your work after each row.

Panels are then joined together to make 2 pieces (semi circles).

One piece can be worn as a Shawl or the 2 pieces can be fastened together with a tie to be worn as a Cape.

When working the final st of a row, you will need to work the st into the third ch of the turning chain of the previous row.

Watercolour Lace Crochet Cape Pattern

US Crochet Terminology

Make a magic loop.

Row 1 (RS): ch4 (counts as st and ch1), (dc in loop, ch1) 4 times, dc in loop, turn. [6sts, 5 ch1- sps]

Row 2 (WS): ch5 (counts as st and ch2 throughout), (skip ch-sp, 2dc in next dc, ch2) 4 times, skip final ch-sp, dc in final st (third ch of beg ch-4 from Row 1), turn. [10sts, 5 ch-2 sps]

Row 3: ch5, (skip ch-sp, dc in next st, ch1, dc in next st, ch2) 4 times, skip ch-sp, dc in final st, turn. [10sts, 9 ch-sps]

Row 4: ch3, 2dc in first ch-sp, (ch1, skip 1 dc, 2dc in next ch-1 sp, ch1, skip 1 dc, 2dc in next ch-2 sp) 4 times, dc in final st, turn. [20sts, 8 ch-1 sps]

Row 5: ch5, skip next 2 dc, (3-dc cl in next ch-1 sp, ch3, skip next 2 sts) across to final ch-1 sp, 3-dc cl in ch-1 sp, ch2, skip 2 sts, dc in final st, turn. [10sts, 9 ch-sps]

Row 6: ch1 (does not count as a st throughout), sc in first st, ch2, (dc, ch1, dc) in next cluster st, ch2, * sc in ch-3 sp, ch2, (dc, ch1, dc) in next cluster st, ch2; rep from * across to final st, sc in final st, turn. [25sts, 24 ch-sps]

Row 7: ch5, skip ch-2 sp, skip dc, sc in first ch-1 sp, (ch7, sc in next ch-1 sp) rep across to final ch-1 sp, sc in final ch-1 sp, ch2, dc in final st, turn. [10 sts, 9 ch-sps]

Row 8: ch1, sc in first st, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, *(dc, ch2, dc) in next sc, ch2, sc in next ch-7 sp, ,ch2; rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, sc in final st, turn. [25sts, 24 ch-sps]

Row 9: ch5, skip ch-2 sp, skip dc, *sc in next ch-2 sp, ch8, skip (dc, ch2, sc, ch2, dc); rep from * to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-sp, dc in final st, turn. [10sts, 9 ch-sps]

Row 10: ch1, sc in first st, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, *(dc, ch2, dc) in next sc, ch2, sc in next ch-8 sp, ch2; rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, sc in final st, turn. [25sts, 24 ch-sps]

Row 11: ch5, skip ch-2 sp, skip dc, *sc in next ch-2 sp, ch9, skip (dc, ch2, sc, ch2, dc); rep from * to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-sp, dc in final st, turn. [10sts, 9 ch-sps]

Row 12: ch1, sc in first st, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, *(dc, ch4, dc) in next sc, ch3, sc in next ch-9 sp, ch3; rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, sc in final st, turn. [25sts, 24 ch-sps]

Row 13: ch5, skip ch-2 sp, skip dc, *sc in next ch-4 sp, ch10, skip (dc, ch3, sc, ch3, dc); rep from * to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-sp, dc in final st, turn. [10sts, 9 ch-sps]

Row 14: ch1, sc in first st, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, *(dc, ch5, dc) in next sc, ch3, sc in next ch-10 sp, ch3; rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, sc in final st, turn. [25sts, 24 ch-sps]

Row 15: ch5, skip ch-2 sp, skip dc, *sc in next ch-5 sp, ch11, skip (dc, ch3, sc, ch3, dc); rep from * to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-sp, dc in final st, turn. [10sts, 9 ch-sps]

Row 16: ch1, sc in first st, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, *(dc, ch6, dc) in next sc, ch3, sc in next ch-11 sp, ch3; rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, sc in final st, turn. [25sts, 24 ch-sps]

Row 17: ch5, skip ch-2 sp, skip dc, *sc in next ch-6 sp, ch12, skip (dc, ch3, sc, ch3, dc); rep from * to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-sp, dc in final st, turn. [10sts, 9 ch-sps]

Row 18: ch1, sc in first st, ch4, skip ch-2 sp, *(dc, ch7, dc) in next sc, ch4, sc in next ch-12 sp, ch4; rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, sc in final st, turn. [25sts, 24 ch-sps]

Row 19: ch7 (counts as st and ch4 throughout), skip ch-4 sp, skip dc, * sc in next ch-7 sp, ch6, skip dc, skip ch-4 sp, (dc, ch1, dc) in next sc, ch6, skip ch-4 sp, skip tr; rep from * across to final ch-4 sp, ch4, skip ch-4 sp, dc in final st, turn. [16sts, 24 ch-sps]

Row 20: ch5, skip ch-4 sp, *(dc, ch2, dc) in next sc, ch5, skip ch-6 sp, skip dc, (dc, ch2, dc) in next ch-1 sp, ch5, skip dc, skip ch-6 sp; rep from * across to final ch-4 sp, ch2, skip ch-4 sp, dc in final st, turn. [34sts, 33 ch-sps]

Row 21: ch5, skip ch-2 sp, skip dc, *(dc, ch3, dc) in next ch-2 sp, ch5, skip (dc, ch-5 sp, dc); rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, dc in final st, turn.

Row 22: ch5, skip ch-2 sp, skip dc, *(dc, ch4, dc) in next ch-3 sp, ch5, skip (dc, ch-5 sp, dc); rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, dc in final st, turn.

Row 23: ch5, skip ch-2 sp, skip dc, *(dc, ch5, dc) in next ch-4 sp, ch5, skip (dc, ch-5 sp, dc); rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, dc in final st, turn.

Row 24: ch7 (counts as st and ch2 throughout), skip ch-2 sp, skip dc, *(tr, ch6, tr) in next ch-5 sp, ch5, skip (dc, ch-5 sp, dc); rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, tr in final st, turn.

Row 25: ch6, skip ch-2 sp, skip tr, *(3tr, ch1, 3tr) in next ch-6 sp, ch1, skip (tr, ch-5 sp, tr); rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, tr in final st, turn. [98sts, 33 ch-sps]

Row 26: ch6, skip ch-2 sp, skip 3tr, *(2tr, ch3, 2tr) in next ch-1 sp, ch2, skip (3tr, ch-1 sp, 3tr); rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, tr in final st, turn. [66sts, 33 ch-sps]

Row 27: ch6, skip ch-2 sp, skip 2tr, *(tr, ch5, tr) in next ch-3 sp, ch3, skip (2tr, ch-2 sp, 2tr); rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, tr in final st, turn. [34sts, 33 ch-sps]

Row 28: ch6, skip ch-2 sp, skip tr, *(3tr, ch1, 3tr) in next ch-5 sp, ch4, skip (tr, ch-3 sp, tr); rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, tr in final st, turn. [98sts, 33 ch-sps]

Row 29: ch6, skip ch-2 sp, skip 3tr, *(2tr, ch3, 2tr) in next ch-1 sp, ch5, skip (3tr, ch-4 sp, 3tr); rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, tr in final st, turn. [66sts, 33 ch-sps]

Row 30: ch6, skip ch-2 sp, skip 2tr, *(tr, ch5, tr) in next ch-3 sp, ch6, skip (2tr, ch-5 sp, 2tr); rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, tr in final st, turn. [34sts, 33 ch-sps]

Row 31: ch6, skip ch-2 sp, skip tr, *(3tr, ch1, 3tr) in next ch-5 sp, ch7, skip (tr, ch-6 sp, tr); rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, tr in final st, turn. [98sts, 33 ch-sps]

Row 32: ch6, skip ch-2 sp, skip 3tr, *(2tr, ch3, 2tr) in next ch-1 sp, ch8, skip (3tr, ch-7 sp, 3tr); rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, tr in final st, turn. [66sts, 33 ch-sps]

Row 33: ch6, skip ch-2 sp, skip 2tr, *(tr, ch5, tr) in next ch-3 sp, ch9, skip (2tr, ch-8 sp, 2tr); rep from * across to final ch-2 sp, ch2, skip ch-2 sp, tr in final st, turn. [34sts, 33 ch-sps]

Fasten off.

TO MAKE UP

Block each Panel to measure approximately 46cm (18in) along straight edges.

With RS facing you, place 2 Panels next to each other with the straight edges lined up.

Join yarn in the corner on one Panel with a ss, ch4, ss in Row 1 on adjacent Panel, *ch6, ss in next row-end on first Panel, ch4, ss in adjacent row-end on second Panel; rep from * until all rows have been joined.

Fasten off.

Join the other 2 Panels in the same way.

CAPE TIES

Make 2

The Cape Ties are worked using Tunisian stitches.

You can use a regular crochet hook for this as it is worked in short rows.

Foundation chain: ch6

Row 1 (RS): insert hook in second ch from hook, yoh and pull up a loop, leave loop on hook, *insert hook in next ch, yoh and pull up loop, leave loop on hook; rep from * 3 times more (6 loops on hook), yoh and pull through one loop, (yoh and pull through 2 loops) 5 times. [6 Tss]

Row 2: Tks in each across, RetP across. [6 Tks]

Rep Row 2 until ties measures 48cm (19in).

With WS facing, ss the long edges together to form a tube.

Fasten off.

Turn so RS is facing you; you may need to use your crochet hook to pull one end through.

TO MAKE UP

Sew the open ends if the Ties closed. Secure the Ties to join the 2 pieces together and the front and back.

Weave in all ends.

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More Crochet Patterns You Might Enjoy

If you enjoy making lightweight summer crochet garments here are a couple more patterns and tutorials you would enjoy crocheting!