I’m so pleased with the way this cap turned out that I may keep it for myself, though I would reluctantly let it go to a good home and a 60cm head! The embroidery was performed at Araaish Designs in Mumbai following a pattern that I sent to them together with a piece of antique linen and a skein of silk from Mulberry Dyer.
This was the pattern I used. If you look closely you will note that I’ve lowered the crown somewhat. High crowned caps do appear in pictures but as the vast majority of surviving caps are of this lower crown style. I modified the original, removing a couple of the lower pomegranates and substituting strawberries instead. I chose the upper of the two borders for the turn-back edge.
This is the embroidery flat on the linen as it arrived from India. As you may imagine I couldn’t wait to put it together, but I had some other orders to finish first. The lower border is embroidered on the reverse so that it is right side out when folded in place.
I finally managed to put the cap together with a gathered liner and you can see the result at the top. Here are a few more details of the lovely needlework that the guys in Mumbai managed. I think it is nothing short of magicical, almost a masterpiece.
The 1642 Tailor 
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