The mushroom is similar to the widespread species Lepiota cristata but can be distinguished by its smaller spores.

The cap surface features a brownish to orange-brown center that breaks up into small scales concentrically distributed.

They are hyaline (translucent), smooth, and weakly stain reddish purple in Cresyl Blue.

The cap cuticle comprises a hymeniderm of tightly packed club-shaped to cylindrical hyphae that measure 14–60 by 5–13 μm.

[1] Lepiota cristatanea is known only from Yunnan Province, China, where it grows singly or in groups on humus-rich soils.