Hey guys!
My name is Sam, owner and designer of Casale Crafts. I am beyond excited to be sharing this pattern with you today! I'm so glad that I can finally say that, as I have spent most of my time since finding out that I would be featured being kind of terrified. I have been crocheting for about 4 or 5 years now, and crochet is very near and dear to my heart. It has always been there for me through my worst days, helping me cope with anxiety and panic attacks, and calming my mind when I need it the most. Although crochet is a HUGE part of my life, I am not so familiar with pattern writing, I have only started recently and let me tell you it is some serious business. After years of picking up yarn and making whatever came to mind with no real notes or specifications, it has been a challenging transition to actually make patterns for my designs. It takes a lot of discipline for me to simply stop what I'm working on to take an in progress photo for a pattern, which is probably 99% because I usually crochet in bed and am far too comfortable/lazy to get up, but still it is an added step that I am not yet used to. With this in mind, I had about 5 other designs that I thought would end up being the feature pattern before I stuck with this one, and I'm not even gonna to try to lie, the other 5 were scrapped largely due to my arch nemesis - Math. I feel like you don't truly realize how much math goes into crochet design until you try to write your own patterns and then suddenly making a cardigan feels like doing astro physics (probably). I am definitely one of those individuals whose brain completely shuts down the second anything more complicated than addition and subtraction comes into play, but because crochet has honestly been the one hobby/craft in my life that I haven't given up on when I don't understand something, I feel like I owe it to myself to brave the learning curve of writing patterns.
In the end, I found myself sticking to this pattern, The Fleur dress! It is comprised of join-as-you-go granny squares which are designed by the lovely Lily at Mango Tree Crafts. In the end I had to slightly modify these granny squares to work for a join-as-you-go work flow because it saves A LOT of time from having to sew them all together at the end, and if you are impatient like me, you are always looking for ways to save time on a project haha.
So here it is!
Materials:
-Lily Sugar and Cream Scents in Chamomile (or any 4 weight worsted cotton yarn)
- With the gauge in mind each ball of Lily Sugar and Cream can make approximately 5 squares (I ended up using about 8 balls of the yarn for the entire dress which I made in a size XS.
- Also keep in mind that the Lily Sugar and Cream Solids are more yardage than all of the other lines of Sugar and Cream yarn. So if you decide to work with a Sugar and Cream Solid, you can probably get about 6 squares per ball.
-6mm and 4.5mm Crochet Hooks
-Stitch Markers
-Yarn Needle
Measurements:
- Around Under The Bust
- Around the widest part of hips
- From underarm to the desired length
Abbreviations
-CH - Chain
-SC – Single Crochet
-DC – Double Crochet
-SS - Slip Stitch
Gauge
-Squares - 4"x 4" (6.00 mm hook)
-Lace Up Extension - 3 rows of SC = 1" Wide (4.50 hook)
Finding your size
As you can see above, I have a size chart indicating the finished measurements of different dress sizes. Even if you generally know what dress size you usually are when purchasing clothing, I still highly suggest taking your personal measurements for your bust and hips and comparing you measurements to the ones above to find out which size is closest to your personal measurements, it will determine how many squares you need to make/join together.
Making the Squares
So starting with how to make the actual granny squares, I used this pattern from the lovely Lily at Mango Tree Crafts and made a few slight alterations to make them more join-as-you-go friendly. So go ahead and take a look at her pattern on how to make the squares but keep the following alterations in mind when working Round 3!
- Round 3: Insert hook under CH3 and work SC, CH5 (CHAIN 2 INSTEAD), SC in next CH3,
- Insert hook under next CH3 and work 5 DC, CH4 (CHAIN 3 INSTEAD), 5 DC in the same CH3, SC in next CH3, CH5 (CHAIN 2 INSTEAD), SC in next CH3,
- Repeat *5 DC, CH4 (CHAIN 3 INSTEAD), 5 DC in the same CH3, SC in next CH3, CH5 (CHAIN 2 INSTEAD), SC in next CH3* two more times, 5 DC, CH4 (CHAIN 3 INSTEAD), 5 DC and join with SL ST to complete the round.
Once you have made one square, you will begin working the rest as "join-as-you-go", here is a video explaining how to work them together!
As you will be able to see in some of the progress photos, for the top part of my dress I had actually originally had 2 rows of squares at the top, but because I have a relatively smaller bust, the waistline mesh ended up sitting more on my hips than my waist, so I took out one row of the top and added it to the bottom section instead. It is because of this that I only provided the amount of squares across needed in the chart above, because the length of the bust and bottom portion is really up to the individuals preference. (When deciding how many rows down you wish to have on the top, keep in mind that the mesh section worked on top of the bust portion adds 1")
Mesh Waistline Portion
Once you are happy with the size of your bust portion you will begin working the waistline mesh section along the bottom of it (At this point switch to a 4.5 hook!).
Row 1:
- Work SC into each stitch across the bottom on waist portion.As you may have noticed, each side of the square has 16 stitches, so multiply that by how many squares you have across [plus 1 SC, because the mesh needs to be worked in an odd number] and you have the total amount of SC stitches that should be worked into the bottom of the waist portion. (# of squares across x 16 + 1 = # of SC stitches)
- Chain 3 and turn
Row 2:
- Skip the first stitch and slip stitch into the next stitch
- Chain 3, skip one stitch and slip stitch into the next stitch
- Repeat Step 2 all the way to the end of the row
- Chain 3 and turn
Row 3-4:
- Slip stitch into the first chain 3 space, Chain 3
- Slip stitch into the next chain 3 space, Chain 3
- Repeat Step 3 until the end of the row, (Chain 3 and turn on Row 3) (Chain 1 and turn on Row 4)
Row 5:
- Work 2 SC into each "Chain 3" Space
- Chain 4 and turn
Row 6:
- Skip the first stitch and DC into the next stitch
- Chain 1, Skip one stitch, DC into the next stitch
- Continue Step 2 until you reach the end of the row
- Chain 1 and turn
Row 7:
- Work 1 SC into the Chain 1 space
- Work 1 SC into the top of the DC
- Repeat steps 1-2 until the end of the row
- Chain 3 and turn
Row 8:
- Skip the first stitch and slip stitch into the next stitch
- Chain 3, skip one stitch and slip stitch into the next stitch
- Repeat Step 2 all the way to the end of the row
- Chain 3 and turn
Row 9-10:
- Slip stitch into the first chain 3 space, Chain 3
- Slip stitch into the next chain 3 space, Chain 3
- Repeat Step 3 until the end of the row, (Chain 3 and turn on Row 9) (Chain 1 and turn on Row 10)
Row 11:
- Work 1 SC into the first "Chain 3" Space - This is so you go back to the original amount of stitches you had before you added 1 extra SC for the mesh
- Work 2 SC into each following "Chain 3" Space until the end of the row
- Tie off
You have now finished the waistline mesh portion and can begin working on the Bottom Portion!
Bottom Portion (Switch back to the 6 MM Hook!)
Because hips are usually a little bit wider than an individuals bust, the bottom portion will have 1 extra square added to each row (unless your hips are a bit wider and you need more than 1 square, you can base this off of your personal measurements)
These squares will be worked and joined the exact same way that you did in the bust portion, and will need to be sewn onto the mesh waistline. When you have joined all of your squares for the bottom portion, be sure to work 1 row of SC along the top to the squares where you are going to be sewing it together to the mesh waistline. This number of SC's that you are working along the top will be the # of squares you have across on your bottom portion x 16. For example, for my dress I had 7 squares across on the bottom section (7 x 16 = 112), therefore I work 112 SC stitches along the top of my bottom portion.
After you have completed this, you will begin sewing the bottom portion onto the mesh waistline, this is where a little bit of math comes into play, but hopefully the explanation simplifies it!
Because you are adding a square (or squares) to the same amount of stitches as your initial amount of stitches you are going to be doubling up on a few stitches to squeeze those extra squares into the waistline.
So essentially, you take the number of stitches you had on your waistline that you were working with earlier when creating the waistband [for me this number was 96 because my bust section was made up of 6 squares, each of which has 16 stitches on the side (6 x 16 = 96)].
Then you will find the total number of stitches you are trying to squeeze in, which is based on how many squares you are adding, if you are adding just 1 square to the bottom portion, you are trying to squeeze in an extra 16 stitches to the waistband. If you are adding 2 squares to the bottom portion, you are trying to squeeze in an extra 32 stitches to the waistband. (I added 1 square so my number was 16)
Once you have those numbers, you take the number of stitches on your waistband and divide it by the number of stitches you are trying to squeeze in. ( For me it was 96 / 16 = 6). The number that you are left with is your indication of what stitch to double up on, so when I was sewing my bottom section onto the waistband, I made sure that every 6th stitch on the waistband I sewed in TWO stitches from the bottom portion. I hope that makes sense! haha
So once you have the bottom portion sewed on, you can tie off at the end and begin working on the lace up extension in the back!
This is what mine looked like after I had completed the top and bottom sections and sewed it onto the mesh waistline.
Lace Up Extension (Switch back to the 4.5 Hook!)
Now this portion is pretty customizable. As the size chart shows each size of the dress is an increase of 4 inches, it isn't supposed to be an extremely form fitting dress so each size will be a little loose, however if you wish for the dress to be somewhere between those 4 inches, this is the section to customize it! Just be sure that you add an ODD amount of rows!As the gauge shows, every 3 rows of SC that you work for the extension with the 4.5 hook will come out to be 1" wide. The instructions below will be based on each side of the extension being a total of 2 inches, but if you plan on changing it, the concept is the same.
Row 1:
For this row it is important that you know how many SC stitches to work onto the side of the dress. You can find this number by again, counting how many squares you have (as each side is a total of 16 stitches). For example as you can see my dress is a total of 5 rows of squares, therefore 5 x 16 = 80. If you worked the waistband as specified, that will add 12 stitches to the amount that you are supposed to work along the side (80 + 12 = 92). Therefore I needed to work 92 stitches along the side of the dress. Make sure that you work the SAME amount of stitches on the other side of the dress as well so that the extension portions are even.
- Work the number of SC stitches that your math indicates, along the side of the dress.
- Chain 1 and turn.
Row 2-5:
- Repeat Row 1 for the next 3 rows
- Chain 2 and turn
Row 6:
This is the row where you will be making the holes for your lace to go through. If you are doing your own amount of rows for the extension, just make sure that your second to late row is where you make your lace holes.
- Skip your first stitch and SC into the next stitch
- SC into the next 3 stitches, Chain 1 and skip a stitch
- SC into the next 4 stitches, Chain 1 and skip a stitch
- Repeat rows 3 until you reach the end of the row
- Chain 1 and turn.
Row 7:
- Work a SC into each stitch across the row, including the Chain 1 spaces (you should end up with the same amount of stitches that you started with)
- Tie off
Be sure to repeat this on the other side of the dress for the other side of the extension, checking that your stitch counts are the same so that the two extension sides line up and are the same length.
Once you have finished working the other side of the extension you will add a single strand of whatever yarn you were using and lace it through the holes as you would shoe laces (or whatever style of lacing that you choose, you can get fancy and try some corset lacing haha). Do note that the lace up part is just a design element and not a functioning element, it is not the main thing keeping the dress together, so be sure to lace it tight so that there are no openings to see through the dress!
After you have done this you will be adding the Top Mesh and Straps Portion!
This is what mine looked like after adding the Lace Up Extension
Top Mesh and Strap Portion
For this portion, the "back side" of the dress will be worked in SC and the "front side" will be worked in mesh. As you can see from my original work in progress photos, I had done mesh all around the top of the dress. I do NOT recommend this haha, It caused the back portion to kind of stretch and fall on top of itself and was not a tight fit to the back nor was it a flattering look haha.
I measured the "back side/ front side" difference by figuring out how many SC's I needed to work along the top and then literally dividing it in half, which worked well because hypothetically the half point of dress should fall right under the armpit which is where you would want the mesh to start anyway so it works out perfectly!
Row 1:
Like I said above, you are going to need to find out how many SC's you are going to need to work along the top of the dress. This number will be the same number from your waistband PLUS the amount of rows you added in your extension portion. So for example, for mine my waistband number was 96 and I added a total of 14 rows with my extension, therefore my total number of SC's along the top of the dress needed to be 110.
- Work the number of SC stitches that your math indicates, along the top of the dress.
- Slip stitch into the first stitch of the row, Chain 1 and turn.
Row 2:
We have a little bit of math in this section as well, so since the top of the dress is being "split in half" by the "front side" and "back side", you are first of all going to have to take that total number of SC's you just worked and divide it in half (so for me 110 / 2 = 55). Now I know that 55 stitches need to be SC (for the back) and 55 Stitches need to be mesh (for the front).
The back odd number single crochet stitches will need to be divided by two as well, which as you know will not divide to be an even number. Unfortunately because the mesh portion needs to be an odd number, this is unavoidable. Therefore, one portion of the single crochet will need to be one stitch more than the other, which is extremely negligible and will not effect the appearance of the dress. So it will be separated as shown in the diagram below (excuse my poor diagram skills haha)
(Example from my dress)
Total Stitches =110
Half of total stitches = 55
Fourth of Total = 27
Fourth of Total (plus extra odd stitch) = 28
Be sure to plug in your own numbers!
- Work your Fourth of the Total # in SC stitches
- (This is where you begin the mesh portion) Chain 3 skip one stitch and slip stitch into the next stitch,
- Repeat Step 2 until you have reach your Half of the Total Stitched # (this number can be counted by counting the stitches you have skipped and slip stitched into, not the number that you have chained) your last stitch should be a skipped stitch.
- Since your last stitch of the mesh section was supposed to be a skipped stitch, starting in the next stitch, work your Fourth of the Total (plus extra odd stitch) # in SC all the way to the end of the row.
- Slip stitch into the first SC of the row, Chain 1 and turn.
Row 3:
- Work your Fourth of the Total (plus extra odd stitch) # in SC stitches
- Chain 3 and slip stitch into the chain 3 space,
- Repeat Step 2 until you have reached the end of the mesh portion (end on a chain 3)
- Working into the SC stitch from the row below, work your Fourth of the Total # in SC all the way to the end of the row.
- Slip stitch into the first SC of the row, Chain 1 and turn.
Row 4:
- Work your Fourth of the Total # in SC stitches
- Chain 3 and slip stitch into the chain 3 space.
- Repeat Step 2 until you have reach the end of the mesh portion (end on a chain 3)
- Working into the SC stitch from the row below, work your Fourth of the Total (plus extra odd stitch) # in SC all the way to the end of the row.
- Slip stitch into the first SC of the row, Chain 1 and turn
Row 5:
- Work SC stitches all along the row until the end (be sure to work 1 SC into the SC stitches from the previous row and 2 SC into each chain 3 space)
- Tie off
Straps
Since everyone is a different size, the straps will need to be placed on an individual level for comfort and efficiency (straps constantly slipping off is the worst feeling is it not? haha). For this I suggest slipping into the dress and putting stitch markers on the front of the dress on the spots where you think the straps would feel the most comfortable on you. Try to make them as even as possible.
After you have done this, take the dress off and find the point on each side of the dress from your top mesh section where the mesh meets the single crochet (this should be your "armpit point") count the amount of stitches from this point to where you placed your stitch marker. Again do this for both sides, the amount may not be exactly the same for each stitch marker since you originally placed them by eye, but they should be close. Move the stitch markers so that they are the same amount of stitches away from the "armpit point" on each side.
Now count that same amount of stitches in the opposite direction (toward the back of the dress) on both sides, and place stitch markers there, this will make it so that your straps will be straight. The straps should be 5 stitches wide, so let the stitch marker indicate where your 3rd stitch should be.
Working on the front of the dress, starting 2 stitches to the right of the stitch marker, work 5 SC across. Chain 1 and turn. Continue working up the strap until it reaches the desired length. Personally I found the easiest way to decide how long the strap should be, was to measure the size of a strap on other dresses I own (it doesn't have to be crochet) but keep in mind that the crochet will stretch, so I recommend making the straps a little shorter than whatever measurement you get from the other dress.
Once you have reached the desired strap length, sew it onto the the back of the dress where you have the stitch marker located. Just like when you start working the strap, you will begin sewing it on 2 stitches to the right of the stitch marker, and then sew it across 5 stitches and tie off.
Repeat all of these steps for the other strap as well, and then all there is left to do is add the little to the bottom of the dress!
Bottom Frill
You have now completed all the complicated parts! Haha. This part is by far the easiest, so it is a good way to end the project.
Row 1:
- Taking the same number of SC's that you worked to the top of the bottom portion of the dress before you sewed it onto the mess waistline (mine was 112), and work that same amount of SC (or Double Crochet, whatever design you prefer!) along the bottom of the dress.
- Slip stitch into the first SC stitch of the row, Chain 3 and turn.
Row 2:
- Slip Stitch into the first stitch
- Chain 3, slip stitch into the next stitch
- Continue step 2 until the end of the row.
This is what my frill ended up looking like at the bottom when I was finished
Be sure to weave in any ends (sorry I know there are quite a few)
AND THAT IS IT!!! YOU ARE DONE, CONGRATULATIONS!!!!
Thank you so much for you interest in my pattern! Any amount of feedback would be so incredibly helpful to me as I always want my patterns to be as easy to follow along with as possible, so if you have any comments, question, or just want to say Hi! You can find me on the following platforms!
Blog: www.casalecrafts.com
Pinterest: http://www.pinterest.com/casalecrafts
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/casalecrafts
Email: casalecrafts@gmail.com
In addition I was very happy to collaborate with Kelsey Gregge Photography and Danielle Moosburgger Jewelry Collections for this project! All of the amazing photos (with the exception of the horizontal ones which were provided by my boyfriend haha) were taken by Kelsey Gregge Photography and all of the jewelry that you see in the photos are the gorgeous designs of Danielle Moosburgger. If you are interested you should definitely check out their work!
Photography: www.kelseygreggephoto.com
Jewelry: https://daniellemoosbrugger.com/
