The Edith Dress

Design Diary

Apr 19

I’ll never forget the day I started making the Edith Dress. I was working at a dry bar in Nashville and had brought some cotton with me to play with during my break. I had an idea for a pencil skirt and had just learned how to make granny squares with circles so I wanted to incorporate them into a garment. I finished the skirt in the break room and loved it but decided to keep adding to it. I had never made a garment before and a circular skirt seemed easy enough. I kept adding to the skirt over a span of a year with the intention to make a dramatic mermaid silhouette.

Dominique Calvillo's first skirt version of the Edith crochet dress from Namaste and Crochet

Dominique Calvillo's second skirt version of the Edith crochet dress from Namaste and Crochet

Dominique Calvillo's final version of the Edith crochet dress from Namaste and Crochet

Once the mermaid skirt was complete, I wore it a few times thinking it was a finished piece. As I studied crochet garments more, I figured it wouldn’t be too hard to turn the skirt into a dress and began to make the top. Looking at the top now makes me laugh. I had no idea how to make the breast cups and was playing with shapes until I felt like something worked.

Dominique Calvillo's Edith crochet dress as seen from the back

At the time, I was making a ton of dream catchers and blankets and a friend offered to take some photos of my pieces. At first, I was hesitant to photograph the dress and felt like something was missing. The morning of the shoot, I decided to try a cap sleeve and made something in a similar pattern to the bottom lace of the dress. The dress felt complete and I was happy with the result.

Seeing the finished product was like opening a new vortex of creativity. I started to understand shaping and how to manipulate stitches in a way that would contour around a body. My goal for this dress was to make a Mermaid-style silhouette and accentuate curves. I am always blown away by how flattering the design is on everyone who tries it on.

Bride and groom with bride wearing Dominique Calvillo's Edith crochet dress from Namaste and Crochet

Since the release of this dress, different variations of Edith have been my most popular wedding dress design.

Bride wearing the Edith crochet dress from Namaste and Crochet designed by Dominique Calvillo

I was intimidated to write this pattern. Makers have been asking me for it for years but I did not feel ready to attempt to put it in writing until now. I decided to release the pattern as a customizable recipe with two sleeve options: one drape and one cap sleeve.

I am so excited to share this pattern with the world and cannot wait to see other makers replicate the dress in their own style.

Check out how my gorgeous testers made their Edith Dresses!