Cache Coeur Free Dress Crochet Pattern

No time right now? Pin this cute free dress crochet pattern for later!

A new spring, a new dress

I’ve had so much joy of my Pretty Spring Dress this year, I wanted another crochet dress for summer. Where would be the fun in making the same dress crochet pattern twice? I wanted it to be just as comfortable to wear and as easy to make while having a different look and feel.

Although this crochet dress was designed with spring and summer in mind, add a pair of leggings, some cute boots and a jacket, cardigan or turtleneck and you can totally rock it in the colder months!

I graded the pattern for sizes XS to 5XL but the sizing is very forgiving thanks to the loose comfy fit. The top is easily adjustable when you assemble it to have more or less cleavage. and you tighten the belt when you put it on so you’re guaranteed it fits nicely.

You can also adjust the skirt length to your liking and try it on while you go to make sure it’s exactly how you want it. This is all detailed in the pattern.

Whether you’re going to a barbecue, beach party or date night, this free dress crochet pattern is all you need.

Family teamwork

You might wonder who this gorgeous model is? My beautiful sister offered to model for me while my amazing photographer of a brother was taking the pictures during our last family trip. She tried to go home with the dress too, but I managed to keep it (although I had to promise to make her one).

Living halfway across the world from them, I miss them a lot. Doing this shoot together, with my parents and other brother watching and giving advice makes this project even more special to me. I get to relive these memories every time I wear my Cache Coeur crochet dress.

The Yarn

For this summer crochet dress, I knew I wanted a cotton base yarn. Cotton is one of the most comfortable and breathable materials to wear in the summer.

However, pure cotton yarns aren’t always very soft and don’t always have a good drape. For this crochet dress design I wanted a lot of drape to make the oversized top flowy and elegant. This is where the bamboo comes in. Bamboo ads drape and softness to the yarn.

Lion Brand’s Coboo yarn is a 50% cotton and 50% bamboo blend and the perfect yarn for this project. I choose to make my cache coeur crochet dress in their Mauve color but they have a lot of other beautiful colors to choose from.

Easy level & totally beginner friendly

Don’t be deceived by the looks. I used to run away from a lot of crochet garments because they looked intricate and complicated. Although the cache coeur crochet dress looks stunning and storebought, it is actually very easy to make.

The top is made from 2 rectangles sewed together and the skirt is then crocheted in the round from there. Any adventurous beginner who is comfortable with the double crochet and bead stitch (there’s a lot of really good video tutorials on Youtube!) can easily make this dress.

Downloadable Dress Crochet Pattern

Scroll down for the free version but I recommend you purchase the ad-free PDF Pattern to get all the instructions and pictures in a nice PDF you can print and take notes on without relying on your phone or an internet connection, I’ve got you covered!

The Cache Coeur crochet dress pattern is now available in my shop, on Etsy and Ravelry shops. Grab your copy now before you forget.

More summer crochet garments

If you like this free dress crochet pattern, I think you’ll love my other free summer crochet garments.

Before you Start your Free Dress Crochet Pattern

• Purchase the large print, ad-free printable on Etsy HERE.
• Add this summer crochet dress pattern to your Ravelry queue HERE.
• Pin the cache coeur crochet dress pattern to your Pinterest boards HERE.

Materials

• 4 mm / US G – 6 hook.
• Lion Brand Coboo (100g, 50% cotton, 50% bamboo, 232 yards / 212 m): you will need 8 (8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 14) skeins in Mauve color.
• Tapestry needle to weave in the ends. I love this set as it has different eye sizes for different yarn thicknesses and it comes in a small tube which is very convenient so I don’t lose them

Size

This is a comfy oversized dress fitted with 10 to 15 cm / 4” to 6” ease at the waist (the model has 15cm / 6” ease). The belt can be tightened as you wear the dress to fit nicely at the waist and create an oversized look.

If you want a less oversized look, feel free to go one size down.

The crochet dress pattern is available in following sizes: XS, S, M and L, XL, 2XL, 3XL, 4XL, 5XL size. Sizes are written as XS (S, M, L, XL, 2XL, 3XL, 4XL, 5XL) throughout the pattern. Pictures illustrate the Large size.

Below are the final dress measurements for the different sizes.

• XS: waist 71 cm / 28”
• S: waist 75.5 cm / 29.75”
• M: waist 86.5 cm / 34”
• L: waist 95.5 cm / 37.5”
• XL: waist 104.5 cm / 41”
• 2XL: waist 113 cm / 44.5”
• 3XL: waist 122 cm / 48”
• 4XL: waist 131 cm / 51.5”
• 5XL: waist 135.5 cm / 53.25”

The model is 1m75 / 5.7 ft but I’ll show you how and where to adjust the skirt length to your liking; just look out for the text in italics.

Gauge

The gauge for this pattern, in alternating rows of sc and dc, is 18 st by 11 rows for a 10 cm by 10 cm square (4” by 4”).

Abbreviations

This pattern uses US notations.

• st = stitch
• ch = chain
• sc = single crochet
• dc = double crochet
• yo = yarn over
• skip = miss
• sl st = slip stitch
• inc = increase = make 2 dc in the same st

Notes

Work instructions between [] the indicated number of times or until the end of the row / round.

The final number of stitches is indicated at the end of the row / round between < >.

The turning ch 1, ch 3 don’t count as stitches throughout the pattern except if mentioned otherwise.

Stitches above a ch-1 or ch-2 space are worked in the ch-1/ch-2 space.

The pattern is written in crochet shorthand.  For example:

• “sc 1” means to single crochet in the next stitch,
• “sc 2” means to single crochet in each of the next 2 stitches,
• and “2 sc” means to single crochet twice in the next st.

Special stitches

• Bead stitch: The bead stitch is similar to a puff stitch but done horizontally. It’s worked up around a dc stitch.

Bead stitch = Work dc in indicated stitch, [yo, working around the dc post just made pull up a loop] 3 times, yo and pull through the next 6 loops on the hook. This leaves 2 loops on the hook. Yarn over and pull through the remaining 2 loops. The bead stitch has the width of 2 stitches.

The Actual Free Crochet Dress Pattern

The top part of the dress is made from 2 symmetrical rectangles which are then sewed together.

Top Panel 1

With your 4 mm / US G -6 hook chain 41 (43, 48, 52, 56, 60, 64, 68, 70) + 2

Row 1: Dc in the 3^rd ch from the hook, dc in each st across, turn. <41 (43, 48, 52, 56, 60, 64, 68, 70) st>

Row 2: Ch 2, dc across, turn.

Row 3: Ch 4, skip 2 [bead st (counts as 2 st), ch 1, skip 2] 3 times, dc until the end of the row, turn.

Repeat rows 2 and 3 until your panel reaches 100 cm / 39.25”, finishing with a Row 2.

Top Panel 2

With your 4 mm / US G -6 hook chain 41 (43, 48, 52, 56, 60, 64, 68, 70) + 2

Row 1: DC in the 3^rd ch from the hook, dc in each st across, turn. <41 (43, 48, 52, 56, 60, 64, 68, 70) st>

Row 2: Ch 2, dc across, turn.

Row 3: Ch 2, dc 29 (31, 36, 40, 44, 48, 52, 56, 58) skip 2, ch2, [bead st (counts as 2 st), ch 1, skip 2] 3 times, dc in the last st, turn.

Repeat rows 2 and 3 until your panel reaches 100 cm / 39.25”, finishing with a Row 2.

Assemble the Top

Fold both panels in 2 lengthwise.

With the bead edges towards the center, place both panels next to each other and overlapping 10 cm / 4″.

Sew these 10 cm / 4″ together on both ends of the panels.

Sew up the sides leaving 20 cm / 8″ unsewed for the armholes.

Now, sew up the panels in the front and back in the middle for 32 cm /12.5” starting at the belt. In order to make this seam more discrete, I only sewed the inside overlapping edge

Try the dress on to decide how much cleavage you want and adjust accordingly. Fyi, more cleavage in the back will make it easier for the shoulders to slide off.

The Belt Section

Join yarn on the side and crochet in the round.

Round 1: Ch 2, dc around, join with a sl st in the 2nd ch. <137 (143, 164, 179, 194, 209, 224, 239, 254) st>

Round 2: Ch 2, [ch 2, skip 2, dc] repeat around. Make the last dc in the 2nd ch.

Round 3: Repeat round 1

The Skirt

Round 1: Ch 2, [dc 9, inc] repeat around, dc 6 (2, 3, 8, 3, 8, 3, 8, 3), inc, join with a sl st in the 2nd ch. <151 (158, 181, 197, 214, 230, 247, 263, 280 st >

Round 2 – 5: Ch 2, dc around, join with a sl st in the 2nd ch.

Round 6: Ch 2, [dc 10, inc] around, dc 7 (3, 4, 9, 4, 9, 4, 9, 4) inc, join with a sl st in the 2nd ch. <165 (173, 198, 215, 234, 251, 270, 287, 306) st>

Round 7 – 14: Repeat Round 2.

Round 15: Ch 2, [dc 11, inc] around, dc 8 (4, 5, 10, 5, 10, 5, 10, 5), inc, join with a sl st in the 2nd ch. <179 (188, 215, 233, 254, 272, 293, 311, 332) st>

Round 16 – 27: Repeat Round 2

Round 28: Ch 2, [dc 12, inc] around, dc 9 (5, 6, 11, 6, 11, 6, 11, 6), inc, join with a sl st in the 2nd ch. <193 (203, 232, 251, 274, 293, 316, 335, 358) st>

Repeat Round 2 until you reach 45 cm / from the belt.

Try your dress on and check the length. Make sure you tighten the belt at your waist (if you haven’t added the belt yet you can use a piece of yarn instead) or your length will be completely off. Take into account an additional 6 cm / 2.25” for the bottom edge.

Bottom Edge

Round 1: Ch 4, skip 2 [bead st (counts as 2 st), ch 1, skip 2] around, finish with a sl st in the 2nd ch.

Round 2: Ch 2, 2 dc in ch-1 space, [dc in bead st, dc 2 in ch-1 space] around, join with a sl st in the 2nd ch.

Round 3 – 6: Repeat rounds 1 and 2 twice.

The Belt

Cut 6 2m long strands of yarn. Make a simple braid using 3 times 2 strands.

Put the belt in place by going over and under the dc stitches. 

To secure the belt in place, and make it more pretty, add a big tassel at each end. I made mine 10 cm / 4” long.

Blocking and Finishing Touches

You’re done with the crocheting part. Make sure to weave in all the ends.

To make your dress even prettier, and make the lacing of the bead stitch come out even more, block your dress lightly.

Don’t skip this step as it can make a huge difference. Read my detailed tutorial on why block, how-to, and all my tips and tricks if you need help.

That’s it, you’re done. Now put it on, make yourself a cocktail and go enjoy it in the sun.

Dollar Days Blog Hop

As part of the Dollar Days Blog Hop hosted by Simply Melanie Jane, you can grab the ad-free printable PDF for just $1 on 24 May (8 am EST to 8 am EST on May 25th) only using the buttons below:

And if you’ve missed a day or just want to get an even better deal on all summer patterns featured in this event, you can grab the bundle here: