Knitting Pattern for an Elegant, Fitted Lace Dress with an Eye-Catching Lace Pattern, a Classic Round Neck and an Open, Buttoned-up Back Part in Sizes XS | S | M (L | XL | 2XL) 3XL | 4XL | 5XL

Structure:
The dress is worked in a delicate lace pattern top down in one piece. First of all, the front part is worked. Therefore, right and left front part are worked separately at first to shape the round neck. When the two front parts are joined along the neckline, the front part is finished in one piece with armhole shaping. Then, the stitches are put on hold and the back parts are worked separately to shape the open back part. As for the front part before, you will work increases to shape the armholes. Then, front part and back parts are joined along the armholes and the upper part of the dress is worked back and forth in rows in lace pattern. Finally, all parts are joined and the open back part is closed by casting on new stitches and joining all parts to the round. After this step, you will work increases in lace pattern along the sides to shape the dress along the hips. Now you have reached the total number of stitches and the dress is finished off in lace pattern in the round without any increases until the dress covers the knees (pink sample) or you reach full length (white sample) – or until you have reached your individually desired length. The stitches are bound off with an i-cord-edging. Afterwards, the open back part, the round neck and the armholes are finished off with an applied i-cord-edging. The fit of the dress is close to the body with a neutral to negative ease of up to 7 cm. The pink sample is worked with 4 cm of negative ease around the bust. In comparison to that, the white sample is worked with a teeny tiny little bit of positive ease of 2 cm around the bust. The fitted look emphasizes the elegant lace pattern and the feminine body – making the dress suitable for festive occasions or hot summer days. I recommend to wear a slip/shapewear dress underneath (or to sew a lining for the lace dress).

Probably the MOST IMPORTANT NOTE of the pattern: The dress will look way too small and too short during the knitting process. After washing and blocking, it will grow a lot and you will reach the measurements given in the pattern. If you want to try it on during the knitting process, I recommend to do some steam blocking/mid-blocking to check the length and width. The unblocked measurements and fit are far away from the final outcome.

Level of difficulty: very advanced

Materials:

• 200 | 200 | 250 (250 | 250 | 300) 300 | 350 | 400 g Pure Silk OR Cotton Merino by Knitting for Olive (250 m/50g) – for a full length, you will need around 2 balls more for each size
• 3.5 mm circular knitting needles
• around 13-15 small pearl buttons (ø about 5-7 mm)
• darning needle
• stitch markers or left overs

Knitting Tension:
10x10 cm = 22 sts x 30 rs in lace pattern, single strand on 3.5 mm knitting needles (wet blocked). Please note: The lace pattern grows a lot after washing and blocking! I recommend to regularly wet block your dress during the knitting process to figure out the perfect fit and length for your individual body shape.

Measurements:
Bust Circumference Finished Dress:
83 | 87 | 94 (98 | 107 | 112) 118 | 131 | 143 cm with a neutral to negative ease of up to 7 cm
Hip Circumference Finished Dress:
107 | 111 | 118 (122 | 131 | 135) 142 | 166 | 171 cm
Length Finished Dress:
90 cm – the length can be adapted individually. Maybe you will then need more yarn than indicated in the pattern
Depth Armholes:
17 | 17 | 20 (20 | 24 | 24) 20 | 24 | 24 cm

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