One of my favorite things about working with vintage crochet publications is that they rarely let me stay focused for long.

Whenever I go through an issue for the shop, I am supposed to be checking for missing pages, damage, and all the practical things that determine whether it is ready to list. But the truth is that many of these magazines are full of temptation, and every now and then a pattern appears that sends me reaching for thread and hook almost immediately.

This little dress was one of those patterns.


I found it in an issue of Fast & Fun Crochet, a publication I had not come across before. The title may suggest a quick project, but for me there was nothing particularly fast about it. It took a bit more than two weeks to finish. Still, it was an absolute pleasure to make, and well worth the time.

I used DMC Cebelia No. 10 thread from my stash, which suited the pattern beautifully. The sizing is given as 3 months or 6 months, though I have learned not to place too much confidence in vintage gauge and sizing without a little skepticism. Older patterns can be charmingly optimistic in that way. Since I did not have a specific little one in mind for the finished dress, I was happy simply to enjoy the making of it.

That, really, is part of the joy of a project like this. It is delicate, sweet, and full of the kind of detail that makes vintage thread crochet so hard to resist. It also made a lovely side trip from larger and more demanding work — the sort of project that reminds me how refreshing it can be to follow a sudden spark of inspiration.

Pieces like this are also part of why I care so much about old crochet publications. There is so much beauty tucked into these out-of-print magazines, and every issue seems to hold at least one design waiting for the right moment to be brought back to life.

If you enjoy vintage crochet as much as I do, keep an eye out for these older publications. They still have so much to offer.