While I was working to meet my crochet quota today, visions of this dress

designed by Maryse Roudier and featured in the book, Knitting It Old School, were dancing through my head. A project like this tends to divide people into one of two camps: those for whom the dress epitomizes everything that is or ever was wrong with crochet, or those who’ve got to make one to call their very own.

I definitely fall in that second camp, and, although the colors are a little subdued for my taste (I would probably not use all that white, and I would most likely do the fifth round in a variety of colors rather than just one), I have determined that once I finish my state fair project, I absolutely, positively have to make this dress.

Composed of granny squares in a profusion of colors (at least five colors per square), this dress is not for the faint of heart or those looking to dodge weaving in ends. The granny square itself is the source of much debate as to whether it is a valuable and essential component of a the crochet oeuvre or simply an unattractive relic of an acrylic history that would (if it were biodegradable) be better buried, and this dress, no doubt, tests the resolve of those who wish to eradicate what they see as the garish acrylic history of crochet.

As for me, I am going to make this dress and wear it with joy and elan.