Cashmerette - Hampden Dress - 1111

Cashmerette - Hampden Dress

Breeze into summer with the Hampden Dress! The Hampden is a woven dress designed specifically for curves with princess seams, an elasticated back waistband, and zero gaping thanks to a faux button placket. Its short sleeves, knee-length skirt, and roomy patch pockets make it a great addition to any spring and summer wardrobe.

Hampden Dress

But that's not all! Mix and match the Hampden with the Holyoke Maxi Dress & Skirt's sleeveless bodice, maxi-length skirt, and inseam pockets for even more sundress and skirt possibilities. 

Holyoke pattern

Combinations of Holyoke and Hampden

Recommended Fabrics - Light- to mid-weight woven fabric such as cotton lawn, linen, or rayon. Use drapey fabrics for a flowy look or firmer fabrics for a more structured result. 

I used Neon leopard printed rayon from Spotlight. It has a very slight stretch. 

I had to place my pattern pieces carefully to print match the design across the front and around my dress.

Sizing 0-16 and 12-32 in the one PDF Pattern. I made a size 20 G cup.

I didn’t make any fit changes to this dress, it is designed to be put on over the head so the back has elastic in the waistband to make it fit the body. It’s not a tight fitting dress. 

With this pattern you can sew the front button placket shut so it is always closed or have it as a functional closure. I went with closed and stitched the buttons to all the layers. 

Design changes

The Hampden dress was designed to mix and match with another Cashmerette pattern, the Holyoke dress. I prefer the A line shape of the Holyoke’s skirt so I used the Hampden bodice and the Holyoke skirt for my version. 

I cut the length of the Holyoke skirt to the same length that the Hampden is designed to be. I also prefer side seam pockets to patch pockets so that’s what I did. 

Wash away glue used to stick bias roulo to paper.

I added a decorative detail to the round neckline. 

I cut bias strips of my rayon fabric and sewed these into tubes which I pressed flat. I drew the neckline shame onto paper and then added in the seam allowance and a protrusion of above the stitching line.

Starting at the centre front I marked space off. I cut the bias tube into lengths and using a sewing adhesive stick I glued the bias into scallops.

bias trim stitched to front neckline 

front neckline facing

Facing understitched

I have also made the Cashmerette Lenox dress, which I have reviewed on this blog. These are similarly patterns with princess seam bodice and button fronts but I found Hampden a much easier dress to make because it is not as fitted as the Lenox dress. I only made one toile of the Hampden but I made several of the Lenox. If you want to try this style of dress I recommend the Hampden for a beginner. The Hampden is only available with a subscription to the Cashmerette Pattern Club however but it’s well worth it I think. 

Lenox Dress