ooooo, i’m excited about this one.  sometimes i pick out fabrics and i think they’ll probably work, but when the garment is actually sewn, the fabric takes on a life of its own and turns out much better than i expected.  this is one of those cases.  i had been on the hunt for about a year to find the perfect stripe to mimic the pattern in the book, and i finally found this one (yes, at bolt again).  it’s skinny lines in misty gray by sweetwater for moda.  the book shows white lining, and but i only had this light blue batiste.  i got a little worried, because my daughter sometimes revolts against muted colors, but then i realized IT LOOKS KIND OF LIKE ALICE IN WONDERLAND!  she is on a major disney movie kick, so i think this is my selling point.

a little bit, right?  a modern interpretation.  haha.

the pattern is the dress with ruffle trim in “carefree clothes for girls” by junko okawa, my first project from that book, which i’ve had for a long time.  i’ve sewn other japanese patterns here and here (actually written in japanese, which i don’t speak), and i love them.  they’re simple, but look so nice.  i always learn new techniques too.

this one challenged me because all of the edges are left unfinished.  i tend to finish my seams more than i need to sometimes (love a french seam), so it was hard to leave them as is.  but i really like the juxtaposition of the clean bias-bound neckline and arm holes with the raw ruffle.

this is one i almost woke my daughter up to try on tonight…can’t wait for tomorrow morning!

UPDATE: i forgot to mention that i shortened the dress by 1″ and didn’t add side or shoulder seam allowances to adapt it to a 3T instead of a 4T.  she tried it on today and it is still a bit big on her, but wearable, and i bet by the summer it’ll fit pretty well.  she’s also buying it as an “alice” dress, and couldn’t wait to show grandma today (“grandma will love it!”).  calling it a success.