i got some pretty fabric, and i made a pretty dress.
there are times i want to push my limits, try new things, make the unexpected choice. and then there are times i just want to make a new dress for Em. she is the reason i started sewing in the first place, and i always love making clothes that she looks cute in and loves to wear.
i was asked by Shino of Nutta if i was interested in participating in a blog tour to let people know about her new fabric shop, Nutta Fabric. Shino recently moved from the US back to Japan, now has access to those gorgeous Japanese fabrics we all go weak in the knees over, and decided to open an online shop! so despite the “right after Thanksgiving” crazy time, i could not resist her offer and decided i wanted to kick off the tour.
i had to pick whether to sew for myself or for Em – it guided my fabric choice. in the end i’m so glad i decided to sew for her. i’ve gotten more selfish about my makes and have a couple little dudes to sew for too now, so she gets new dresses less often and seems to appreciate them even more! i had to finish this in a hurry because of the Thanksgiving holiday and early winter sunsets, and she was all over me checking on how close i was. she loved this fabric from the minute i saw it and was very excited about how it was coming together.
she’s a good one.
the fabric is double gauze, yummy yummy double gauze. the print is by kayo horaguchi and is called “hide and seek,” which led to a bit of a “who’s on first?” moment between Em and i when i told her it was a “hide and seek dress.” she’s apparently a budding Oliver + S aficionado herself, and knows that THIS is her hide and seek dress, whereas the dress i made her this time was not the same design. smart cookie.
regardless, the fabric is called “hide and seek” because it has jungle animals hidden within the rainbow vines throughout. i picked the pink colorway this time – longtime readers may remember that i sewed with the green version of this print here and here! the buttons are vintage, a birthday gift from CINO.
the pattern is the Oliver + S Library Dress, view B. it took me a long time to figure out what to make to really let the border print shine, and i didn’t just want to do a “simple bodice gathered skirt” dress, i wanted something with a bit more design to it. Cherie had suggested a Japanese pattern book, which was a great suggestion, but in the end i ran into a time crunch and just went with my tried and true Oliver + S. not that this dress is the quickest sew, but it still has that Japanese-esque wrap front and waistband that alludes to an obi, so really, it was exactly what i was looking for.
i made a 4T with 1” added to the skirt length. she has grown out of her original library dress, which ended up being a favorite and got a lot of wear, so she was happy to get a new one. i feel like the V in front on this version is a bit too deep, but it doesn’t gape when she leans over or anything, so that’s good. maybe it’s still just a tad too big.
the waistband piece is the wrong side of a scrap of Robert Kaufman Radiance in wisteria, which I’d originally used on flower girl dresses for her and her cousin that i never got bloggable photos for. the right side is a shiny satin but the wrong side is matte, and i love the dusty lilac which shows up in the print too. i sandwiched some lacey trim on the top and bottom (also from Jess – thanks girl!) for an extra dose of pretty.
i tried to place the print’s borders to keep the whole dress light and sweet, just like the fabric. it actually has a different print on each selvedge, which made it a bit tricky but also gave me more to work with!
hopefully you’re in a Cyber Monday shopping mood, because you should check out the Nutta Fabric shop and see if anything strikes your fancy! i spotted some great stuff over there, including some adorable knit prints, beautiful double gauze, and cozy sweatshirt knits. Shino is currently running a 20% off sale with the code “THANKS20” which is good through December 8. she’s also running a giveaway where you can enter to win store credit here!
thanks so much for having me on the tour, Shino!
*i received this fabric at no cost for in exchange for blogging about it.*
skirt as top 
This dress is stunning and just perfect for this fabric. Thanks so much, Kristin! I’m so glad this fabric made E happy. Hope this dress will be worn a lot!
I’m sure it will! Thanks again, Shino!
It’s stunning! As soon as I saw it, I remembered that popover dress you made ages ago- one of my faves. Really beautiful dress and darling girl!
I can always count on you, girl. 🙂
Oh, this is gorgeous! Such a sweet dress, and perfect with that fabric.
Thanks Lisa! It took me over a week to decide which pattern would really make that fabric sing, but I think the Library Dress turned out to be the perfect one.
Oh wow. That fabric is so pretty and perfect for that dress. And I love that E is so on top of her O+S patterns! So cute.
that really surprised me! so funny.
Oh my goodness this dress is beautiful!! So so pretty and what a perfect pairing the pattern/fabric! Lovely!
Thanks Jane!
ooh that is just so pretty!! Love it.
Thanks Rae!
It’s so pretty! I love that she was checking up on your progess– what fun to have someone who appreciates her handmade dresses so much!
It is pretty amazing out of a kid, she’s always been very empathetic and kind. Maybe it helps that she sees me sewing and working on things and sees the time it takes, too?? Dunno, but I love it.
ahhhh it’s just beautiful, kristin! i almost ordered some of the green from Shino’s shop when she had her first big sale, i wish i had! that popover and that mini pierrot you made were both so awesome. it’s super special fabric for sure, and you used the border print so nicely. a hide and seek hide and seek, now that would be something, eh?
Thanks Gail! Enter that giveaway, take advantage of the sale! She still has the green too…haha I’d love to see a hide and seek hide and seek!
So beautiful – a special fabric for a special dress. The fit looks perfect, too.
Thanks – the fit is perfect, she’d better not go and grow too quickly on me now! 😉
So my sister and I BOTH fell for this “hook line and sinker”. A hide and seek library dress. . .interesting. . .and of course, we couldn’t figure out for the life of us how you could have combined those two patterns! The fabric and THE pattern are a perfect combination :)!
Uh, that is so beautiful. Perfect for you pretty girl. The border print is just perfection combined with the pattern!
Such a sweet dress, Kristin! I love the way you cut it to make the details of the fabric really shine. That is tedious work – at least it can be – and it really paid off in this case! This is a dress that any little girl would be sure to love!
Gorgeous dress, Kristin! You made the most of the print with how you cut it out.
Such a sweet dress. That fabric must have been so fun to create with. I just love your last black & white photo. It’s all so perfect.
That IS pretty fabric and you sure DID make a pretty dress. Lovely.
What a wonderfull dress, you used the fabric perfectly.
Beautiful.