This was written by Cherie from you & mie for the Miss Matatabi Makers series.

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Hello! Cherie here, from you & mie. I’m so excited to be an official Miss Matatabi Maker! When looking through Frances’ fabulous shop, this gorgeous cotton voile caught my eye. It’s called Starry Night and comes in several beautiful colors. I knew immediately that this lightweight fabric would make something wonderful to wear for the upcoming warm weather months.

The pattern is the awesome Washi Dress by Made by Rae, with the large bow from the Expansion Pack. I absolutely love this universally flattering, easy-to-wear dress pattern!

I made this dress for a wedding that I was attending and it actually has a little secret that is hidden. Can you guess what it is?

Can you see it now?

Ok, ok, I’ll tell you. It’s nursing friendly! I needed a dress that I could nurse in and unfortunately, the options are pretty limited out there. So I had the brilliant idea of adding an invisible zipper to the bodice. Well, it turns out that Rae herself had the same idea and not only beat me to it, but she even made a tutorial for adding a zipper to a Washi (or any dress bodice, really)! Lucky you!

The black fabric, plus the large bow, make the zipper completely undetectable! Of course, I didn’t realize how difficult it would be to photograph any of the details of this dress because of the color, but trust me, the fabric is wonderful!

The fabric is very lightweight and has a beautiful drape. It is slightly sheer, so I lined the entire dress with a tan/nude voile I had in my stash. But because of the dark color, it actually wasn’t as sheer as I thought it would be. I think it could make a great unlined top, if you are going to layer it with a camisole underneath.

I made the Washi in size large and added 1 inch to the bottom of the bodice just so it would hit a little lower. Well, the truth is, I originally added 2 inches to the bodice, but in a complete sewing fail, I sliced my bodice with my serger blade while finishing one of my seams. THANKFULLY, the fabric was cut 1 inch above the bottom of the bodice, and I had added that extra length, so it was easy enough to save. Phew!!

I also added a little width to the front skirt piece and gathered it (instead of pleating). I pleated the lining so that it would lay nice and flat and not add anymore bulk to the waistline. I made a double elastic casing in the back instead of shirring, since I still haven’t unlocked that secret on my sewing machine yet.

I love how versatile this dress is – I can dress it up or down. And I plan on wearing it long after I’m done nursing. I hadn’t used voile to sew for myself until know, but it was so easy to sew with and I love wearing it! I highly recommend this fabric, especially for your spring/summer wardrobe. It would make a perfect lightweight tank, blouse, or scarf. And I love the other colors, especially the bright and cheery yellow! I could definitely use a Wiksten tank in some of that!

Have you started doing any spring/summer sewing yet?

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Thank you, Cherie! Connect with Cherie on her blog, instagram, facebook, and pinterest.