June 9, 2026
Is Gingham the Print of the Summer?
This past weekend, Freddie and I sat in the park and played cards. The game was fun, but you know what was even more compelling? People watching. Couples, families, and a gazillion Knicks fans walked by us, and I realized that there’s a definite print of the summer…
Gingham! Do you wear it? It looks so cool and summery. Here are 15 pretty pieces — including the gorgeous shirt above — in partnership with Nordstrom…
Thoughts? If money were no object, this sundress is beautiful — and don’t forget about classic picnic baskets. :)
(Gingham shirt at top by Döen. This post is sponsored by Nordstrom, a retailer we’ve loved and worn for decades.)
Comments
61 commentsI was walking through DC yesterday and passed a group of twenty-something Italian women visiting the city. One of them was wearing these very cool wide-leg brown gingham pants. They looked simultaneously stylish and comfy!
I need advice. At 52 I feel like gingham is too youthful for me and haven’t worn it in years. Should I try it?
I am pushing 50 and I have the black and white gingham top from Quince. My teenage daughter and her friends told me it was giving…something. Something very good! I can’t remember the exact teen slang but I do remember how flattered I felt. Teenage compliments are the best compliments. All that to say: try it! The kids are not wrong! I personally couldn’t pull off ruffles and gingham, but a simple gingham top? Fire. So much fire.
Fire Kate, so much fire. (That’s really cute, right?) ;)
As another 52 year old Jennie, I say go for it! I think it’s more about the cut/style that can veer kid-ish.
Ooof. I’m 55 and I wear whatever tickles my fancy (like gingham, overalls, pastels, baseball hats, etc.). After 50 I really stopped caring what other people think of how I dress, though I usually get stopped once/week + to i quire about my overalls. I have quite the collection now (long and short) and wear them year-round because I only want to be comfortable first and cute second!
Yes! I think it can go preppy if you want a la Lilly Pulitzer type styling, oversized pants and/or menswear style shirt for Iris Apfel meets costal grandma, or tailored with casual accessories. I think it’s a fun opportunity for some color blocking while mixing styles. Sunset orange with red snd ehite gingham would be lovely.
The red gingham shorts bring back memories! I made a pair almost exactly like them (without the pockets) in high school in the ’70s and I loved them!
I ordered the red gingham pleated shorts. I don’t love shorts on my legs but I am being brave. :)
Omg I’ve been looking for a gingham skirt for ages and the skirt from the poplin set is the exact style I’d been hunting for! Sold! I’m so excited for all the cute outfits I’m gonna wear!
i actually love gingham right now, which surprises me because I typically don’t like anything preppy or preppy-adjacent and also gingham can feel very fourth of july americana – coded (not my vibe). I have some black + white gingham shorts and also some cream + white gingham throw pillows :)
I am loving the gingham trend! Don’t forget to check TJ Maxx and Marshalls, I got a cute top and a gungham dress from there this month.
I want to love it but I look like a little kid.
Love gingham!!! But that knit tote is def just checker
Love gingham on other people. On me, it makes me appear to have gained 50 pounds. I’m a stripes girlie for life!
I got gingham sheets and am eagerly waiting their delivery 😊
Gingham – any time. I got a Boden gingham dress this spring and I have already worn it for a number of festive occasions. Ebay is also always an excellent hunting ground for gingham shirts (J. Crew mostly.)
I like the bodice dress, but that’s it. Luckily, it’s sold out in my size :)
I’m wearing my black and white gingham top today. Perfect for the hot and humid weather we are experiencing here in the Midwest.
I got this dress in the black and white gingham a few weeks ago https://www.quince.com/women/linen-sleeveless-dress?color=black&gender=women It’s my first Quince purchase, and I like it overall but the length is really a struggle – I’m 5’6 but somehow it’s much shorter on me than in the (taller) models pictured. I thought it would be a nice, easy summer dress in which I can move easily, but I can’t even bend over or kneel easily in it which is critical to do with small kids!
My mom used to change out our bedspreads to thin cotton gingham ones every spring/summer … I think the pattern is embedded for every summer. Decade after decade!
lol did anyone else see Bess Kalb’s post about the last days of school? for pajama day, one of the categories was “tasteful gingham” — go check it out on her IG if you want a giggle! @bessbellkalb
I prefer ‘tasteless gingham’
That post was amazing. The sign off: “we didn’t send this to any dads,” made me cackle.
I love all these billowy cotton tops that are in this summer, but I HATE how they look on me. CoJ community, what cute tops are we wearing for large chests?? I’m a 32G and otherwise relatively petite and really struggle with looking top heavy in cute tops. I don’t mind cleavage (need a good bra for it, which I have) but anything billowy makes me feel hella matronly. Has someone cooler and wiser than me figured this out? I just want to feel cute and fashionable this summer!
Ally, I feel you. I’m only a 32C, but because I’m very short and my weight never touches my hips and bum, I struggle to feel proportionate. It seems like most petite brands expect petiteness *all over*, right? (I have a plus sized friend who complains of the reverse – that they expect everyone to have an ample bust.) My successes in this regard have just been a handful of thrift store one-offs, so I’d love the tea, too!
honest answer? The breast reduction I got last year. 5’3″ was a 32F and am now a 32C. This is the first summer since my teens that I can go braless or wear a billowy top without feeling huge (or fussing with an uncomfortable bra situation). But even more importantly, I am infinitely more comfortable. It’s hands down the best decision I’ve ever made.
Hello fellow 32G, haha! I also struggle with this, but I actually have the exact Doen top in the header image and LOVE it. I am really short waisted on top of my chest size, all of my height is in my legs, so I like to pair a more billowy top with a a short skirt/skort/shorts, and find that the contrast keeps me from being too matronly. But it does require a lot of trial and error to find tops that hit at the right spot (on me, cropped and billowy looks….not how I would like something to look), which is usually about halfway between my waist and hips! But don’t even get me started on the billowy and voluminous tops that still somehow manage to have gapping at the buttons at my bust!
Same struggle here! I continue to use the “front tuck,” regardless of the younger generation’s disdain for it lol. :)
5’3″ and 32D here! I feel like the neckline is key – I feel best in v-necks that elongate my neck. I think arms also need to be slim – I avoid puff sleeves like the plague. My favorite are button downs with rolled up sleeves, a little sexy cleavage, and maybe tie the bottom together.
Tight vest tops with a thick strap! I avoided tops like that for years but have now realised they are the perfect top for someone with this body shape. I pair them with shorts or jeans or pretty skirts and it just makes summer dressing feel super easy. Also you can really play with jewellery when wearing something more basic like this
32D here! I feel like it’s all about the neckline. V-necks feel the most flattering to me. Also slim sleeves – I avoid puffy sleeves like the plague. Button downs are my go-to. I like to unbutton an extra button, roll up the sleeves, and tie the waist if they’re long enough.
Hey Ally, I just want to say I’m an Itty bitty tittie girl, and they look matronly on me too!!! I don’t think it’s an us problem ❤️
I just….embrace looking top heavy. I AM top heavy, so trying to get an outfit that camouflages this quality is an uphill battle. I loove an oversized drop shoulder top even though it’s probably not “flatteirng” on me I’m trying to let go of that mattering
A signature print in my life that never goes out or comes in. It dates back to the1600s.
Just last week I found a light green 100% LINEN gingham print blouse while thrifting! I was very pleased with this find! I don’t mind splurging on shoes and pants, but I hesitate with tops as I know I can find real gems thrifting. Other fav finds: a yellow and white crochet tank (with a scalloped neck line) and a t-shirt that says “Plants make people happy.”
Love this! Nothing better than a great thrift find.
Certain people can pull off gingham so well! On a different note, what card games did you play? Looking for new ideas.
We love gin rummy and are getting into euchre and with kids we play Ono 99. Xoxo
Euchre is the BEST! I’m obsessed with it!!!
Love gingham. I currently own a yellow gingham maxi skirt, very picnic-table chic.
Yes! It strikes the farmers market core aesthetic of late! Have red gingham pants and top, and a orange gingham blouse! Both classic and whimsical!
Old Navy has the most adorable red gingham sun suit for a baby girl, truly precious. Here’s a link with all the gingham at ON, just in case Nordstroms isn’t in your budget. There’s a sundress for only $15. And sizes go to 4x too.
Where to shop for someone over 60, who loves fashion but cannot pay $500.00 for a dress and is tired of puffy sleeves, tiers and smocking and is between an XL and L depending on the cut.
We are aligned, Nancy. I turn 60 soon and love clothes, but have a tight budget. A bit of thrifting, and a splurge for me is GAP or, when they run 40% off sale prices, JCrew and Madewell. I find 90s era GAP and Old Navy to be really well made and findable on eBay.
I’ll throw in another vote for tracking down 90s and *early* 00s Gap and Old Navy. I thrifted a great pair of 100% linen Old Navy pants the other day. Since they date their clothes, I was a bit surprised that they were as recent as 2008! The 90s seems like the safest bet, though.
I buy almost all of my clothing at Old Navy these days.
Hi Nancy. I have discovered quince for affordable but decent quality items. I have bought everything from candles to linen jumpsuits to diamond earrings and have been happy with my purchases.
Check out Talbots and Boden. Both are good quality for the price and always have some cute things. COS is good for elevated basics. I’m not a Quince fan…their fabrics always feel cheap to me.
Hot tip: thrift stores are chock full of vintage picnic baskets! I have 3 :) They are great for storing things, in addition to picnics. I keep cookie cutters in one, and we keep our TV remotes, etc in another on a side table. They are cute!
Love gingham! I think it’s moved up above polka dots in my fave prints. Florals are my forever #1 and stripes will always have my heart too. Love leopard but other animal prints aren’t for me. All classics that deserve a little spotlight every once in a while!
I love gingham! I just don’t understand how a 100% poly dress can cost nearly $500 though – yikes!
You pay for the brand, not the material. Sadly. Especially in summer – cotton all the way, not polyester crap.
It’s the print of the year! <3 And I hope long after that…
Discussing this only today while shopping with a friend in Uniqlo. Always yes to gingham but preferably a big gingham. Over here in UK it is usually seen in summer uniforms – blue and white predominates – for little girls. But it’s a fun print.
Ha! I was thinking the same about that shift dress in small gingham – 100% summer uniform vibes from when I was a little girl in primary school.
As my husband likes to say,”is the pope from Chicago?” Long live summer gingham
😂
Gingham? For summer? Groundbreaking :) But I do love it!
Literally my first thought too! Also gingham is a weave not a print…
Gingham is always appropriate – as a dress, a tablecloth, anywhere and any season!