So before I went on my holiday to Adelaide at Christmas, I made a skirt. Which didn’t fit, and so didn’t go on the holiday with me. Which was a shame, because it was a CUTE skirt, with a border of this fabric from the “Sew Girls” range by Loralie Designs:
Loralie Designs Colourful Manequins
And it was this skirt pattern, View A:
McCalls 5591
Seriously cute, yes?
But at the time I was still suffering badly from swelly belly (which I’m very glad to say has settled down considerably with a different HRT regime and the new-found love of gym) and so had to add an ENORMOUS amount of width to the front to compensate.
Now – I’m taking the width OUT again! But since I didn’t want to remove top stitched angled pockets on the front of the skirt, nor did I want to make a centre seam, I’ve had to get a little creative. Which has involved unpicking EVERYTHING except the front with attached pockets, and the side seams under those pockets.
My sweet wonderful friend Sue *mwah, sweetie!* gave me a book this week – out of the blue – and it’s so INSPIRING I have to jump about when I’m trying to tell anyone about it!
This is the book:
Forty Nine and a Half Sensational Skirts
(Aussie readers will find the same book under a different cover)
The artist is just … wow. Talk about really exploring an idea! Talk about your working in a series!! So many pieces that share elements but are each unique - love that!
This isn’t just me going off on a tangent – really! – because one of the ideas Ms Willoughby explores in the book is cutting new seams in reclaimed (or new) skirts to add embellishments or other features. That neatly solves my problem – I can make 2 new cuts in the front of the skirt (thereby making it look intentional from the start!) and reduce the width by the necessary amount without an ugly centre front seam. AND I get to add more splashes of colour to the plain black body of the skirt, so it will look even better with that colourful border! Très clever, très chic, oui?
Why now? Well, another friend is launching her new business on Friday night – and what better excuse to get this skirt finished than to wear it to a sewing teacher and designer’s party! I’m pretty sure I can get it done. But not if I don’t get to bed NOW – got a gym class in the morning, then lunch with the girls…. eeek! GOODNIGHT!!
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Tags: Other Sewing Projects, Vanity, Weight Loss
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Love your plan caity. but why on earth have they repackaged the book in oz? the other cover is much more attractive whereas the oz one i probably wouldn’t pick up. Love the skirt with the big coloured circles all over it!
have attempted some repurposing on an old skirt of mine tonight actually – adding some lace and ribbon (i know sound like nanna wear) but actually it looks pretty funky so far. Need more ribbon tho….
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