Oh-So Comfortable!
The finished product!
I’ve been sewing for myself a lot this spring, which has been both fun and energizing. One of the things I love when I’m in a phase like this is that the more I sew, the more I want to be sewing. Certainly it is nice to have new clothes, but it’s like a faucet has been turned on and the ideas just keep coming. I want to share with you how my process has been unfolding with one of my skirt projects.
This particular project started because I wanted to make two different skirts to wear with a French-style jacket that I’ve been working on – a straight skirt out of self-fabric, and a fuller style skirt. So I pulled out an old pattern, Butterick 3589. When I made it years ago, I’d altered the pattern so that it had an extended or Hollywood waist.
Definitely time to make a clean copy of the pattern!
When it comes to comfort, almost all of us have pet peeves, and mine is having something tight around my waist. With an extended waist, I find that the skirt just floats over the waist. Plus, there’s quite a bit of leeway in the fit with the fluctuation of my stomach being rounder and softer one day compared to another.
Before cutting into the silk satin-faced georgette to go with the French-style jacket, I made a wearable mock-up from an embroidered silk doupioni fabric. The fabric had been pre-washed – perfect for Baltimore’s hot and humid summer weather since the skirt can be laundered, and the pre-washing made the doupioni softened quite a bit.
I feel a sense of freedom when I make a wearable mock-up because I don’t feel like so much is at stake if it doesn’t turn out perfectly. This one is a winner, and I’ve already worn it several times. The waist is oh-so comfortable, and I’m glad I thought to make the waist facing from cotton batiste so there’s no embroidery against my skin. I find that it’s small details like that that really help me to feel at ease.
The inner workings…
I wouldn’t want the skirt any shorter, so I lengthened the pattern, shown above.
When I wear the skirt, I feel both “breezy” and “put together.” The washed doupioni is perfect: there’s enough structure so that the fullness of the skirt doesn’t collapse altogether, yet the skirt isn’t too stiff.
Linen print and silk satin-faced georgette.
This skirt pattern is definitely a keeper. In addition to a companion for my French-style jacket, I already have plans to make the skirt from a linen print.