An Edwardian walking skirt

Hello readers, it’s been a while! Some sewing has happened since my last post, but no historical projects were actually finished, hence the lack of updates. However, in December I finially got around to some historical projects again, this time with a deadline. So sewing ensued, and stuff has been completed. (And of course, after that it took a little while to actually write the post).

I had an Edwardian weekend away with friends end of January, for which I aimed to make two things. Firstly, a black wool walking skirt for practical purposes. Secondly a lacy ball-gown. More about that one later, this post is about the wool skirt!

The black wool skirt was a practical choice. I wanted something that would be suitable for colder months, and which would match with a lot of different things. From sporting sweaters to blouses to bodices, in many different possible colors. Something like that didn’t really exist in my wardrobe yet.

I started by looking through the online Gracieuse archives. I picked 1905 as a year, and browsed through collecting the images which included a pattern reference. I wanted something walking length and simple that wouldn’t be too difficult to make. However, also something with visual interest somewhere, as a plain black skirt can also get too plain easily.

In the end, I settled on this design from the october 1905 edition. It is described as a ‘foot free costume skirt with pleated accent’. It has two pleated panels on the side for visual interest, and I figured I could also add some in-seam piping on the panel above the pleats. The skirt pattern is, as usual with de Gracieuse, absolutely tiny. However, it was enough to get basic shapes/proportions and to start a skirt draft.

• 

• 

My first step was to transfer the general style lines of the skirt patter to a grid, and to convert it to something that had the right length for me. Waist size was a little less important, mostly because there’s pleats in the back. But I did measure roughly how wide I wanted the front to be on me, and attempted to stick to that.

Honestly, there was no super clear method to this. I started mostly figuring out the length, angle of the circle, and waist measurement before pleating the back. And then I drew something which looked visually sort of similar, trying to retain the angles. I also decided I’d do the pleated panel last, based on the size of the ‘gap’ to fill in.

Drafting the full scale version was one of those moments where a big floor came in handy!

In the end, I think all my panels came out wider than in the inspiration, including the pleats. I had 4 pleats instead of 4, and my pattern for that piece was much more rectangular than the more square you see in the original. I don’t hate it, but it does mean the skirt has a slight tendency to ‘swing foreward’ a bit? I might experiment with inner ties to keep the pleats to the back a bit more.

• 

• 

Then it was time to cut! I got a black faux wool for this project. It’s fairly heavy, which I did want for this skirt. 100% wool is a bit harder to find around here, and there was enough of a price difference that I opted for a ‘good fake’ instead. That also made me feel a bit better about not making a mock up.

I piped the seams next to the top side panels with pre-made piping (another short-cut, as making piping out of wool is a pain, and I had a deadline). I next pleated the side bottom panel, and with a bit of fiddling and figuring out managed to attach that on 3 sides. To the front/back it’s seamed under a pleat to the front/back panels. Not actually in the pleating line itself, which would have been much easier and probably better, but I didn’t take that into account when patterning, so I managed.

At the top, I folded over the side top panel, laid the pleats underneath and then top stitched about 2mm from the edge. This actually gives a bit of a ‘fake piping’ effect because of the springy wool, which I was quite happy with.

The pleated panel was hemmed with bias tape before pleating, because I wanted to make sure the hem would hold the pleats as well. I eventually ended up just hemming the whole thing with bias tape. A wider cotton facing would probably be more accurate and better protect the hem, but in this case I don’t worry too much about that and just wanted a simple finish.

• 

• 

Final steps were to pleat the back, and attach the whole thing to a waistband. The rest of the skirt hemming was actually done then, and finally closures made it complete!

Some pictures on the dummy in my messy room

• 

• 

• 

• 

And some on me! Paired here with a cycling sweater by Emmy design, it makes for a great winter outfit. It’s warm, a practical length, can be paired with nearly everything and yet the pleats add a little interest. I was very happy to have a bit of snow for the perfect picture setting, thanks to Niklas @vintagebursche for these photos!

A winter coat for grocery shopping

I’m a bit late blogging about this project as I finished it almost 5 months ago already, but better late than never! Last month we got snow on April 1st (no joke…), so I finally took some proper ‘finished’ pictures of me in the coat, taking advantage of the scenery. And then it took me a while to actually write this thing, but here we are!

This Christmas break, I decided I would finally make myself a black wool winter coat. I’ve been wanting to do that for a while, but it was always a rather daunting project, as I’d never really made a coat before. The holidays were the perfect period to really dig into this project though.

What I wanted aside from wool+black, was to have a coat which would be very versatile. And honestly, it was mostly prompted by the fact I didn’t have a good winter coat for a quick trip to the grocery store. These past couple of years I’ve been wearing 3 coats during winter. One outdoor coat which is great in all weather, but profoundly practical and really too long+narrow to be worn over a wide skirt. Perfect for pant-wearing outdoor activities, but not so much for wearing over a regular skirt-wearing grocery trip. The second a very lovely burgundy red vintage-style coat from Collectif with faux fur around the shoulders and hem. Very fancy, perfect for a trip to the theatre, but a bit ‘much’ for grocery shopping, and not the most convenient to carry a heavy grocery bag with. The third a grey wool coat to the knee with some flair, which is really more an in-between coat as it’s a rather thin (probably fake) wool, so not great for the colder days.

What I wanted was something warm, with a fitted top and flared out bottom, which you can dress down or up depending on what you wear it with. Given how difficult finding a good flared wool coat can be, I decided to make my own.

I’d already bought McCalls M7442 a while ago, and decided to use this as a base. I planned to leave out the pepulm and lace overlay though. Although cute, it does make the coat a little less ‘classic’, and I want to be wearing this for years, so classic is good. I also loved that this pattern had a hood. Perfect for when a light drizzle starts on the way to the store!

I started by looking for fabric, which was a bit more challenging than expected. I wanted a really nice quality wool which was both smooth, densely woven and fairly heavy, yet under 40,00 euros per meter. Eventually I ended up ordering a whole bunch of swatches from Mahler Stoffe in Germany (because on a picture 5 black wools all look the same) and picked one for my coat. I also decided on a whim to order another one to make into a split skirt, which I then promptly made first.

I also ordered lining fabric from Mahler, and decided to go for a pretty patterned lining.

Finally, I wanted to have something to interline the coat with, and make it extra warm. The pattern dindn’t call for this, but I get cold easily, so extra insulation is always good. I ended up ordering the ‘thin’ thinsulate fabric from a Dutch store. This stuff is all polyester (to the point where it melts if you touch it with an iron), but has a reputation for being really good at adding warmth.

And then it was time for mock-ups! I used an old molton fabric which came from my grandfather’s workshop. I have no clue what exactly it is, but it was the heaviest I had for mock-ups in my stash.

In the end I made two main alterations. I took in the center back a little above the waist, as the pattern was a little wide in the shoulders. And I had some space above the bust, which I solved by taking a dart out of that spot and rotating that shut, which is possible given the horizontal seam accross the top.

• 

• 

And then it was time to cut the fabric! I don’t have a lot of pictures of the construction process as photographing black fabric in the middle of winter is a challenge in my room which doesn’t have perfect lighting. But the first thing after cutting was to interface the top body pieces with the thinsulate. The main body and sleeves were interlined, with the exception of the darts. Then the main body was constructed, and the seams pressed open very carefully with a pressing cloth, as the thinsulate melts as soon as you put an iron onto it. The long ‘tails’ you see in the second picture are the facing of the center front, which runs all the way down to provide an extra layer for the closures.

• 

• 

Then it was time for skirts! I ended up cutting the skirt just a little longer than the pattern originally called for, to give extra length and warmth. The skirt isn’t interlined though, as it would add stiffness and not be super helpful warmth wise anyway. At this point the hood was also made, lined and added.

And then I could add the lining! The whole coat is lined in the patterned lining fabric I got. I made a little mistake on the ‘edge’ between the bottom facing of the center front and the lining. The original coat only calls for a lining in the top, and I wanted to extend it down so the coat would not ‘stick’ to any layers on the skirts. However, I sewed the front facing shut before realizing I should have left that open. I ended up just stitching it on in the seam allowance, and it looks fine. (Plus, it’s the inside, so barely noticeable anyway.) I finished the bottom skirt lining by hand, leaving a bit of extra room at the bottom and folding the lining up, to create a bit of a ‘baggy’ effect. It’s probably not excactly how you should do it, but this extra space avoids the skirt pulling oddly because the lining is stretching differently than the outer fabric over time.

• 

• 

• 

• 

The final steps were buttons, button holes, a little loop in the neck, and the belt. I was a bit annoyed that the pattern didn’t tell me to add the loop when I stitched the hood onto the coat, as I could have hidden it neatly in the seam then. By the time I thought about adding a loop (it wasn’t in the pattern at all) I had to stitch it on top. Ah well, it works. As a belt buckle, I am using a plastic one I had lying around. It’s fairly tight, but that also means it stays shut nicely.

I admit I’m mostly wearing the coat without the belt, partly because it takes time to close it due to the tight buckle, but also as there are no belt loops in the coat. This is another strange pattern thing, no belt loops are included, and it means the belt doesn’t stay on the coat when untied. Not practical if you want to take the coat off somewhere. I might add belt loops later, but I definitely recommend adding them to the side seam when constructing the coat if you want a belt. That makes it so much neater…

• 

• 

• 

And then she was done! I’ve already worn this coat quite a bit, and I’m happy with how it turned out.

Something I did do after wearing it a couple of times is to add two hook and eyes (the wide flat ones) between the buttons above the waist. I moved the buttons a little more to the edge than stated on the pattern, as with the layers the fit was still a bit tighter than planned in the mock-up stage. As the buttons on the pattern are spaced fairly widely, I got some gaping on wearing the coat. Next time, I’d definitely just use more buttons and space them closer together, to ensure it stays shut better.

• 

• 

As an overall conclusion, I really love my new coat, and I learned a lot while making this. I think this pattern has a lot of potential in terms of general shape. However, it also has some ‘shortcuts’ which I didn’t appreciate. No hanging loop, no belt loops, no lining in the skirt and very widely spaced buttons means it’s faster to sew, but much less practical to wear. I’d rather spend a bit more time to add things personally, and I’ll definitely keep that in mind the next time I make a coat. Also, even though I used a heavy mock-up fabric, it still ended up a bit tighter than planned, so next time I need to make even more room if I use heavy fabrics and/or multiple layers. I could fix it by moving the buttons this time, but that’s not an ideal solution.

• 

• 

As a bonus, snow in April did mean some pretty pictures of flowers in the snow:

• 

• 

Split skirt – the second version

The last project of 2021 for me was a split skirt. I made a pair early in 2020, and after the gold bustle and wedding dress I was looking for a project which would need a little less figuring out. The great thing about making something a second time, is that you already have a finished version to look at when things get confusing. It also didn’t need a mock-up, which definitely speeds up the process.

The pattern is Truly Victorian TV299.

This version was made out of black wool. It’s just a little heavier than the wool I used for my brown version, so I chose not to line this one. It’s also wool which doesn’t fray, so no seam finishes necessary!

I got 3,5m of fabric for this project, as that’s what the pattern calls for. However, when laying out the pattern, I could get it out of more like 2m of 150cm wide fabric. It required a little piecing of the back panel, as that’s wider than 75cm (half the fabric width). However, this piecing is on the inner leg, so it’s nearly invisible when worn, and it was worth saving fabric for me. So if you’re looking at this pattern but want to save on fabric, it’s definitely possible, especially with the 1,5m width. I believe mine is a size D. Below is a picture of the pattern lay-out.

The pattern starts with pressing pleats. There’s few things as satisfying, nor as difficult to take pictures of, as pleats in black wool.

This pattern doesn’t include pockets. What looks like the pocket openings are actually the opening for the front fall closure. I’ve worn my 18th century separate pockets with my other split skirt, and that does work. So I decided to sew in similar pockets into the waistband for this skirt! I basically made 18th-century style pocket bags, and attached those such that the opening would be aligned with the fall front opening.

• 

• 

• 

They don’t fit really large items, as that will show bulk under the fairly tight upper part of the split skirt. However, it’s definitely good to have the option to carry things!

I found beautiful buttons for the front, but the store didn’t quite have enough to also put buttons on the pocket flaps, as called for. So I decided to use some decorative stitching on the pockets instead, and close them with hooks. They have a hook middle center, and a snap at the bottom. However, there’s a little bit of gaping at the top right now, so I do want to back and add another hook between the middle and the top.

The pattern calls for doing the button holes very early on, but with the bicycle length the lowest button hole and button get in the way of hemming. So this time, I left off the bottom button until the end. At that point I decided I didn’t really need it any way, so I just left it off entirely.

It’s quite difficult to take pictures of the skirt, as the wool absorbs the light, but I tried! I’m wearing my Emmy Design cycling sweater, which goes perfectly with it. I’m looking forward to wearing this for both historical and daily stuff!

• 

• 

• 

• 

A 1890s ladies vest

About a month ago I posted about my vest project, in which I’m making a 1890’s ladies vest from the leftover wool of my split skirt. That post finished with the mock-up done, and the pocket practiced. I had to wait a bit for my lining and back fabric to arrive, but after that I could finally get started on making this. I finished it last week, and wore it for a photoshoot this weekend!

Photographer: Martijn van Huffelen

I started the sewing with the basic construction of the back, which is a single layer of black cotton. This also means that the seams are finished nicely, as this bit won’t have lining. Basically, one edge of the seam allowance gets trimmed away, and the other edge is folded over and in, to hide the raw edge. Then it’s topstitched in place. In this picture I’m ironing it in place.

The fronts were where the main work lay. I interlined my wool to give it just a little bit of extra body. The pocket was made right after. A scary part, but it went well!

• 

• 

Then there was the canvas structure layer, which was pad stitched to the wool/cotton layer, and tailor’s tape was attached in certain areas to avoid it stretching. I totally applied the tape first, and did the pad stitching after, which is not what you’re supposed to do. I’d luckily taken into account the turn of cloth when stitching on the tape, so I was fine. My pad stitching was a little unnecessary, but something I wanted to try out. I do better understand how it works now, so I call that success enough! I also completely forgot to take pictures here, of course. So here’s one after the facing was already in place, but showing a peek at the layers.

The canvas, tailors tape and pad stitching are what help shape the garment. When those were attached, I could stitch the fronts to the back, and do a final fitting to double check the size.

Fitting time, it looks good!

Then, there was attaching the facing (basically the part of the collar that you can see) and then finally the lining. Final step was to attach the buttons and sew the button holes. I debated closing it left over right, instead of the (modern) ‘normal’ for ladies garments right over left. In the end, I left it as on the pattern though. My buttons were ordered, I normally try to pick those out in person but of course shops were closed. I ended up ordering 4 different styles just to be able to check the color and size. Hopefully I’ll be able to use the other buttons some time in the future!

• 

• 

Last weekend I got dressed up, as I had a photoshoot! The photographer I usually collaborate with contacted me, as we’re still allowed to meet 1 on 1 outside, so with the current measures such small shoots are pretty much the only costumy thing we can do. I wore the vest with my 1890s sports blouse, the split skirt, American Duchess Balmoral boots and an antique boater I bought this summer. I added a watch with a chain to the pocket. I really loved wearing this outfit, it makes you feel a little like a late 19th century explorer :).

I already got some pictures, which are really lovely. Thanks to Martijn van Huffelen for these:

• 

• 

Ravenclaw cape

This was a totally unplanned project, but with events postponed and weekends freed up, I figured I could spend some time on something like this!

American Duchess posted the pattern for this 1912 cape on their Patreon before, and now released it to everyone! I’d seen pictures of both the original and Nicole’s reproduction, and really loved both, so I couldn’t resist checking my stash. Therein I found blue wool (leftover from my blue spencer, way back) and brown linen (planned for a red cloak which hasn’t happened yet), and my Ravenclaw self couldn’t resist.

The original, which is in a private collection

 

I made the whole cloak, from scaling up the pattern to finishing up in a day. It’s fairly simple and doesn’t require much fitting, so it was perfect as a change from the big, involved 1890’s project.

The first step was getting the pattern on paper, which included counting all the squares, and then drawing it on my own square paper. Added difficulty was that it’s impossible to get inch paper here, so mine is in cm instead. Luckily, I do have a clear inch ruler, which makes it easier again.

 

Second step was cutting the fabric, and transferring all the markings!

 

I then first sewed all the wool layers and pressed them, and then all the linen layers. My main reason to do it this way was so I didn’t have to change out the threads in my machine too much. (Also, it was very tempting to just get one layer done first to try it on!)

 

When both layers were constructed, I made the collar and stitched that onto the wool. And then it was time to sew both layers to each other right sides together! Leaving a bit at the bottom open to turn it inside out, this neatly hides all seams and catches the collar between layers.

 

After turning it inside out, I gave it a good press and then finished the bottom edge and ‘points’ of the front flaps by hand. The first because that was where it was turned, the second so I could test the length before I finished them. The final step was adding closures to those front flaps, and then she was done!

 

I really like how it turned out, and the wool actually matches quite well with my blue wool skirt, which is a good accident!

 

Some more finished pictures:

Wool Damask

For most historical costumers, finding the perfect fabric is one of the most difficult parts of getting the look right. One of the main difficulties is that many fabrics used in the past just aren’t made anymore in the same quality, or they are too expensive for a hobby seamstress. Just finding really fine linen is nearly impossible.

One of my favourite historical fabrics is wool damask. And it’s another of those fabrics which has sort of died out. It just isn’t made anymore, which is a shame, because it’s stunning.

 

Yes, that’s wool. Wool damask is two-toned, and pretty much always in the same color palette. So you get a lighter/darker combination, so light green with dark green, dark blue with black, or beige and brown.

Wool damask is also usually glazed. It’s treated in such a way that it gets a shiny finish, making it almost look a bit like silk damask. It would’ve been a cheaper than true silk damask, but gives the same impression. The patterns of the damask were definitely inspired by their silk counterparts.

For comparison, an 18th century silk damask:

 

And a wool damask one:

 

Wool damask was used for skirts in the 18th century, and continued in traditional clothing throughout the 19th century. They were probably often also worn as petticoat under the upper skirt, as they’re a little less fancy than the silk ones.

Some of them are pretty stunning though, so I definitely think they were worn as upper skirt as well. Look how shiny!

 

The wool damask was used mostly in skirts, but also in men’s waistcoats and in stays. In some regional wear parts of the stays were visible at times, calling for fancy fabrics.

 

The richer farmers would’ve worn wool waistcoats as well.

 

Despite the popularity in this country, the wool damask worn in the Netherlands was mostly not actually made here. Instead, this fabric was imported from England, Norwich to be exact. Interestingly enough, I’ve never really seen it in English collections though, suggesting that it was primarily an export product. Wool damask was woven on narrow looms (giving much narrower fabrics than common today), and so that the back of the fabric ‘mirrors’ the colors on the right side, as with all damask. Some more information on this fabric written by Meg Andrews is here. It became a staple of some Dutch dress, and I suspect the skirts in these well-known prints might be from wool damask:

A lady from Zaandam

A lady from Friesland

 

Some more, beautiful 18th century skirts, all from the Dutch Openluchtmuseum:

 

One of my more prized possessions is a black wool damask skirt, probably from the late 19th or early 20th century. This one is from the Veluwe, where these skirts were still worn as petticoats (underneath a plain black skirt) with the traditional costume. It’s constructed pretty much the same as an 18th century petticoat would be. It’s gathered at the top, with a flat front, and two side slits. It’s got one tuck in the skirt, and a velvet band a little above the hem. The bottom has got a bit of fluffy trim to protect it, and it’s got another ribbon as well as a hem facing on the inside to protect the fabric.

The full skirt, front & back:

 

A close up of the fabric, left from the outside, right the inside.

 

The top is tightly cartridge pleated to a waistband.

 

Despite the age, the fabric is still very pretty. The velvet trim and hem facings clearly show wear, but the main skirt is still in very good condition. This was another reason these skirts were so popular, the wool fabric wears very well. If only they still made fabric like this today!

Pattern weights

Last September I visited Scotland, in particular the islands of Mull and Skye. Of course, Scotland is renowned for it’s wool, so when I saw a sign ‘Wool mill’ along the road on Mull, I followed it. Around the corner, along the road, down another turn, way down the road again, but eventually I did indeed find the Ardalanish wool mill.

Pretty Mull

 

There were two main buildings to visit, one where the weaving happened and one with the shop. I first spend quite some time with the lady working on fabrics. She was checking one of the wool pieces for snapped threads, which were than woven back in by hand. They had tree old weaving looms in the space, and she told me a lot about their process, which was very interesting. This mill is on an estate, using the wool from their own sheep, as well as other wool from the island. They do most of the process in-house (all except spinning I believe), including any dyeing, which is done with home-grown natural dyes.

I didn’t take any pictures of the mill, so some more pictures of sheep instead. As many Scottish islands, Mull has a lot of sheep.

 

Of course, after that I also had a good browse through their little shop. Aside from the fabrics, they also sold wool yarn and loads of little and bigger things made from their products. Scarfs, blankets, mitts, etc. In the end though, I bought a little package of fabric scraps. These were left-over from the things that ended up in the shop, and this allowed me to buy a range of little fabric scraps from different tweeds.

 

I kept them in my closet for a while, but last week I stumbled along a tutorial for pattern weights, and thought this would be a perfect use for them! Something you actually use, for which you need only a very small amount of fabric.

There are loads of tutorials for pattern weights, I followed this one.

 

I had to piece some scraps to get them in the right shapes, but that worked out fine. I also kept some of the selvedge markings, as I thought that added a nice touch about the origin of the fabric (and some scraps would’ve been to small without). Two weights are also a little smaller than the others due to fabric size, which works out okay for smaller pattern pieces.

After that, the process was quite simple. I filled mine with rice, and then sewed shut the final opening by hand.

 

And then they were done! I’m really happy with my new pattern weights, the fabrics are so beautiful, and they work very well together as a set.

Winter bustles (and new shoes!)

I know, it’s the middle of July, and where I am it’s the middle of summer. Despite that, I’m doing a post with pictures of winter bustle dresses. The main reason is that I got new shoes! American Duchess was having a sale, and I couldn’t resist, and I got the Victoria carriage boots. They’re black winter boots with bows in the front, and I really love them. It’s quite difficult to find proper warm winter boots that look good underneath a skirt, so I splurged, and suspect I’ll wear them quite a bit out of costume as well!

They’re so pretty!

 

Of course, having Victorian winter boots got me dreaming about wool and fur bustle dresses. So now I want to make one. I have a lot of fabric for other planned projects though, so who knows if and when that’ll happen, but until then, inspiration pictures!

Let’s start with some early bustle beauties.

 

There are also some beautiful examples from the 1880’s.

 

Aside from these colored plates, I also found some black-white examples. I particularly love all the braiding on the first one.

1870’s Mantelet

When my 1870’s ballgown was nearly done, I also started looking into making a quick cape or coat to go with it. I’ll be walking to the ball after all (no fancy carriage, alas), so a little something warm will be welcome. I also had a 1,5m by 1,5m wool coupon in my stash with no specific plans for it yet. It would be perfect for this plan!

So I started looking at capes and coats, and quickly found loads of original online patterns for different Victorian eras. It’s really nice to see the progress in shapes! Generally speaking, the 1860’s see large almost ‘sack’ like capes falling over crinolines. In the early 1870’s a type of mantelet with two long extensions in the front and a fitted back become popular. In the 1880’s, coats become more popular, being even more fitted and having sleeves more often. In the 1890’s you see the rise of short (waist-length) circle shaped capes.

The patterns I found for the 1870’s were these:

All very similar in shape. I settled on the last one, because I liked the square bottom front and fitted back. (Also, even though it has nothing to do with the pattern, the bow at the back might have influenced me slightly 😉 ).

I slightly adapted the pattern to fit me, mostly the back was way too narrow and the front slightly too wide for me. I didn’t have a narrow neckline anymore after I was done with the adaptions, and decided to leave it as it was. So mine is slightly wider then the originals probably were.

These patterns have no instructions, so I just made it up in the way I thought easiest. First I assembled the wool fabric pieces. I then trimmed the edges using velvet and polyester ribbon. The polyester ribbon (obviously not historical, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen actual silk ribbon for sale) was pleated every 1,5cm. All 10m of it.. Suffice to say that took a while, it was a relaxing task though, and perfect for the start of the holidays. (Very obvious in this image, I tend to group pins by color…)

 

 

After trimming, I lined the wool with cotton by sewing it together right sides together, leaving a little part to turn it inside out. That part was hand-sewn shut afterwards. To keep the back close to the body right before the ‘flare’, I sewed a cotton strip of fabric at that point which closes in the front. I don’t know if this is period, just something I thought convenient.

 

It closes with a fancy closure at the top and little hooks and eyes to keep the front together.

 

I also placed a velvet bow at the center back, inspired by the pattern picture.

 

To finish, a couple of images of me wearing the mantelet over the ball gown.

 

 

 

Autumn skirt – with a temper to match

The story of this shirt started over a year ago when I first saw the fabric in my local fabric store. I immediately loved it, it’s wool, it has a lovely drape, and the colors are gorgeous. It was also rather too expensive to justify buying it without a plan, so I left it. A short while later though, I saw it again, but this time on sale. So I immediately bought all that was left. Just 1,10 meters, but I figured it would work for a skirt.

So the planning started! I wanted to make a skirt with a pleated top, matching the tartan. But I also wanted it to be quite long, a little below knee length, and to have a narrower line than the ‘poofy’ skirts I often make.

So I started pleating along the 1,5 (width) edge. It was a large challenge to both match up all the stripes and end up with my desired waist measurement. I’d normally take 3 times the waist measurement, but this time I had a little over 2 times, so it just wasn’t working.

After re-pleating it about 3 times, I decided I could add a little width by taking off the length. I had 1,1 in length which was too long anyway. So I cut down the bottom 30 cm and re-sewed it to the sides, matching up the pattern. Doing a french seam, it again took me about 3 times to get right, but it worked.

This is an image of the finished skirt, which still has the french seams. Almost invisible, yay!

So I started pleating again! Again, it took a while to get right, but at least I had a little more width. When the pleats were done, I stitched them together for about 10 cm deep. I then put in the zipper, and the waistband, made from the tiny bit of scraps I had left.

I hated it. It still turned out a bit too big. The very long pleats didn’t work, it just wasn’t flattering at all. So I took out about half of the length of the pleats, and I re-attached the waistband as facing. But honestly, it was still a bit too big, and not really what I’d had in mind. Because the fabric was so pretty, I didn’t want to settle for a shape which didn’t work. I’d also put in so much work in endlessly pleating and re-pleating, so I couldn’t quite bear to take it all apart yet. So I frustratedly threw it in the ‘todo’ basket and left it there for nearly a year. This is how it came out of the basket (including wrinklyness…)

Speed up to a couple of weeks ago! I’d been looking at autumny skirts, and thinking back to the gorgeous fabric. I decided to completely re-do the skirt. Having only pleated, I still basically had a rectangle of fabric to work with. Pleats didn’t work, so it would be an A-line  model!

So I took out the waistband facing, the pleats, the hem and the zipper and ended up with a ‘loop’ of fabric. Carefully patterning on paper, I figured I’d be able to make an almost .45 circle with minimal waste.

This is what the patterning and cutting looked like. As you can see, minimal waste! The sides are on the fold, so those didn’t need an extra seam.

This pattern worked a lot better. I also added a lining so it’d work better with leggings, and re-attached the waistband and zipper. I left the circle hanging to stretch for a week and finally did the hem.

It took a lot of time, and loads of frustration, but I am finally really happy with how this turned out. The fabric is still stunning, and perfect for the changing weather!