FINISHED! Gathered spring skirt with a splash of fluro

This year really is the year of the skirts.. and here is another one!
Gathered skirt with a splash of fluoro green
When I went to Addicted to Fabric the other day (and came out with the fabric for my Tokyo jacket and O'Keefe skirt) I originally went in there to buy this fabric. At the time I didn't end up buying it as it is a very light weight voile (not what I had remembered) and of course I got distracted with the other fabric.  But it stayed in my mind until finally I decided last week that I had to buy it. Just in time too as I bought the last 1.5 m.

Due to it's lightweight nature, I thought a simple gathered skirt might work well and now that I have my Cami dress I am feeling slightly more comfortable with the silhouette. Anyway, forget how it looks, they just are fun to wear.

It is a pretty basic skirt. It has side seam pockets and is lined in a very cool aqua voile - I should have taken a picture of it.
Gathered skirt with a splash of fluoro green
I made up the pattern with major reference to Gertie's tutorial (and I used my Cami pockets). I used this Colette tutorial for attaching the waistband (I prefer the zipper to go up through the waistband rather than having a fold over waistband (if that makes sense)).  I thought about making the Zinnia which I have bought, but didn't think I'd have enough fabric for the way the pattern pieces are cut and I'll admit that I was just looking for a quick and easy make and didn't feel like printing out the pattern and taping it together. I am supposed to be doing fete sewing - not selfish sewing!

In general it is a nicely put together make and I surprised myself by hand sewing the waist band and the hem. There was no way I could match thread with this fabric for the hem.  The only thing I'm a bit disappointed about is the inside of the invisible zipper.  With my Charlotte skirt I handsewed the lining onto the zipper but for some reason I followed incorrectly the instructions for the Zinnia and thought I could sew the lining and the outer fabric together.  I shouldn't have been mixing and matching my instructions! By the time I realised the mistake my lining was already beautifully sewn into my waistband and I wasn't sure how to back out of the situation I found myself in.  I didn't take a photo of the innards.  It doesn't look bad - I did tidy up in there but it could be a bit nicer.  Is there a way of sewing the lining onto an invisible zipper?
Gathered skirt with a splash of fluoro

Apart from that I made a lot of ''I'm thinking about too many things and I should be doing them rather than this skirt - but I really want to make this now'' errors, so the unpicker got a workout. It is always the way when I think it's going to be a quick and easy make!  But all's well that ends well and I have a fun spring skirt to wear.
Gathered skirt with a splash of fluoro green
What I really want is a stripy tee to wear with it. But out of the 8 stripy tops I own - none of them quite worked - can you believe it! The 8 tops? Or that none of them were exactly right? Both probably. I also popped by the shops this afternoon running other errands and to the moans of my boys who I dragged along with me - couldn't find the right top there either. I guess I'll just have to make one!
OK, no more selfish sewing. Got to get onto sewing for two fetes (first one this saturday if you are in Canberra), organising a 5 year old birthday party and getting ready for a Halloween morning tea.

50 comments:

  1. I love it! The print is gorgeous.

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  2. i love this skirt! it would look great with a striped top, so hope you get lucky and find one. :) about the zipper, have you watched sunni's zipper class on craftsy? i think she addresses how to navigate a lining without hand sewing even.

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  3. Too bad it was the last piece! I would have bought some for myself ...

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  4. Ooooo, I love this- the fabric is perfect! I have used a good tutorial for sewing a lining with an invisible zip (no hand sewing even!) I'll try to find it and come back with a link :)

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  5. It really is the perfect kind of skirt for that print. Love how it turned out. Another gorgeous skirt for your collection!
    Oh, you are Halloween sewing too? I have to make three costumes! (very simple ones)

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  6. I love that fabric! The colours are to die for and the fabric seems to have some lovely movement making it perfect for this style of skirt. Great spring piece. Not sure about sewing the lining onto the invisible zipper, I hand sew mine. But I am absolutely sure I've seen some tutorials on it. But do you think I could find them?

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  7. A perfect match of skirt and fabric! The fabric is gorgeous and I love the movement shots. I would never have thought to pair a striped shirt with a print, but it would be a great look. I remember during MMM you paired prints and it looked amazing (I think I may need you to style me!).

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  8. Renee //nearestthepinOctober 21, 2013 at 9:17 AM

    I love this! gorgeous fabric:)

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  9. Love this fabric and I am a huge fan of this style!! Beautiful Kristy!

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  10. Your fabric is yummy! I like it paired with a simple dark blouse which makes your skirt the focus. Now you've got me thinking of breaking my "no florals" habit.

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  11. It's so pretty! The fabric looks awesome, the colours and how it seems so light and floaty. Everyone is sewing skirts like this. Brings back memories, cos I used to wear these skirts when I was younger :) First time I have heard of the zipper sewn all the way up to the waistband, but hmmm it sounds practical.

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  12. Oh, this is absolutely lovely Kirsty! you picked the perfect thing to make with this gorgeous fabric. It was meant to be!
    I always sew the lining on to an invisible zip tape by hand, I know you can do it on the machine but I just like it like this :)

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  13. Your skirt is beautiful. I love it. Voile is one of my favourite fabrics to work with and wear. Have you gathered your lining too? Cheers, Karen

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  14. It´s gorgeous!!!! Love the fabric! This silhoutte is perfect for you Kirsty, I think that it looks great on you ;-)

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  15. Simply spectacular floral swishiness here! Epic work :D

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  16. Thanks Amanda! I was definitely getting my swishiness on at work today in it :)

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  17. Thanks so much - I'm definitely loving the 'twirl' factor.

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  18. Hi Karen. I love voile and (lawn) too! Yes I gathered the lining. I'm not sure that I should have but it gives it a bit more volume :)

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  19. Thanks so much Carolyn. I think I will go back to hand sewing the zipper - it is a bit more rewarding :)

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  20. Thanks Erin. The fabric is great with big flowers and then splotches of paint. It definitely feels light and floaty to wear. I think I'm not explaining the zipper properly as I have seen this waistband on quite a lot of clothes - the Megan Nielson Cullotes and of course the Colette skirt which is mentioned in the post.

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  21. Thanks Morgan - I need to find a slower make now and concentrate on it...but yes, the skirt worked out in the end and is a fun spring piece to wear.

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  22. Thanks so much! This fabric has flowers but also big paint splotches so you could definitely break your habit for that! It would be like sneaking in some florals :)

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  23. Give me a print and I'll always try to pair it with stripes! Although now I've been trying to pair different prints - but not yet successfully. I've been reflecting lately on how much print I make when I used not wear any print - I've gone crazy. I think you do a pretty good job of styling yourself :) What are you making at the moment?

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  24. The colours are great aren't they! Thanks for looking for the zipper tute! I think I'll go back to hand sewing them on - and I'll probably go back to using a proper pattern as well :)

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  25. Thanks Merche! Luckily no halloween sewing for me - yet - the morning tea is at my work!!! We are having a big morning tea with decorations etc. What are you sewing?

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  26. Thanks Kathryn! Clearly I don't have enough stripies!

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  27. If only I'd bought it a couple of weeks ago :(

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  28. Thanks Lisa. I've just got that craftsy class so will definitely watch it. Thanks for the tip.

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  29. Thanks Gabrielle! Yes it does float about - so naturally I have to float around with it :)

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  30. Oh. My. Word. I LOVE that skirt! I want one just like it! Perfect!

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  31. Isn't it funny how you sew different colors and styles than you would buy RTW? My wardrobe is much more colorful these days! I'm on the skirt bandwagon too, just finishing up a Kelly skirt. Tonight I should finish the Strathcona Henley for my husband (really wish I had read Four Square Walls post before I made it since I had exactly the same issues). We'll just call the Henley a wearable muslin!

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  32. Ok, here is the tutorial I have used...mostly on little girl dresses but it has worked really well for me! http://theslapdashsewist.blogspot.com/2010/03/burda-08-2009-110-tweed-pencil-skirt.html

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  33. Thanks so much for this tip. I have used this before with great success.

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  34. It's gorgeous fabric isn't it. So spring - y.

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  35. Beautiful skirt! I love the floaty, flowery fabric. I don't know how to sew the lining onto an invisible zip, I'm going to be inserting my first one into a dress next week! (no lining in the bodice though).

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  36. Love the fabric! Pretty pretty. Tasia over at Sewaholic has a great tutorial showing you how to sew a lining to an invisible zipper. http://sewaholic.net/sewing-the-lining-into-the-cambie-dress/

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  37. Yep, I totally agree that this was the perfect project for this fabric! I think bold fabric like this always looks best when paired with a simple pattern. Very pretty!

    I did a tutorial on invisible zips & facings a little while ago which also works with linings instead of facings, as well as waistbands. This is the link: http://rennous-oh-glennus.tumblr.com/post/62319751183/make-facings-your-friends-part-4-facings-and-invisible

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  38. Thanks Jennifer. Will definitely check it out.

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  39. All your garments look so great I thought you'd been sewing them for years. Good luck!

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  40. Oh this will help me as well! Thanks.

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  41. Oooh I shall file this under 'compliment', thanks! I've got regular zips under control and just hand sewed a yoke lining to one for my culottes. But not invisible zips. And to make things even more interesting, the zip is 2 inches too long, they didn't have right length. So will also be doctoring that .

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  42. This turned out beautiful. Such a pretty print.

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