A while ago I bought a Clothkits Big Birdie skirt kit as a helpful exercise in learning to sew, and I finally got around to making it.
The fabric - soft plum babycord - is divine, and the instructions were crystal clear, so all went well apart from sewing the odd facing on the wrong way round when I was too distracted by the Boat Race (Civil disobedience? Seriously? Not exactly Rosa Parks). The skirt, cut to a size 12, fits beautifully through the hips but is far too big around the waist:
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| Crappy BlackBerry photo, very dusty mirror and the wheel of my bike ... |
I considered MacGyvering some belt loops from scraps of the cord (there is plenty spare), as I have s snazzy green snakeskin-effect belt that would go perfectly, but this would give an oddly rumpled waist. Darts would be the answer, but at the moment I lack the sewing and construction skills for this. So it will have to wait a while. Or I just continue to eat masses of Easter chocolate, which would also solve the problem.
I also worked on a Sorbetto in a rather lovely strawberry-print polycotton from Doughtys - a pretty print and an easy, inexpensive fabric to work with. After making a very rough muslin last week, I went for a quick and easy length adjustment, taking the size 8 side seams down to the size 20 body length, and it's now about right. The front pleat is a little small, as I just used the 2" guide on my machine, rather than measuring the pleat line, but I quite like the extra fabric. But apart from this small impatience, I felt much more relaxed and took my time. So much so that I put it to one side rather than jamming on some slightly scratchy white bias tape I bought; I'm going to make my own in the same print to finish the neckline, and as I'm not a great fan of sleeveless tops I will try some sleeves.
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| tiny front pleat |
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