I Took Some Fabric Risks
When I saw this pattern on the Lekala site I was totally in love with the style. I ordered it almost immediately and wanted to sew it up right away but had another project deadline that I had to meet.
This simple 3 piece skirt turned into a sewing nightmare and I am still not sure why.
The cotton jacquard I ultimately chose has been in my stash 7 or more years. I bought it and another piece in a different color and have been struggling to find a use for it. I decided I would take a risk with this skirt and use it.
I knew I did not want to use the same fabric for the "fly" piece in the front. I went back to my stash and found another piece of denim that was a close match and I still did not have a enough to cut the fly piece on the straight grain so I cut it on the crosswise grain.
I really wanted to bring some of the colors from the main fabric to the fly piece and remembered seeing some embroidery designs that I thought would be perfect. I used Florals II by Laurel Burch.
The skirt had enough straight lines and angles so I chose to used my curve stick to draw some curved lines on the front of the denim fly piece. Then I used Sulky's 12 Wt Cotton Blendable thread and a triple straight stitch to follow the curved lines I had drawn. I really wanted the lines to stand out.
I do a lot of embroidery so I keep my bigger pieces of stabilizer after removing it from the back of the design so I can re-use the pieces when I am doing buttonholes and other decorative stitching to stabilize the fabric.
Next I chose and embroidered 4 designs on top of my stitched lines. My butterflies were supposed to face up/down but I made a mistake so they are facing left to right.
Decorating the front fly was the easy part. Even after setting aside this project several times I was still frustrated. Lekala is not known for their sewing instructions but for some reason nothing made sense.
I stitched and ripped out the zipper 6 times - normally I don't have an issue with zippers. After the 6 time of stitching it I gave up and accepted defeat. My zipper on this skirt looks horrible.
I had to attach and re-attach the fly piece to the front several times because I just couldn't seem to get it in the right place along the front side seam.
When it came time to add the waistband facing to the front and the back I realized that both the front and the back facing pieces were too small and still not sure how that happened. The simple thing to do would have been to put it down and come back another day or re-cut the facing pieces so they were bigger - I didn't.
Putting this project down and coming back to it would only delay the aggravation and frustration I already had. I knew I would toss it in the trash if I put it away again. I accepted defeat and gathered the front and back to fit the waistband - a hot mess I know. If you look closely at the pictures you will see the problem it caused with the finished skirt.
Initially after completing it I couldn't bring myself to throw it away so I decided I would put it in the pile to give to the thrift store. When I put the skirt on my dress form it looked horrible. When I tried it was a little better.
When I tried it on with the right shirt and shoes it got "more" better. I think it is wearable and it is beginning to grow on me. I will probably wear it in public.
With all that went wrong for me while sewing this skirt, I still love the design lines of it and will keep this pattern. I don't think it was necessarily the pattern, I believe I was having a really off sewing day.
 |
| Lekala 4755 |
How I Did It
I was determined to use fabric from my stash and ultimately I did. Originally I wanted to use a solid denim but I was concerned about the weight because it was a bit heavy. Since I did not have enough I to make my skirt, I went back to my stash.The cotton jacquard I ultimately chose has been in my stash 7 or more years. I bought it and another piece in a different color and have been struggling to find a use for it. I decided I would take a risk with this skirt and use it.
I knew I did not want to use the same fabric for the "fly" piece in the front. I went back to my stash and found another piece of denim that was a close match and I still did not have a enough to cut the fly piece on the straight grain so I cut it on the crosswise grain.
I really wanted to bring some of the colors from the main fabric to the fly piece and remembered seeing some embroidery designs that I thought would be perfect. I used Florals II by Laurel Burch.
The skirt had enough straight lines and angles so I chose to used my curve stick to draw some curved lines on the front of the denim fly piece. Then I used Sulky's 12 Wt Cotton Blendable thread and a triple straight stitch to follow the curved lines I had drawn. I really wanted the lines to stand out.
I do a lot of embroidery so I keep my bigger pieces of stabilizer after removing it from the back of the design so I can re-use the pieces when I am doing buttonholes and other decorative stitching to stabilize the fabric.
 |
| Fly Piece Before Decoration |
 |
| Curved Lines Drawn |
 |
| Triple Straight Stitch |
 |
| Scrap Pieces of Embroidery Stabilizer |
 |
| Wrong Side |
Next I chose and embroidered 4 designs on top of my stitched lines. My butterflies were supposed to face up/down but I made a mistake so they are facing left to right.
 |
| Wrong Side |
I stitched and ripped out the zipper 6 times - normally I don't have an issue with zippers. After the 6 time of stitching it I gave up and accepted defeat. My zipper on this skirt looks horrible.
I had to attach and re-attach the fly piece to the front several times because I just couldn't seem to get it in the right place along the front side seam.
When it came time to add the waistband facing to the front and the back I realized that both the front and the back facing pieces were too small and still not sure how that happened. The simple thing to do would have been to put it down and come back another day or re-cut the facing pieces so they were bigger - I didn't.
Putting this project down and coming back to it would only delay the aggravation and frustration I already had. I knew I would toss it in the trash if I put it away again. I accepted defeat and gathered the front and back to fit the waistband - a hot mess I know. If you look closely at the pictures you will see the problem it caused with the finished skirt.
Conclusion
Sewing this skirt was painful and what made it worse was it is a really simple pattern. This skirt is not my best work. I took a huge risk with my fabric selection - the color and the weight. I am still not sure my risk paid off. If I make this skirt again I will line the front fly piece and use a lighter weight fabric for the skirt and fly piece.Initially after completing it I couldn't bring myself to throw it away so I decided I would put it in the pile to give to the thrift store. When I put the skirt on my dress form it looked horrible. When I tried it was a little better.
When I tried it on with the right shirt and shoes it got "more" better. I think it is wearable and it is beginning to grow on me. I will probably wear it in public.
With all that went wrong for me while sewing this skirt, I still love the design lines of it and will keep this pattern. I don't think it was necessarily the pattern, I believe I was having a really off sewing day.
What's Next
I will be sewing Rosy Pena's Sophia Flares pattern. I have the pattern printed and cut out. I have the fabric. I need to make some adjustments to the pattern before I cut my fabric.
Comments
Post a Comment
Enter comments here