Tuesday 1 January 2013

Triple whammy!

Pattern: Sewaholic Crescent skirt

Size: 10

Fabric: Denim cotton from Cupcake Cottons; black flower suiting from Saeed's, Walthamstow.


Happy new year everybody! As predicted, the 12 days off work have flown by but I am pleased that I managed to get some sewing in between eating and drinking too much, watching a ton of films, traipsing around the muddy countryside, and completing a jigsaw of the London skyline.


I have been wanting to work on my weekend wardrobe a bit as I tend to make nice work dresses and not a lot for more casual wear. So I decided to make a denim version of the Sewaholic Crescent skirt. As it's so gathered I was worried that denim might be a bit thick so opted for a denim-y cotton instead. I love this fabric with its cute little flower pattern and it's just what I was looking for.
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The Crescent pattern is fabulous. Really easy to make and follow, and the best part is the genius insertion of the zip that Tasia invented. It's a bit hard to explain, but it gets attached to the waistband facing first and then the main skirt so is incredibly neat.

I confess that I made a boo-boo and put it in back-to-front, but was so happy with how neat it looked that I didn't have the heart to take it out. So I just have to zip this skirt up from the inside. It makes me smile each time I put it on so that can't be a bad thing.

To give the skirt a bit more individuality and interest I added some binding on the pockets. There are so many suggested ways of vamping up the pattern, including topstitching and piping that you could make infinite versions!


The rain and gales even held off for long enough to take some outdoor photos! So no feature wall in this post. :-)






Sewaholic patterns are advertised as being made for the curvier woman and after making this skirt, I have to agree. It fits me soooo nicely and I often avoid skirts because I rarely find ones I feel comfortable in. But this is a total gem and I love it.

So...I made a second one! For work this time.



Heels sinking in gravel. Good look.

I found this beautiful fabric in Walthamstow and was going to make a tulip skirt from it but wasn't completely sure if that style would suit me. As I know Crescent does, it seemed a no-brainer to make another one!


This time, I got the zip the right way round and it looks brilliant thanks to that genius technique mentioned earlier. It wasn't until we took the photos that I realised the gathers at the front were really uneven and I knew it would haunt me so I unpicked the relevant part and sorted it out.


I am not a fan of, or very good at, stitching in the ditch, but I feel it really will be a case of practice makes perfect. The first time wasn't particularly  neat, but the second skirt is looking much better. On the outside, certainly, although the inside is still a little uneven. But I think I'll get there, and I quite enjoy this technique now so that's progress!

You may have noticed that I made a new Jalie bow top to go with Weekend Crescent.


The burgundy is an off-cut donated by the lovely Elena that I just managed to eke a top out of and the blue tie is left over from this dress. I love this pattern - it's quick and easy, with clever construction (I particularly enjoy the part where you roll up the entire top inside the bow to make the tube - makes sense when you're doing it!) and it fits me really well with no alterations. I think if I ever own a diner, these will be my uniform colours. :-)

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