Saturday Afternoon Skirt

In my selection of items to be made for the Fall Essentials Sewalong, an A-Line denim skirt was first on the list. Following a disappointing trip to the high street I had resolved to make my own denim skirt. As the title suggests I made this skirt in an afternoon this weekend, using the Sew What! Skirts book which shows how to draft basic skirt patterns using your own measurements.

When first modelling the skirt my husband commented ominously, "That pocket won't last", but it's not really intended as a weight-bearing pocket, but just enough to hold a tissue. I had originally planned to add some pockets at the side seams or maybe at the front, adapting the pattern from my Crescent skirt. In the end I decided against that and made the 'feature' heart-shaped patch pocket on the front of the skirt. I made this by drawing a heart shape on tracing paper then cutting one piece in denim and another in scrap fabric (coincidentally from my Crescent skirt) for the inside of the pocket.

One of the reasons behind this skirt was that I have a gap in my wardrobe for more casual pieces to wear at the weekend. It seems that while I can wear my handmade items easily to work during the week I always end up throwing on jeans at the weekend. This became quite obvious during Me Made June, when I felt like I was dressing more smartly than usual at the weekend in order to keep being Me Made! A denim skirt felt like a good way to begin to redress the balance. As I bought 2 metres of denim I'm hoping I can actually squeeze another Crescent skirt out of what I have left.

I'm fairly happy with how the skirt has turned out. Despite being drafted using my own measurements, it's still a little bigger at the waist than I intended. I think this is because I added an inch to the waistband for ease, and the fabric has a little stretch in it. The skirt fastens with an invisible zip at the back and a button at the waistband, and it doesn't sit as well at the back as it should. I always find it hard to finish the bottom of the zip as neatly as the top!

The costs for the project were minimal:

1 metre denim    £4.99

Zip                     £0.35 (bit of a bargain - bought new from Remnant Kings)

Black button       Stash
Black thread       Stash
Red fabric          Stash/scrap

Making a grand total of £5.34

Overall I think this was a pretty good make. The fit isn't perfect but it's as good as anything on the high street, plus the skirt was considerably cheaper and quick to make.

Not bad work for a Saturday afternoon I think

K x