Skirts, Skirts, Skirts

I'm on a skirt kick right now. Skirts are fun to sew, easy to fit, and comfortable to wear. They can be dressed up or down. I love to wear skirts, especially in the summer, and so I decided to sew a few for myself. Both these skirts are made from the same pattern, and yes, it's from Ottobre.

Pattern: Ottobre 05/07 Design #4
This easy to sew lined skirt has a curved, fitted waistband and closes with an invisible zipper down the center back seam. The magazine gives three variations of this same pattern. I like that it only takes one yard of 60" wide fabric.

Skirt #1: I made this blue floral skirt first.


Fabric used: I used a stretch cotton that I discovered does not really have enough drape for this pattern. The skirt tends to stand out from my body, but hopefully after I wash it a few times it will hang better. One way to fix this problem would be to take out some of the flare from the pattern, but I don't feel like taking it apart to do so. So, I'll leave it alone as is. The skirt is lined with lining fabric from my stash.


Changes and Construction details: I like my skirts to fit about 1" below my natural waist. I think this pattern must run big because I had to take bigger seam allowances to make it fit right. I should have compared my low-waist measurement to the pattern pieces instead of just going by the pattern measurement chart.

I interfaced both the waistband and the waistband facing to give the waist extra body and to prevent the waistline seam from stretching out.

Oh, I just love my Pfaff invisible zipper foot. For years I sewed invisible zippers with a generic plastic foot, but let me tell you, the "real" foot works 100% better.

Skirt #2: What do you think? Is this next skirt too little-girl or too "homeschool mom" for me? My 2 older daughters at home seem to think so. I kind of like it, though. Casual for summer and hey, just about any color top matches.

Fabric: The fabric is a lightweight denim with appliqued flowers. I bought this fabric at Hancock's because it was marked down at a good price. This fabric is not something I normally would choose for myself, but I found that I love this skirt in this fabric.

Changes and Construction details: I took off some of the fullness/flare of the a-line skirt by taking off two inches at the side seam hem and tapering up to the original waistline. Also, the lightweight denim does not require the wearing of a slip, so I did not line the skirt. The waistband is faced with a red floral print. I stabilized the waistband seam with twill tape to prevent stretching.


Conclusion: I love this pattern, I love both skirts, and who knows, I may make another one...or two....

Coming soon: With the remaining fabric, I made this sweet skirt for Emily using a delightful pattern from Sew Blessed Designs. I'll tell you about it next time.

Happy Sewing,