An (over) abundance of handmade skirts

Ok, so perhaps I’ve gone a bit overboard. It seems lately that I’m working as hard as I can to use up every last piece of fabric in the house. It’s not an attempt to clean it up, or clear it out – no indeed! (just ask Morgan…) – it seems that I just can’t stand having it sitting there without trying to make it into something… anything, really.

This morning I went through my stash and found half a yard of some Sandi Henderson Ginger Blossom Tortoise Plaid fabric. I wasn’t a huge fan when I originally received it (hence why it was still in the closet!), but when I looked at it today, it seemed to have grown on me and it looked like it would make a good pattern for a skirt.

As I learned during my last skirt-making occasion, I’m hard pressed to fit myself into a skirt made out of just half a yard of fabric. I opted to give it another go, and I hate to say it, but this time wasn’t any easier. The skirt is even smaller than the previous one… let’s just assume that it wasn’t as large a piece of fabric.

So anyway, this is yet another basic short skirt. I set it up so that I’d be able to put in an elastic waist, but due to it being slightly smaller than I expected, I’m not sure it’s necessary. It seems to stay in place on its own. I found some jumbo white vintage cotton rick rack and sewed it to the bottom (I thought perhaps it would make the skirt appear longer in length, but it turns out that minuscule amount doesn’t make that much of a difference).

Now I just need some sunnier weather so I can wear it out… perhaps tomorrow?

Enjoy the weekend!

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A finished dress… you knew there’d be a ruffle!

Just a quick post to provide pictures of the dress that I started here. This is straight from the washer and dryer, so please ignore all those wrinkles (I’m not much for ironing!)

I like the way this turned out, and do quite like the polka dot fabric. I was afraid it might be a little much, but I think it turned out ok . (at least, I didn’t notice anyone staring, or commenting that the pattern made them dizzy!) And yes, there had to be a ruffle, of course. To tell the truth, I initially sewed it with the ruffle around the neck and a larger ruffle along the bottom edge, but decided it was a bit much. More is not always better, or something like that…

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It’s done! The Quilted Amy Butler Bag

It’s done, it’s done! (and I love it!)

The initial part came together quite quickly, but then I did run into a few issues in completing it. (Note to self: follow a pattern next time!)

As previously posted, I used strips of Amy Butler Midwest Modern fabrics. I sewed all the strips together to form a large piece of fabric approximately the size of one side of the bag. Same with the second side, and then a separate piece to form a bottom for the bag.

I used some thick interfacing that I had left over from another project – 2 layers on each side for an extra thick feel. I then machine quilted these pieces, sewing vertical lines on the portion with the longer strips and horizontal lines on the section with the shorter strips.

For the lining, I opted for one of the prints used on the front – Fresh Poppies in Rose. I only had 1/2 a yard of that print, and pretty much used it all in making the lining. Of course I then decided I wanted an interior pocket, which I had to make using yet another fabric. I found some Martini Dot in Fuchsia, which matched the lining and created two pockets on one side.

And now I’m off to the store to test it out…

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