Vogue 1018 - Sandra Betzina Skirt

Oooh, I just love this Sandra Betzina skirt.  It's funky and asymmetric and I love funky and asymmetric.  I had close to 5 yards of this very unusual fabric.  It's very lightweight, drapey, 100% polyester in a scrumptious stripe with polka dots.  It feels similar to a very lightweight ripstop nylon. I think of it as a novelty seersucker because it has that quality to it.  It also has a chenille yarn that runs through the stripe.  You can see a closeup of the fabric here:



I wanted something special for this fabric and I hoped this skirt would be perfect. It's basically an a-line skirt with a drape and the fabric has some tucks sewn into it to create interesting texture and hang.

I did make one significant change to the pattern. It has a shaped, fitted yoke and I hate skirts with a rigid fit at the waist/hips. So, I added about 10" to the pattern at the waist to convert it to an elastic waistband. (I didn't want to just cut a larger size because I don't like to be drowned in too much fabric -- I cut the pattern in a size to fit my hips.) I did cut the drape in a larger size because I wasn't quite sure how to just enlarge that. It worked ok, I guess. (I cut the skirt in a size D and the drape in a size G.) The new yoke is a rectangular piece and I didn't even measure it -- I just cut it out and sewed it to fit. You can see the elastic waist here:



The only other modification I made was to change the grainline on the drape. I cut that so that the stripe would parallel the front edge of the drape. I wanted that bold stripe to be featured in the design

I did line it with navy sandwashed rayon fabric. So soft. I wasn't going to, but the skirt fabric was a little too lightweight, I felt.

Here it is:

I'm back!

I am back to sewing clothing for myself!  It's been a hiatus of close to 20 years.  Yes, twenty years.  I used to be an obsessive sewist and particularly loved to make designer and wearable art type of clothing.  Then I married, had two kids, gained weight, and my creative interests shifted, first to quilting, then to kids clothing and crafts, knitting, and felting.  Ten years later, I divorced, went back to work, gained more weight, and stopped sewing altogether, except for Halloween costumes (for my kids) and school plays, ballet performances, etc.

Well, my kids are now teenagers, and don't need (or want) my creative skills anymore.  I've had many passions in my life, but this is the big one.  At first, I wasn't that inspired about returning to sewing, partly because sewing didn't feel as fun at my current age/weight, but after a bit of "inspiration shopping" at some lovely boutiques, and some insanely crazy fabric shopping, I got over that. 

I am hooked, once again.  :)

Once I get some photos uploaded, I will start blogging.  :)