Scalloped Skirt

It feels like ages since I blogged but, lucky you, here I am again, finally. This fabric has been in the stash for several years so this make addresses one of my goals. And I stuck with my original plan to make a skirt with a scalloped hem. In fact, the scallops are what had me procrastinating.

They're not perfect but I think I'm getting better at making scallops. Of course it has pockets - side seam - and the left pocket conceals the opening. No zipper, just a button. I forgot to take a picture of it but it's like the pocket on this denim skirt.

I did take a closeup of the fabric though - 100% cotton, black background, simple cream flowers and a little touch of pink.

This is how it will usually be seen. I never almost tuck.

I don't have very many tops that I can wear with it but that's okay. I love it with this one. (blogged here) The shoes, in case anyone's interested, are Abeo and they're awesome. Flexible, great arch support.

I haven't been wearing skirts much at all in the past few years so I'm a little concerned that I won't wear this but of course the solution to that problem is to just wear it. And I will.

Goal: Sew fabric that I have had for 2+ years at least once a month (or 12 times this year) 8/12

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In case this is your first time here, these pictures (not including the closeup) were taken (by tripod and timer) in the house we're building. It's timber frame construction which goes a little different from conventional construction. The roof is built before the floor. And we finally have most of a sub-floor! Getting to this point feels like a really big deal. My little fur child, whom you can see in the background, loves it. She's moved in already.

Something Simple

Several weeks ago Denver Fabrics had what they call "cotton suiting" on sale for $1.99 a yard! I bought two pieces, one of which was this lovely pin-cord.

I knew almost immediately what I wanted to do with it:

(I did take two photos with the blouse tucked in but I didn't like them at all.) I used the skirt pieces from Vogue 8811. I didn't make a waistband, just a narrow facing cut from a scrap of lighter weight pink cotton. Strictly speaking, it didn't need elastic; my ample hips would have kept it up without it but it felt loose to me so the facing became a casing for elastic. And of course it has a 7 inch zipper and pockets. (The blouse is very old, probably close to 20 years. I rarely wear it. I keep it around just in case I need a white blouse.)

I love the skirt. I'm very happy with the way it turned out. I already have several summer tops that I think will look okay with it and a couple more planned that I think will look even better.

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After I finished this skirt (Wednesday) I immediately went back to work on That Dress and it's almost finished. I just need to hem it and that's it. I have discovered (or decided) two things: 1, Merely the fact that I worry that unfinished projects will become never finished projects means that I probably won't let that happen even if I stop and work on something else for a while, and 2, taking a break from a project gone wrong to work on something else can actually be helpful. I won't say that I will never completely give up on a project but if I love the fabric and there's any chance that it can become something wearable there's no giving up. It's just the way I am.

The "Chartreuse Is a Neutral Because I Say So" Top and the Problematic Orange Skirt

Okay, no stalling; here it is. I won't say don't laugh because I know you will anyway. Or at least I hope so. It's better than, "What the...?!"

First I have to talk about the skirt. I made it years and years and years ago. It actually started life as a dress. I can't find the pattern. (i.e. If I took the time to look for it right now this wouldn't get posted until August.) It had a square neckline and pin tucks in the front, no waistline. I had made one other dress using that pattern and the neckline was too wide and the armholes too big. I tried to fix the problems on the second try but it still didn't come out quite right.

So I got this wild idea to turn it into a skirt. And I love it. (though I would rather the dress had turned out better.) The length is a little weird - longer than my usual mid-calf length but not long enough to be a maxi. It's a bit longer than I intended and I've thought about shortening it but I actually like it just the way it is.

But the only top I had that would go with it was a white blouse. It looked okay but I really wanted some choice besides white. I don't wear white very often because I have a deep-seated fear of clothing disasters involving massive quantities of barbecue sauce or blueberry pie filling. Yes, I know such a disaster would equally ruin a green blouse but... well, you know... it's a mental thing. So anyway, this lovely skirt has been hanging in my closet for years, rarely worn but not forgotten.

Then I got this crazy idea that the color this skirt needs is green - a crazy green that doesn't even match the little green leaves on the skirt. The pattern is Kwik Sew 3511. I had made the version with the collar a couple of times but this was my first time making the scoop neck version. It's a bit deeper and wider scoop than I'm comfortable with. It's not indecent by any means. It doesn't even reveal any cleavage. It's just that I feel like I have this vast expanse of glaring white chest. The only solution, of course, is big jewelry. This two-strand wooden bead necklace is the biggest I have. I think it works okay but I feel like I could find (or make) something better.

So, it's a little crazy but I like it. I am so going to wear this in public and if I end up on PeopleofWalmart.com so be it.

Scrappy Inspiration

We sewing people are crazy aren't we? As I said before, I don't like a cluttered or mixed up look. I'm the matchy-matchy queen. In fact, I actually hate the term "matchy-matchy" because it suggests that there is something wrong with having everything match perfectly the way it's supposed to. [ahem] Anyway. I saw this dress in a catalog.

Not my thing, right? Definitely not my thing, but for some reason, as soon as I saw it I thought, "I could do that! I have all those scraps..." Yes, that's it, isn't it? Something to do with some of those scraps to justify keeping scraps. I was going to maybe make a quilt out of them "someday" but a dress would be faster.

The dress above is knit and most of my scraps are quilting cotton and nothing that really "goes together" like some of the pieces in the catalog dress but... well, I'm not as certain anymore. My inspiration is fading. I must be crazy to even think it. Here are just a few of my scraps, ranging in size from narrow strips to nearly half a yard.

Here's another scrap dress idea. Simple but crazy. And another. That one is a child's skirt but it could easily scale up. Oh, and here's a whole collection of patchwork skirts.

So what do you think? Is there any potential in my scrap collection and how crazy am I to be thinking of going in this direction?