Dee Skirt: The End

Took a special project class at Joann Fabrics to fix the skirt.

Unpicked the awful hem that I had made. Unpicked the folded over (pretty!) side seams.

Spent two hours of a three hour project class unpicking everything. I hate the seam ripper and I hate ironing. Ugh.

Learned how to do a blind stitch for the hem. (Stitch 04).

Learned how to prevent the fabric from fraying. (Fray check and Stitch 11).

Hand stitched the hole in the front of the skirt at the yoke. Looks ugly, like an inverted pleat. Unwearable. Will be adding a ribbon to hide that.

Teacher comments: Should have added interfacing to the waist for stability.

 

Dee Skirt: Crisis

I can’t even post a picture. It’s too horrible.

I made a mistake – the front yoke is supposed to be DOUBLE the size it is! You are supposed to have placed it along the fold. Well. I didn’t.

SO I sewed two front yoke pieces together. Because of the ease, they are smaller than the back yoke.

So the seams don’t align.

AND there is a hole at the front (yeah..) and the two sides where the yokes connect.

Also, I did not understand what “undersewing” meant, or how to do it with fabric that frayed when you touched it, so the inside of my skirt looks NOTHING like the tutorial I posted earlier from youtube.

Also, I measured myself wrong. I thought the waist was where I wanted the skirt to sit – you know, where the top of the skirt should be. It’s so so so not that. The waist is where you bend, the smallest part of you under your chest. It does not refer to where the waistband of your skirt should be. So my skirt waist is about three inches larger than I am. I can put it on and take it off without opening the zipper.

AND my smart ass decided to “undersew” the hem of the skirt. Apparently you can’t do that with a circular skirt. Because of the extra fabric.

Here’s a video explaining what I did wrong. Wish I’d seen it BEFORE I made such a huge mistake.

I’m glad I’m making a “midi” skirt. By the time I’m done, it might be a “mini” as I work through it and fix all my problems. And rehem again and again and again.

To fix my mistakes, I did the following:

I ran a line up both sides (an inch in on each side) and then “undersewed” both seams.

This means I spent most of last night IRONING, basting, sewing, picking out the wrong basting and sewing, and then redoing it.

To clean up the dirty seams, I learned what undersewing is. Imagine a bunch of pieces of paper. Loose paper. On one side, you sew it. This is the binding on your book. Now, open the book. IRON it open. On the right center page, fold the page in half, and tuck the right half of the right page under the left half of the right page. Do the reverse on the left side. IRON again. Now, staple (I’m stretching the book analogy now, aren’t I?) alongside the fold. If the book was fabric, what you just did is called “undersewing”.

It has taken all of this morning to fix the sides. Tomorrow: fixing the hem.

Oh, and as regards the holes at the yoke — I intend to add a line of trim (or you can add ribbon) and hide the hole. Done and done.

The First Project – Selecting a Pattern

I think it is important to make something you actually like.

So, that rules out totes and coasters and item covers.

I’m making a skirt as my first project.

I purchased the Butterick B4686 skirt pattern at Joann Fabrics. They have great end of season sales, and they usually have 40% or 50% off coupons the rest of the time.

My pattern cost $15.50 on the label. I paid around $5 for it at the end of season sale. Something to note: pattern sizing DOES NOT correspond to the size of your clothes that your purchase in stores.

Me, I’m a size 12/14. I wear a size 20 according to the pattern. Buy the right size. There is NO vanity sizing in sewing patterns. You are making your project from scratch, and you want it to fit. If you are between sizes, size up.

My pattern comes with six skirt ideas. I am making skirt D.

For this project, according to the package, you need:

1. 7 inch zipper
2. Hook and eye closure
3. Fabric – lightweight broadcloth, lightweight denim, and lightweight linen.
4. Matching thread (I just used white)

I did not know the amount of fabric, so I bought the amount the Joann Fabrics fabric lady told me.

Don’t buy fabric with an obvious top and bottom, nothing with diagonals or stripes, nothing fuzzy or furry. Don’t make your life harder than it needs to be. Seriously.

The skirt I wanted to sew (D) did not need interfacing or a ribbon or buttons, so I did not buy those. Again, simplify, simplify, simplify. Why make life harder than it has to be?

Since I am making Skirt D of this pattern, I am naming this project “Dee Skirt”.