Wednesday, July 8, 2015

A Suit Skirt


I decided to start with the skirt for this project.  There is a lot of tailoring to do on the jacket, so I decided to ease myself in.


The skirt is underlined with cotton instead of silk organza.


Because I am using a very textured cotton that easily hides small hand stitches, I decided to stitch the fabric layers together where they might separate just outside the darts.  This is probably overkill, but I thought I would try it out and see if the extra work makes a difference.


Speaking of darts . . . there are ten darts in this skirt - add the lining, and that brings the total to twenty.  And that is just the skirt!


After I cut out my skirt pieces, I suddenly realized the fabric had more give than I was expecting and I was worried about the seat bagging out during wear.  


Instead of cutting a duplicate piece in organza, I cut a shortened version of the skirt back piece that covers the the portion that might stretch out during wear.  I think that should do the trick!


Other than that, the construction is pretty self explanatory.  Straight skirts are pretty straight forward!


The zipper is a hand-picked, lapped application.


I am waiting to cut my jacket pieces out before I deal with the waistband and hemline, so this skirt will be set aside for a bit while I spend some time with my bodice pieces.  But it's a start!



9 comments:

  1. Aren't you dart smart!

    The sewing outside the lines is another sliver of your brilliance.

    It's not to early to say, you have another winner - the skirt alone, half completed, reads as utter perfection.

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  2. As always, I'm thrilled to follow your advanced projects!

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  3. Looking lovely already. Appreciate the detailed pictures!

    I've yet to underline a straight skirt are you doing a vent?

    Underlining is the best, do it all the time with dresses, I'm making an a -line skirt now, you've given me an idea to underline now.

    Oh dear....

    Look forward to your next post!

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    1. There is no vent on this particular skirt - because it is not pegged, it is easy to walk in without one, and I decided to stick to the original design.

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  4. Laura - are you adding a lining to the skirt to cover the innards? If so, what are you using to line it with and what color is it? I've been following along avidly on Instagram so thanks for a blog post tying all the pics together!

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    1. The skirt is lined - I just never managed to get any pictures of that step during the daylight. Whoops.

      The fabric is a rayon satin that I found at fabric.com years ago. I wish I had purchased a more yardage because I love it. There was not enough of the mint green to line both the skirt and jacket, so I used a blue color. I may end up using the green on just the jacket . . . not sure yet. But there is plenty more work to do before I get there, so I have time to think it through!

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  5. Beautiful lapped zipper! I have the same question as Carolyn.

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    1. Thanks, Bunny! And yes, this will definitely be lined - must cover all those stitches and that will allow me to wear stockings!

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  6. Lovely! I’d love to hear about the process of being a clothing manufacturer on creating/grading/printing the pattern sometime!

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