Saturday 4 June 2011

My Newbie's Ginger Is Complete!


I'm a bit late getting to Sunni's Ginger party, but better late than never! My version has the waistband of version three of the pattern but it is like versions 1 and 2 in that the fabric is not on the bias. As you can see, I am slightly short in the body so I didn't really want to make the skirt with the higher, shaped waistbands of versions 1 and 2. Also, although Sunni had some fantastic ideas for adding embellishments like piping and pockets, I decided in the end to keep things simple as this is my first skirt and just keep it plain as far as the making up was concerned. Since this material has such a definate pattern, I didn't think it would look boring and need anything extra.

However, I am delighted with the fit! It has actually made me realise that I haven't had a skirt that fits me well for ...... well, forever!

As a genuine newbie, I am so glad I came across Sunni's blog and decided to get involved with the sewalong. It has given me so much confidence to carry on sewing!


I found it quite easy to follow Sunni's instructions on tailoring the pattern. I had to tailor for size 12 on the waist but size 14 on the hips.




The invisible zip has come out really well. It was the instructions for doing the waistband that 'foxed' me for a while but I just tried it out with pins first until it made sense and then went with it. It all worked out in the end!!


I was a bit lazy with the hem in that I didn't do it by hand ie an invisible hem, as I recall being taught when at school eons ago :)

I sewed it all the way round with a straight stitch. After all, just about every skirt you see nowadays is done that way and it has come out well. Please note ..... the hem does look wonky here ...... it really isn't !! It was a bit breezy in my garden this morning and the skirt kept blowing round my legs!! :)

All in all, a fantastic experience! I have some other material to make some others, one is a nice yellow floral print (not the same as this one) and the other is a plain blue material that I might embellish with embroidery ........ so thank you again to Sunni for getting me past being a completely newbie sewer :)

3 comments:

joy said...

well done, elaine, your skirt looks great. way back in the sixties I used to make all my own clothes, and it was so rewarding. when the first two boys were small I even made shorts and shirts for them, but somehow the poor old sewing machine got forgotten and it only comes out nowadays for curtains and suchlike - the machine is 36 years old now, the same age as my second son, and probably needs a bit of TLC, so maybe I'll get it out again and have a go, inspired by your beautiful make.
joy

Elaine said...

Thank you Joy.

The thing I find so amazing is that I now realise that the reason I hate clothes buying is because nothing really ever fits me well!! I have to buy to fit my hips/thighs but then the waist is way too big. I have just accepted this and the waistline always then 'sits' very low down and, I think, makes me look bigger than I am!

This was a nice pattern to follow (thanks to the information on Sunni's blog) and I'll certainly make it again.

Definately get your sewing machine out! Even if it is old, you'll probably find it's made better than newer models.

Tilly said...

Hi Elaine

Firstly - great skirt! It looks like it fits really well and is the kind of thing you'll get a lot of wear out of. Good work!

Secondly - I wanted to say thank you for your thoughtful words on my blog. I'm glad my comment came across as gracious - I really want to get away from the negativity that has been seeping into the blogging community recently. Your deconstruction of the word "expert" is really interesting. I've been thinking a lot about the concept of the "amateur" recently and how wonderful it is that the rise of DIY culture is empowering people to try things out, destabilising the concept of expertise.

Thirdly - that's a coincidence that you mentioned a 'training the trainer' course as I've been wondering if such things exist! I run training courses (for independent cinemas) and have been thinking recently about CPD for me and other course speakers. I'll have to do some research...

Keep up the good sewing work!

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