Finished the Crescent Skirt!

This is just a quickie post to report that I've finished the Crescent Skirt sew-along hosted by Sewaholic. This is not the best picture in the world because it was taken late at night by Fillius who had never used my camera before. In the original I looked like the Leaning Tower of Pisa. Thank goodness for iPhoto which also allowed me to cut off my head. (Fillius snapped the shutter while I was trying to give him instructions, so my mouth looked really weird. I mean really weird, as if an alien from outer space had taken over my body.)

While I was sewing it, I referred to this pattern as The Skirt of Doom because I kept making so many stupid mistakes. I hasten to assure you that it was not the fault of the designer. This pattern is very well designed and the instructions are clearly written. And the well-photographed sew-along was amazingly helpful.

I like the way the skirt turned out. The original is a good deal shorter. I lengthened mine because I wanted to wear it to work where I need to be able to squat down modestly to reach the lower bookshelves. The pockets were easy to put in and lie nicely flat. My fabric choice was unfortunate. I like the print, but you can't see the lovely stitching detail on the waistband. And in this photo you probably can't even see that the waistband goes down into a point. I was worried how this would look on me because I have a middle-aged tummy. Surprisingly, the waistband disguises it. And I think this skirt looks good even though I made it from a quilting cotton. It goes nicely with a tucked in T-shirt or blouse. And I've successfully worn it with with blouses designed to be worn untucked. I'm glad about that because I have quite a few of those left from my pants-wearing days.

(Just so you know: I'm not one of those women who refuses to wear pants for religious reasons. I've switched to skirts because I now have to wear support hose, and they're just too hot to wear under trousers -- even with air conditioning!)

I will definitely make this again, but not in such a busy print. I want the curved seams on the waist band to show up. Perhaps a nice, lightweight denim?

Crescent Skirt 1 (And Agonized Shopping)

Things have been busy this month. We lost one of our library aides, so the rest of us have been working increased hours until she can be replaced. Summer is our busiest season, thanks to our summer reading program, and I often come home too exhausted to do much of anything except vegging out with a book or a DVD. Nevertheless, I've been trying to progress at least a little each day on my new Crescent Skirt.

Sewaholic's patterns are well designed and have very clearly written instructions. In addition, she has recently hosted a sew-along for the Crescent Skirt which walks you through the entire process from choosing your fabric and notions, to sewing and fitting a muslin, and then constructing the finished skirt out of fashion fabric which includes an amazing new technique for inserting the zipper. Each step is well illustrated with photos and almost any question you can think of has already been answered in the com box.

I began tracing the pattern on May 30th. The only difficulty I had was trying to keep track of which line I was tracing. There are so many sizes included in the pattern that in certain spots the lines seem to smudge together into an indecipherable haze of dots. I did the best I could while trying to reassure myself that with a 5/8 inch seam allowance (which appears simply huge to a quilter) there is less need to worry about a possible 16th of an inch variance. Still, I couldn't help worrying just a little because the waistband has so many curved seams.

Sometimes I have a tendency to overthink my projects and become a little obsessive-compulsive about accuracy. So I forced myself to just finish the tracing and then began pinning the pattern to the muslin. That's when I remembered that I'd planned to buy new glass headed pins with a 20% off coupon valid for any one item at the local quilt store during the month of May. Since the next day was already completely booked, today would be my last chance. So I jumped into the car, zoomed down to the shop, and bought my pins. Then I remembered that I was also eligible for a 15% discount because May is my birthday month. So I decided to also buy some extra-fine patchwork pins.

I love to use these for piecing because they are so thin -- only 0.4 mm -- and super sharp so they won't distort your 1/4 inch seam allowance.

Then, just as I took them to the counter, I noticed a sample quilt that I madly fell in love with. It was a dinosaur quilt, beautifully designed, and perfect for a little grandson. I loved the colors, the pattern, and clever use it made of a color co-ordinated border print. The shop had been selling kits for this quilt and there was only one left. I grabbed it, thinking of my 15% discount and my two year old grandson, and then stood there and agonized for about 20 minutes.

I loved the quilt. I wanted to make it for my grandson. But it was a kit! I never make things from kits. But the colors were perfect! I couldn't have chosen better myself. But, I told myself, you already have dinosaur fabric in your stash, albeit in a very different style. And you've been planning to make the grandson a quilt from it for ages. And at this point in your life you need to use your stash not add to it. And if you're not designing the quilt yourself, or choosing the colors yourself, then there won't be much creativity involved in this project. And you will be bored, bored, bored by this project and you Will Not Finish It.

But I want this quilt, I protested. I did not dignify that argument with a reply. (I hate it when I give myself the silent treatment.)

Finally, reluctantly, I put the kit back down onto the display, and another woman, who had been hovering nearby, snatched it up. With a sigh for what might have been, I paid for my second packet of pins and hurried home.

Then I pinned and cut my muslin. My only mistake so far: I traced a second copy of pattern piece #10 and forgot to trace piece #9. Luckily, I noticed before I finished cutting.

And you know what? I haven't felt a moment's regret about not having bought that kit. Funny how important it seemed at the time.

Next In the Queue

The closer I get to the end of a sewing project, the more I find myself thinking about what I'll work on next. Sewing the First Communion dress took so long that I'm eager to get back to quilting with its precise 1/4 inch seams and its soothing two-dimensional construction.

But my wardrobe is so scanty right now that I think I'll have to take the time to make myself a skirt I can wear to work. I'm going to try the Cresent Skirt by Sewaholic. (Tasia, the designer, is hosting a sew-along here.)

I hope this pattern won't be too young for me. I'll be making it a bit longer than the photos on the website.

Two things in particular attracted me to this pattern. The first is that it has pockets! I really need pockets when I'm at work. The second is that it is supposed to be suitable for quilting cottons -- something which I've got an awful lot of.

Last year a local quilt shop was flooded due to a plumbing problem. Bolts of fabric which were lined up on the floor acted as wicks, sucking up water until they were soaked. The owner had the fabric dried and sold it off cheaply by weight. I bought a lot of it figuring that I could use it for quilt backs if nothing else. (I washed it, of course.) I'm also using it to try out new patterns since it was cheaper than unbleached muslin and can actually be worn if the pattern turns out well.

At first I was considering the floral at the top of this post. But I regretfully concluded that the print is just too large. My second choice is this abstract print which would probably look okay with my black or white short sleeved tops. And the scale of the print is much more suitable.