Greetings, all! I am in such high spirits with the best-of-all-seasons just beginning and change is finally in the air. I always rejoice when the sweatiest time of the year passes and we can all take a deep breath and gear up for cozier times.
Neighborhood Patterns is a new-to-me designer, and I came across them on Instagram in late summer and fell in love with the Plain Jane Skirt. This is such a simple A-line skirt, but with nice details like large inseam pockets and an optional drawstring, and though I’m sure I could draft this style myself, the appeal of having it all done for me was too tempting to pass up. A sew such as this is a lovely palate-cleanser and this was the first project I sewed after returning from a cross-country trip. Perfect!
The gorgeous plaid flannel is exactly what I want to be wearing in the fall. The fabric is SO soft and a pleasure to snuggle up in. Because flannel does not have much body and is prone to stretching or shifting with all its mechanical give, I used my most beloved fusible knit interfacing on both the waistband pieces and along the wide hem facings. The extra support helps to hold the hem out just a tad (like a very lightweight version of horsehair stay tape) and adds a touch of structure to the wide A-line shape.
I’m hoping this fabric and pattern pairing doesn’t give off Catholic school girl vibes, but I find that a maxi skirt is just so striking in plaid! Kind of unexpected and totally seasonable. I ordered a little bit extra yardage so I could successfully plaid match the side seams, and I ended up with an unexpected leftover piece since this plaid has a rather narrow repeat.
With my bonus scrap, I sewed a Scenic Tee with the short sleeves by Twig & Tale. I created a neckline facing since my scraps were pretty minimal to make bias tape to finish the neckline, and I love how this looks topstitched.
To add a little fun, I used a thread that wasn’t the expected gray or black, but the beautiful teal from the plaid. Might as well show off the topstitching! I have to laugh because surely no one but me is noticing wee details like this, but it’s how I delight and amuse myself.
I needed a cozy winter-ready top for the outfit, and I had a pretty difficult time narrowing down what I wanted despite having this squishy sweater knit all lined up. I actually chose to finish the whole skirt first and try on a few options from my closet before deciding. The winner is the Pattern Emporium Sweet Cheeks Sweater! I cut this length right between cropped and ultra cropped.
Here again the fab knit interfacing came to the rescue for the snappy split hem band. I double checked to ensure I arranged the interfacing so the most stretch worked with the fabric, but the stability made those corners so nice and sharp and pretty effortless.
I finished my sweater using the high neckline for the most coverage in the cold. Because sweater knits often get quite narrow when stretched, especially bands, I cut this neckband extra wide (around 2.25”). I also removed a small amount of width from the cuff because of how stretchy this knit is and I didn’t want them to fit too loosely, but still allow for easy pushing-up.
Wearing a sweater and long, warm skirt after a hot blazing season is just delicious! Hunker down and sew some cozy pieces of your own, asap.
Unfortunately Fabric Mart Fabrics sell out quickly!
You can find similar fabrics by shopping the following categories: FLANNEL
Perfect outfit to the "T" Lovely!! Do not give your passion for sewing. You can many ideas of styles, colors, and designs!!!
ReplyDeleteI love the fullness of the skirt. I may need to have it in a light weight wool, FM has lots of options.
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely! I was considering a cotton gauze version as well.
DeleteI love the gauze fabrics but have not been successful sewing it. The drape in this skirt would be wonderful.
DeleteI like that plaid on the skirt along with the fullness it has...A great to have on hand for the cooler weather.
ReplyDeleteLove this skirt
ReplyDelete