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30 JUNE 2012
WHAT'S ON MY SEWING TABLE...
I'm planning to get stuck in to developing the pattern for my pussy bow
blouse this weekend, but sometimes you just get the urge to sew something nice
and easy, non? So I'm also whipping up another full skirt the same style as my
Thinking in Shapes Skirt but probably gathered rather than pleated. Isn't this
fabric dreamy? It's a Lucie Summers print, gifted to me by Annie at The Village
Haberdashery. The collection is really lovely - take a peek if you dare...
Do you have any sewing plans this weekend? Do share!
[Soundtrack: 'Shop Around' by Smokey Robinson and The Miracles]
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Labels: full skirt, sewing project, skirt, summersville
28 JUNE 2012
ME ME ME....
Morning! I'm spread around the internets a bit at the moment, with two pieces
recently going up on other people's blogs.
The first one is an interview with moi for the awesome Elena Cresci of Seamless.
Remember that name, as Elena is destined to become a famous journalist very
soon. Plus she writes a fabulous blog and has been sewing herself a very stylish
wardrobe.
The second piece is a list of blogging tips that PR wizz Lissa Cook asked me to
write a few months ago so she could teach them on a social media training course
she runs for... erm... a sports development consultancy (!). She's now put the
tips up on her blog for all the world to see. I'm a little embarrassed... but
it's fine! Regular readers will recognise Lissa's name from the Day in the Life
interview she did for me. My blogging tips were written with organisations
rather than individuals in mind, as in my day job so often I see companies
trying to jump on the blogging bandwagon but for purely promotional reasons,
without considering it a two-way conversation. But maybe you'll find it
interesting to compare your own blogging style... and do share your own tips in
the comments here, I'd love to read them!
[Soundtrack: 'Ringing in My Ear' by Adem]
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Labels: interviews, moi
25 JUNE 2012
SEWING SOCIAL: THE DEBRIEF
Want to know...
* All about our plans for a sewing flash mob?
* Who's dreaming of setting up a sewing cocktail bar?*
* What the fabric for a Twitter-themed dress looks like?
Well you should have been at yesterday's inaugural Sewing Social Twitter
Chat then!**
It was such fun chatting in real time with stitching fans. So many people joined
in and the conversation was so animated that at one point #sewingsocial was
trending above #Euro2012! How cool are we?! (On second thoughts, don't answer
that.) Shame on those of you who thought the international football tournament
was more important.
Image courtesy of Fiona at The Sewing Directory
Update! Marie has put together a Tweetdoc (me neither) capturing some of the
conversation. Most strikingly it reveals that the first ever Sewing Social had
79 participants!
So it's safe to say the Sewing Social was a success, and participants agreed we
should make it a monthly rendez-vous. Suggestions for future topics to kick off
the next discussion include:
* Sewing tips and tricks
* How you learn to sew
* Sewing fears
* How to be a productive stitcher
* Sources of sewing inspiration
Do suggest any other ideas you have and I'll announce the topic, time and date
for the next chat nearer the time. Yay!
* Okay so you can probably guess that one!
** Residents of Asia, Oz etc excused.
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Labels: #sewingsocial, twitter chat
22 JUNE 2012
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF ROSIE MARTIN - DIY COUTURE
So many of you loved the relaxed ethos and can-do attitude behind DIYcouture
(see my book review), so you'll love reading all about what Rosie Martin gets up
to on a typical day for this month's A Day in the Life. As you'll discover,
Rosie practises the DIY attitude she preaches in all kinds of ways. Not only
that, but having met her in the flesh I can assure you she is as delightful as
she comes across here. "And what's her recipe book of choice, please?" you ask.
Let's see...
*****
"I usually get up at 07.30hrs and aim to start working by 09.00hrs, if not
before. (I like to use military vocabulary for time keeping!) When I’m working I
always have a concoction of different cereals for breakfast. I tend to have two
coffees with my boyfriend before he leaves for work, then I feed our tropical
fish and get on with the day. I am a natural tomboy, so I always wear trousers
or shorts. I make a lot of trousers, so these may be my own high-waisted
creations or simply some skinny jeans. I’m lucky enough to have a workroom in my
flat, so when I’m working on DIYcouture, I don’t need to leave the house at all.
I also have a part-time job in a crafts workshop, making multi-sensory books for
people with severe learning disabilities. This is at the opposite end of London
from my house, and I get there on my trusty bicycle, usually wearing waterproof
trousers and a raincoat!
I recruit and co-ordinate skilled volunteers at my part-time job, a charity
called Bag Books. The books we make are very unsual. Each page is an A3 piece of
stiff board with a handmade object attached to it. The page may also have a
sound or a smell. As well as supporting volunteers I also do a lot of hands-on
making with fabric and wood as all of the books are created from scratch in the
workshop. It’s a great job and I do it three days a week. I tend to work on
DIYcouture for three days a week too and give myself one day off. I also tend to
answer DIYcouture related emails in my lunch break and in the evenings.
I go everywhere by bicycle in London as it allows me to feel a sense of control
in the city. I enjoy negotiating my way from Hackney in the North East right
down to Battersea in the South West, which is where the Bag Books workshop is. I
get to cycle over the River Thames and feel the wonderful British weather on my
face and sometimes in my shoes. I love it!
My flat where I do DIYcouture is quite near the site of the 2012 Olympics, in a
small area called Homerton. I live on a main road which is a strange mix of
kebab shops, dry cleaners and trendy cafes! A fairly expensive vintage shop has
even recently opened up there which is great for clothing research. My front
door is sandwiched between a Nigerian jewellery shop and an Eastern European
snooker club. There is a lot of floor space for sewing in our flat, basically
because we live in a strange ramshackle building and cannot fit a sofa through
our very narrow front door! My boyfriend makes music so our flat is jammed full
of my fabric and his various amps, keyboards, guitars and other pieces of
equipment.
My DIYcouture work is very varied, as I do almost everything for the business. I
tend to deal with one big project at a time, so when I begin, I plan what tasks
I need to do in order for this idea to become a reality, then I work through
them methodically. I tend to give myself a deadline, which I write on my
calendar, then I plan backwards from that date.
At the moment I am working on releasing three e-books – ‘How to make a kaftan,’
‘How to make a shrug’ and ‘How to make a tulip skirt’. I am at the design stage
of the visual instructions themselves. I have spent a few months testing the
garment construction process, taking photos of this, drawing diagrams using
Adobe Illustrator, then finally organising and styling a photoshoot with
different girls wearing the various incarnations of the garments. I am now at
the point where I am gathering all this information together and doing page
layouts in InDesign. I like to sit down and get on with this straight away in
the morning, which is when I am most sharp. I also manage the DIYcouture
website, and sometimes I dedicate full days to working on this. When I started
DIYcouture in 2008 I couldn’t afford a web designer, so I bought a book for ten
pounds and taught myself html. In the morning, my boyfriend may ask me what I am
doing today, and I say, “Today I am going to change the internet”. I find web
design very exciting, as I spend hours writing in code that looks like nonsense,
then I upload the nonsense and it becomes clear imagery that anyone can access.
I have been lucky enough to meet all sorts of great people through DIYcouture.
When I first printed the books I started selling them at zine fairs in London,
so I met a great crowd of DIY book artists, particularly Jimi Gherkin, an
enthusiastic believer in getting stuck in and giving new things a go. He is part
of a group called the Alternative Press who put on great zine-related events and
I am proud to be part of many of them. I deal with all the people who stock my
books, often inspirational women running their own haberdasheries or design
shops, either physically or online, for example Barley Massey at Fabrications in
Hackney, or Rachel and Michelle at Ray Stitch in Islington.
I teach sewing workshops at sewing schools all across London, and have met some
amazing, practical, ambitious girls through doing this too. I am a huge admirer
of Claire-Louise at The Thrifty Stitcher. She is a costume expert and is never
afraid to explore new sewing gadgets or forms of digital technology. I also have
the pleasure of working regularly with Louise and Claire (two people!) at The
Papered Parlour in Clapham. They work incredibly hard to make their dream
business a success.
I deal with clothing and shoe designers, as I often borrow pieces to style the
DIYcouture photo shoots. I try to borrow items from ethically-minded companies,
or from independent designers. It has been a great pleasure to meet Amanda Luisa
from I CAN Make Shoes and to borrow some great DIY creations from her.
I usually have lunch around 13.30hr. Sometimes I am so busy at lunchtime that I
just have marmite on toast, or chocolate spread on toast (I have a horribly
sweet tooth!). Mostly though I make a big salad. My favourite is a kind of
vegetarian salad nicoise, with leaves, raw broccoli, capers and soft boiled
eggs.
If I have sewing to do I will often do this in the afternoon. I find it harder
to concentrate on the computer after lunch, so to avoid wasting time getting
lost on Tumblr or some such like I tend to turn off the computer and get down to
making.
The hardest part of DIYcouture is admin – finances and record keeping. I have to
force myself to do these, and when there are so many more pressing or exciting
tasks to do these often slip down the list. I really have to strap myself down
to tackle them. The other hard part is fitting everything in. I have so many
ideas for DIYcouture that I would like to realise, but I must prioritise. Which
leads to another hard part – making sure I don’t work constantly! I truly enjoy
DIYcouture so much that I find it hard to give myself limits! I find drawing the
technical diagrams absorbing and satisfying, I obviously love to design and make
clothes. I adore having an excuse to go fabric shopping and the way designing
for other people (imagined users of the instructions!), not just myself, allows
me to explore fabrics I might not otherwise buy. I take great pleasure in
breaking down a practical process and doing my very best to explain it so that
others can understand. I still get nervous about teaching, but I love working
with people who have never made a piece of clothing before and seeing how proud
they are when they see that they have created something all by themselves.
I started DIYcouture as I was frustrated that people I knew seemed to feel
making clothes was not something within their grasp. I saw that beginners turned
to patterns when they wanted to start sewing, but were often baffled by the
complexity and therefore put off for life, or they saw old-fashioned images of
people wearing unflattering clothing and didn’t feel inspired. I had a burning
desire to make picture-based instructions that anyone could understand, in order
to help more people access self-created clothing.
I quit my full-time job doing research for a homelessness charity to pursue the
DIYcouture project. My mum was quite worried about this and retrospectively it
was certainly not very sensible, but I was 25, very determined and not
especially sensible!
DIYcouture has grown like things do, gradually and like a snow ball! I have
learned so much through DIYcouture that I feel as though I have sort of put
myself through art college. When I started I had never drawn a diagram before so
I taught myself to use Illustrator. I couldn’t use InDesign, and my Dad spent
many a painstaking hour with me at his shoulder doing layouts and showing me the
ropes, so that using it is now second nature.
My tip for other women planning to start a sewing business would be to allow
your initial idea to adapt as time passes. You might begin with a very strong
picture of what you want, but it may develop in a way you couldn’t imagine at
the start. You will work out the best way for your idea to progress as you go.
This brilliant post idea of Tilly’s is an investigation into making money from a
sewing business. When I began DIYcouture I did have the idea that it would be a
full-time business for me. As time passed I realised selling instructions alone
did not make a business. I went through a period of considering all the ways
DIYcouture could become a profit making enterprise. I played with the idea of
selling starter sewing kits of scissors and thread but I didn’t want to buy a
load of physical equipment that I would then feel tied to pushing in order to
sell. I was approached by various companies who wanted to advertise on the
DIYcouture website but I always turned them down. I wondered whether I was being
silly, but realised that DIYcouture is my dream project. At that point I decided
I would be happy to run it part-time, as a business that covers its own costs,
rather than as a full-time job that I depend upon in order to make a full
living. This way I avoid compromising the goals of DIYcouture and I maintain my
passion for it, as one does with a hobby. Luckily, pieces of paid work have
sprung from DIYcouture, such as the book I recently wrote and teaching
workshops. My part-time job ensures that I can always pay my rent!
In the first couple of years of doing DIYcouture I would work into the night,
but these days I usually finish my day at about 18.30hrs or 19.00hrs. My
boyfriend Joel has helped me to recognise the benefits of time-off! I play drums
and practice with a band once a week. This is a lot of fun and very relaxing. I
have a few friends in bands so we go to quite a few gigs to see them play. I
like to read short stories and non-fiction books too. I don’t have a TV but my
boyfriend and I own all seven series of Star Trek: The Next Generation on DVD
and we have been steadily working our way through these over the last year!
Before that we were watching the Leonard Nimoy series ‘In Search Of’ on YouTube.
I love museums and galleries, so on my day off I often go exploring some of the
amazing places that London has to offer. Dinner varies, it may be a pizza that
my boyfriend and I enhance with extra vegetables, or we may get fancy and cook
something from Ottolenghi’s vegetarian recipe book. If I am lucky, my sister
will invite us over to dinner and we will have something exquisitely delicious
that she has somehow found the time to rustle up (she runs her own jewellery
business full-time)! She makes an amazing pecan and caramel cheesecake. I am
usually in bed by around 23.30hrs, unless my band is playing a gig, in which
case it will be horribly late and I will have to go to bed at 21.00hrs the next
day!!"
*****
Oh Rosie! Can I be you, please? No? Is that just a bit creepy? Okay, I'll just
admire from afar then!
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Labels: day in the life, diy couture, interviews
18 JUNE 2012
SEWING SOCIAL TWITTER CHAT!
Hey, how about we get together for a Twitter chat next Sunday?
One of the best things about the online sewing community is how friendly and
interactive it is. And yet, as posts, comments and replies are temporally
staggered, there is a sense in which the conversations are interrupted and don't
flow as naturally as they could (well, as natural as is possible online). So how
about we try to have an online meet-up in real time through a Twitter chat?
When?
Sunday 24th June
8 - 9pm London / 3 - 4pm New York / 12 - 1pm LA etc
(with apologies to the people who will be asleep!)
Where?
On Twitter using the hashtag #sewingsocial
My Twitter name is @TillyVanilly if you want to follow me ready for kick off.
What shall we talk about?
How about we have a chat about why we sew. What does sewing mean to you? What
inspires you to sew? Why do you enjoy it? What made you start sewing? What's the
best thing about sewing? What frustrations do you have with sewing and how do
you overcome them? Why should other people try sewing?
And if that gets boring (as if!) we could always move on to other topics.
Hoping you can join me and I won't be Tilly No Mates on Twitter!! If you'll be
there, do help spread the word in advance so we get a nice group of people
together. If it's good, perhaps we could turn it into a monthly date? I'm sure
we can think of loads of topics to discuss!
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Labels: #sewingsocial, twitter chat
17 JUNE 2012
CRAFTIVISM IN ACTION
The sunshine came out - at last! - just in time for Craftivist Collective's
latest event, where I had a lovely time this afternoon embroidering a fabric jam
jar lid and chatting to other stitchers. You may remember my recent interview
with Sarah, who set up the Craftivist Collective as a way to use handmade as a
tool for political engagement. Meeting Sarah inspired me to go along and see for
myself what it's all about... and I'm so glad I did.
The project I took part in is part of Oxfam's GROW campaign for a fairer world
where everyone has enough to eat. The idea is to stitch messages promoting
change and equality awareness onto the lids, fill the jars with homemade tomato
jam and gift them to someone who you want to think about the issues - whether
that be a person you know or someone in power such as your local MP. You can
find out more about it from Crafitivists themselves.
The event took place at lovely Spitalfields City Farm. I often go on about the
importance of being aware of how clothes are made and where they come from, and
being surrounded by growing veg and bleating animals was the perfect backdrop to
remind me to be conscious of the source of my food too...
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Labels: craftivist collective
14 JUNE 2012
A VINTAGE PATTERN HAUL
I recently acquired this score of lovely patterns via a reader. I've been trying
to avoid all types of shopping - vintage pattern shopping in particular, which
can be highly addictive! I couldn't resist these little gems, however,
particularly because they're all so wearable, which I find many vintage patterns
aren't (for me). Some of these you may just call "old" instead of "vintage", but
whatever, personally I think they're all really special. The short green version
of the first pattern is my favourite - I love the baby doll style. And oh those
dreamy hairstyles!
[Soundtrack: 'Sweet Virginia' by the Rolling Stones]
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Labels: patterns, vintage pattern
12 JUNE 2012
WHAT'S ON MY SEWING TABLE
The very unglamorous beginnings of a new pattern design, drafted by moi. It's
going to be a button-down blouse with a one piece front-and-back yoke,
gathering, pussy bow collar and floaty sleeves. Or that's the initial idea, but
just like the button-back blouse I drafted it'll probably mutate over time as I
make a series of iterations, each of them slightly different.
The finished blouse will be made in chocolate brown polka dots - this yellow
cotton is just for the toile. The first toile looks like such a mess, hastily
basted together, but it's important to not be precious about it as it's just the
very first test version. When flat pattern cutting, I often get sucked into
perfecting the paper version, but until you see what it looks like in fabric on
the stand you can't really tell how you're going to want to change it. And now
that's in on the stand I feel like the shape needs some radical changes. So it's
a slow process... but hopefully worth it in the end!
[Soundtrack: 'Ooh, Yeh Yeh' by Graham Coxon]
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Labels: blouse, gathered yoke blouse, pattern drafting
9 JUNE 2012
HOW TO MAKE A PICNIC BLANKET SKIRT: PART 3
Part 3: Gathering, attaching skirt to waistband, hemming, buttonholes
This is the final part of How to Make a Picnic Blanket Skirt (see also part 1
and part 2). Just a few more steps and you'll have your own button-down gathered
skirt. Yay!
4) Gathering:
- To help make the placement of the gathers nice and even, put some little
markings along the bottom edge of the front waistband piece (the interfaced one)
where the side seams and centre back of the skirt should go. Mark the centre
back of the skirt too.
- Gather stitch along the top of the skirt by sewing three rows of long stitches
(preferably in a different colour thread) parallel to each other and leaving
long thread tails at the ends for pulling. Tilly Tip: If you try to gather
stitch along the entire length of the top of the skirt, your threads will
probably snap as there is so much fabric to gather. Instead, divide the skirt
into four segments and gather stitch each separately – left front piece, left
side seam to centre back of back piece, centre back to right side seam of back
piece, right front piece.
- Form the gathers on one of these segments by holding the three threads from
one end of the stitching and pulling on them as you use your other hand to help
the fabric scrunch up evenly. Keep doing this until the gathers are nice and
even and the skirt pieces fit the matching segment of the waistband (the
waistband markings should come in handy here).
5) Attaching skirt to waistband:
- Place the front waistband piece on top of the skirt right sides together. Pin
this segment of the skirt to the matching segment of the bottom edge of the
front waistband piece only (NOT the back waistband piece) using lots of pins to
keep the gathers in place. Then gather and pin in the same way along the other
segments of the skirt.
- If you’re more patient than I am, baste. If not, just skip straight to the
stitching part, sewing the front waistband piece to the top of the skirt, being
careful not to catch the back (non-interfaced) waistband piece.
- Tilly Tip: If your fabric is on the heavy side, stitch again to reinforce it
as you’ll have quite a weight of fabric hanging down from a relatively small
waistband.
- Remove the gather stitches. This is why it’s a good idea to sew them in a
different colour – so you can more easily identify which stitches to rip out.
- Press the waistband away from the skirt.
- On the back (non-interfaced) waistband piece, press the seam allowance up
(wrong sides together) and pin it to the other side of the skirt.
- If you’re more patient than I am, slipstitch by hand. If like me you can’t
wait to finish this beauty, machine stitch - topstitch on the front/outside of
the waistband close to the seam line.
6) Hem it:
Update:
A few people who've sewn this skirt said they prefer to do the buttons and
buttonholes before hemming so they can make sure both sides match up at the
hemline. If your fabric isn't geometric like mine - and thus not so easy to line
up each side - this is probably a good idea. Personally I prefer to do the
hemming first so I know how many buttonholes to add.
- Because you’ve got lots of fabric hanging down, it’s a good idea to let the
skirt hang for a few hours or overnight before hemming in case the fabric
stretches.
- Try it on and adjust the hemline if necessary so you’re comfortable with the
length.
- If you went with a 2” hem allowance, fold it up by just a tiny bit under 1”
and press, then by another 1” and press again, then pin in place. Again, if
you’re patient you can slipstitch the hem by hand, but remember you’ve got a lot
of fabric there to cover! Otherwise go for a machine stitched hem. You could try
a decorative topstitch like I did on my Thinking in Shapes Skirt to make a
feature out of your laziness!
7) Buttons and buttonholes:
- On the right placket, you need to mark the buttonholes. First mark the
vertical position with little dots or crosses. You’ll definitely want one on the
waistband, then you’ll want to place the rest evenly down the length of the
skirt, maybe around 3” apart from each other.
- Next mark horizontal lines for each buttonhole. If you’re using a flat ¾”
button, the buttonhole will need to be 7/8” long. The buttonhole should start
1/8” from the left and overlap the centre of the placket (the “fitting line”) by
1/8”. The buttonholes don’t sit dead centre as you want the buttons themselves
to be centred and the buttons will slide towards the right edge of the holes.
- Stitch your buttonholes.
- Now you need to mark the positions of the buttons on the left placket. Overlay
the plackets as if you’re buttoning up the skirt, then pin them together evenly.
Slip your marker (chalk pencil, washable pen…) through each buttonhole to mark
the vertical positions along the left placket. The horizontal position should be
dead centre to the button stand, but you may want to adjust the waistband one
slightly to your preference while trying on the skirt.
- Sew the buttons onto the left placket.
Ta da! You’re done!
If you make your own Picnic Blanket Skirt, I’d love to see it! Please do share a
link below to your blog, Pinterest, Flickr or wherever. I may feature the
pictures in a future post so if you’d rather I didn’t borrow your image just
leave a note with the link in the comments.
I hope you enjoyed this how to! There are a lot of figures involved and it took
a looooong time to put these together typing into the night, so if you spot any
mistakes, let me know so I can correct them. Hopefully you find this useful
though :)
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Labels: how to, picnic blanket skirt, skirt, tutorials
8 JUNE 2012
HOW TO MAKE A PICNIC BLANKET SKIRT: PART 2
Part 2: Sewing the plackets, pockets and waistband
If you’ve followed Part 1 of How to Make a Picnic Blanket Skirt, you should now
have your pieces of fabric cut out (with interfacing attached) and ready to sew
together to make your own button-down gathered skirt like this one. Ready to
sew? Let’s go!
1) Create the plackets (where the buttons and buttonholes will go):
- On the centre front edges of the front pieces of the skirt, fold the seam
allowances back (wrong sides together). Press.
- Fold back another 1 ¾” to form the placket, press and pin in place.
- Top stitch down both sides close to the edges of the placket.
- Do the same with the other placket.
2) Add the pockets:
- Finish the side seams of the skirt on the back piece and two front
pieces. Finish the edges of all four pocket pieces.
- Work out how far down the side seams of the skirt you want the pockets to go.
You could look at where they are on an existing skirt or guess based on where
you think your hands will sit. As a guide, placing the top of the pocket pieces
a couple of inches down the side seams should be about right, but work out
what's right for you based on where your waist (and thus the skirt waistband)
sits. Mark this point on each of the four skirt side seams.
- Pin each pocket piece to one of the skirt side seams, right sides together,
aligning the flat edge of the pocket to the side seam. Before you stitch, double
check that the pocket placement matches up by laying the front pieces of the
skirt on top of the back piece. Once you’re happy, stitch the flat edge of the
pockets to the side seams of the skirt with a slightly smaller seam allowance
than your regular one (3/8” if you’re using ½” SA).
- Fold the pocket away from the skirt so it’s sticking out the side and press
along the seam.
- Place the right side of the skirt front piece onto the right side of the back
piece, aligning the side seams and pockets (which should still be sticking out
the side). Pin in place.
- Now stitch it all together. Starting from the top of the skirt side seam, sew
down the side seam until you’re ½” past the top of the pocket, then around the
pocket edge and back out ½” onto the skirt, then down the rest of the side seam
to the bottom. Do the same on the other side of the skirt.
- Tilly Tip: Reinforce the corners of the pocket/side seam stitching with a few
extra stitches, as this is one of those areas that likes to form holes.
- Press the pockets and seams towards the front.
3) Waistband:
- Needless to say (but I'll say it anyway), this is the key part of the garment
that is going to be fitted to your body, so before stitching it's a good idea to
double check that the piece you cut out is the right size. Test it out round
your waist, taking into account the fact that at this stage each piece will be 3
3/4" bigger than your waist to accommodate button stand, seam allowances and 1"
ease.
- Pin both pieces of the waistband together, right sides together. Stitch along
three sides, leaving one of the long sides (the bottom edge) open.
- Snip the corners, being careful not to cut through the stitching. Trim the
seam allowances down to half the width.
- Turn the waistband right sides out, and use something like a soft pencil
(nothing too sharp!) to make the corners nice and pointy. Press.
Next up: Part 3 - Gathering, attaching skirt to waistband, hemming,
buttonholes - and then you're done!
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Labels: how to, picnic blanket skirt, skirt, tutorials
7 JUNE 2012
HOW TO MAKE A PICNIC BLANKET SKIRT: PART 1
Part 1: Measurements + supplies
Thank you for all the lovely comments on my Picnic Blanket Skirt! As promised,
here are some instructions on how to make your own – also known as a button-down
gathered skirt. Whether you choose to make yours in picnic blanket style fabric
or not is up to you! Needless to say (I hope), don’t actually make this out of a
blanket… gingham cotton or linen will work just fine ☺It would also look great
with stripes, plains, polka dots, boats, cats... you name it!
If you make your own version I'd love to see it! And feel free to grab a button
if you have a blog you want to share it on. Choose from 150px or 125px square
images, copy the code in the text box next to the image and add it to an HTML
gadget on your blog layout:
<left><a title="Picnic Blanket Skirt" href="
http://www.tillyandthebuttons.com/p/picnic-blanket-skirt.html"
target="_blank"><img border="0" src="
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8024/7337726350_dab1094680_o.jpg " /></a></left>
<left><a title="Picnic Blanket Skirt" href="
http://www.tillyandthebuttons.com/p/picnic-blanket-skirt.html"
target="_blank"><img border="0" src="
http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8161/7337726220_b4fc0f1184_o.jpg " /></a></left>
You don’t need a pattern to make this skirt. It’s made up of simple rectangle
shapes - you will work out the dimensions of the pieces based on your own
measurements, and mark them on the fabric. I used a large gingham fabric - the
squares made it easy to cut out rectangle pieces with right angled corners
without marking the fabric too much. But if you’re worried about getting it
right or marking the fabric, you could cut the shapes out in banner or pattern
paper first and use them as you would a regular pattern.
In this post I’ll explain how to work out the dimensions of the fabric pieces to
cut out. Knowing these measurements will help you to work out how much fabric
you need (as a guide, I’m little and used about 2.3m). In the next two posts
I’ll go through how to sew it all together.
You will need:
* Fabric – see below for measurements
* Interfacing for waistband and plackets
* Thread
* 7 – 10 x ¾” buttons – depending on the length of your skirt
* Optional - Pocket pattern piece borrowed from another pattern
You will also need a tape measure, paper and pens to keep a note of all the
measurements. And you’ll need your waist and hip measurements.
Okay, so let’s work the dimensions of the pieces that you need to cut out. Don’t
be put off by the numbers below – it may look complicated but really it’s quite
simple to work out, I promise! Personally when I’m learning something new I like
to know why you do it a certain way, so I’ve broken down and explained the
reason for all the dimensions for people who learn this way - which is why it
looks so complicated. If, however, you’d rather cut straight to the essentials,
just skip to the text in bold!
The skirt is comprised of 4 different shapes:
* Back piece x 1
* Front pieces x 2
* Waistband x 2 (inside and outside)
* Pockets x 4 (to make 2 pockets)
Please note that I’m adding ½” seam allowances (a standard often used in pattern
drafting), but do change it to 5/8” if you prefer. Just remember to keep the
size of your seam allowances consistent.
1) Back piece:
WIDTH:
(i) This is where you get to choose how full you want the skirt to be. To help
you decide, first imagine a skirt where the fabric fits tightly round your hips
– a full skirt could have somewhere between two or three times this amount of
fabric, allowing it to stand out from your body with lovely folds of fabric
hanging down. Three times the width is pretty crazy gathered – you could find
that amount of fabric heavy to wear, plus that length of gathering could be
difficult to achieve without breaking the thread. I went for about 2.1 times my
hip measurement to make a lovely casual yet full skirt.
(ii) To get the width of the back piece (half of the skirt), divide your chosen
number by two. So for example I went for (2.1 / 2 x my 36” hips) = 37.8”, which
I rounded up to 38”.
(iii) Add 2 x ½” seam allowance on each side = 1”
TOTAL WIDTH = (2.1 x hip measurement)/2 + 1”
LENGTH:
(i) Choose the length you want the skirt to fall. I usually drop a tape measure
down from my waist to the top of my kneecap, but choose the most flattering
length for you. To be on the safe side, you could always make it longer and cut
it down at the fitting stage depending on how it looks when it’s on you.
(ii) Add ½” seam allowance to the top
(iii) Add 2” at the bottom for the hem (NB. some people add 4” hem allowance to
skirts, but I always end up chopping 2” off before finishing. Do what is right
for you.)
TOTAL LENGTH = (waist to knee) + 2.5”
CUT ONE BACK PIECE.
2) Front pieces:
WIDTH:
(i) There are two front pieces to one back piece, so take the width of the back
piece excluding seam allowances [ie. (2.1 x hip)/2] and divide it by 2
(ii) Add 7/8” for the button stand
(iii) Add (7/8” x 2) = 1 ¾” for the back of the placket
(iii) Add 2 x ½” seam allowance for each side of the piece = 1”
TOTAL WIDTH = (Back piece width excl SA)/2 + 3 5/8”
LENGTH:
Same as back piece.
CUT TWO FRONT PIECES.
3) Waistband:
WIDTH:
(i) Measure your waist
(ii) Add 1” ease
(iii) Add (2 x 7/8”) = 1 ¾” for the button stand
(iv) Add 2 x ½” seam allowance for each side of the piece = 1”
TOTAL WIDTH = Waist + 3 ¾”
DEPTH:
(i) I want my waistband to be 1.5”. You can make yours a little bigger if you
like.
(ii) Add 2 x ½” seam allowance for top and bottom = 1”
TOTAL DEPTH = 2.5”
CUT TWO WAISTBAND PIECES.
4) Pockets:
If you want to add pockets, grab a pocket shaped piece from another pattern.
CUT FOUR POCKET PIECES.
Interfacing:
You need three pieces of interfacing in total:
- One to the size of the waistband to go on the front waistband piece.
- Two to the size of the placket, ie. 1 ¾” x length of skirt, to go on the
centre front edges of the front pieces (don’t forget to place them ½” in from
the edge to account for the seam allowance).
Press the interfacing onto the fabric pieces now while you remember where they
go.
Now that you have these measurements, note them down somewhere safe in case you
want to make more and more of these skirts! You should now be able to cut all
the pieces out, ready to sew – I’ll explain how to do that in the next post. Now
go and make yourself a cup of tea, you deserve it ☺
Next up: Part 2 - Sewing the pockets, plackets and waistband.
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Labels: how to, picnic blanket skirt, skirt, tutorials
4 JUNE 2012
SUMMER SEWING PLANS
Like all good plans, they're bound to get abandoned as I get distracted by other
ideas, but these are some projects that have been playing on my mind and which
I'd love to sew up this Summer. At first glance these garments don't seem to go
together at all. But as I looked a little closer I realised two things. Firstly,
the patterns are all from totally different sources (vintage, independent,
self-drafted, commercial) but they all have a similar kinda relaxed chic vibe
going on and more than a smattering of 1970s influence. Secondly, I just can't
help myself as far as brown polka dots, bright red and soft bright blue cottons
are concerned. Seriously, if you looked in my fabric stash you'd laugh at the
repetition there. I know what I like!
What are your Summer sewing plans? Do you tend to stick to your sewing plans or
abandon them as other ideas emerge?
PS. Have you seen the design competition that The Sewing Directory is running
this month? The prizes are really great - snazzy sewing machine and fabric
vouchers!
[Soundtrack: 'Heatwave' by Martha and the Vandellas]
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Labels: sewing plans
1 JUNE 2012
MORE ME-MADE-MAY MADNESS!
Life has been pretty crazy recently. So you'd think that challenging myself to
wear homemade garments every day for a month would be just one too many layers
of crazy, enough to push me over the edge. Surprisingly, however, Me-Made-May
has been really easy! (Check out my Me-Made-May photos from the first half of
the month too.) It just goes to show that wearing homemade is becoming part of
my regular lifestyle. Awesome :)
Erm... about the random chest shot on Day 20. I was at the Cannes Film Festival
(darling) and too embarrassed to ask anyone to take a photo of me, so I just
turned my iPhone camera on myself while waiting for a movie to start. Ah and if
you're wondering what the rail of clothing is on Day 29, they're the garments
featured in DIY Couture! The photo was taken by Karen at the book launch, where
we had mega fun (although it was insanely hot) chatting to other stitchers and
crafty peeps.
I've been working hard on the Picnic Blanket Skirt tutorial, but I've promised
myself a day off tomorrow so I hope you don't mind waiting a few more days. In
the meantime if you want to get your fabric ready, 2.5 metres should suffice,
give or take a bit depending on your frame and how gathered you want the skirt
to be, plus you'll need 7 to 10 3/4 inch buttons depending on your height.
In the meantime, hope you have a lovely weekend. Any sewing plans, perchance?
[Soundtrack: 'Everyday People' by Sly & The Family Stone]
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Labels: Me-Made-May 12
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* How to Make a Picnic Blanket Skirt: Part 3
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