I Can't Believe It's Not Vintage

Blouse-Made by me
Skirt- Made by me
Cardigan- Vintage, thrifted.
Earrings- Target
Shoes- BC Footwear, Nordstrom Rack
Satchel- Vintage, gift from my parents.

Back in the beginning of my journey of sewing I bought one of those Poodle Skirt Halloween patterns. I also bought some really weird suiting to make it from. I got as far as sewing up the side seams before it defeated me. Since this day I have feared the circle skirt. Until now.

In my younger self's defense I was a complete moron back then and looking back the problems I faced with that project were stupid and I can now see how easy they were to fix. But still the memory of that failed project has haunted me and I basically just steered clear of all circle skirt plans. Which isn't too terrible since I am not actually a huge fan of them in the first place. I think they're wonderfully cute on mostly everyone but me, and the length of the traditional 50's style circle skirt is a major issue for stocky little me. So when the ever lovely Casey announced her circle skirt sew-along, I had mixed emotions. I have been wearing my skirts a tad longer, and I need a bit for variety in my skirts, so I said what the heck, the worst that can happen is I hate it, right? Except then I realized that the event took place while I was moving and I shrugged it off. However I did make sure to read in detail each post in the sew-along. So there I was last night, getting ready to crawl into bed despite not being tired at 2 in the morning, when suddenly I had a brilliant idea! (I really wish you cold read that in the voice I just typed it in. It was incredibly dramatic) Why not just tackle the circle skirt at 2am? What could go wrong?

I ended up going to bed at 4:45 with a finished skirt hanging over my chair. The only thing left undone for this morning was to press the hem. It is a good thing my first class didn't start until noon today, because let me tell you I had no desire to get out of bed (tonight's menu: study for exam tomorrow, memorize aria, go to bed early.). But I did and I'm actually not too terrible today (though that may just be the coffee talking), and in the end I have a totally awesome skirt.

I used a brown tweedy wool I got in the Garment District back in August. Initially I assumed it was some kind of poly-wool blend, but after my adventures in ironing the thing I have determined that it is in fact wool. Instead of making a pattern, since I don't have any pattern drafting paper, I just marked the measurements directly onto the fabric. The front half is one piece and the back is two with a zipper in the back. I added pockets to the side seams, and I didn't bother facing the waistband because it was already so bulky (and also I am out of interfacing...). Otherwise I followed Casey's directions to a t and ended up with a skirt I can't believe I made! The only hitch I ran into was the fact that this is such a loose weave wool it stretches so the waist ended up being a good three inches too big (and actually the whole skirt is a bit on the loose side, but I can deal with that), which is why I made and inverted pleat in the center. I actually have a skirt that is a bit too tight with a pleat like this, and I really love it. The only thing I would change is the fact that I gave it a machine hem, but after all it was like 4am by the time I got to hemming, and I was not about to hand stitch this thing then. But I do plan on making some more of these for this winter. I think a velvet one and maybe some traditional felt. There are so many possibilities! So many people today thought it was vintage, which pleased me to no end! And now I no longer live in fear of circle skirts.

In other non-sewing related news today was freezing as I walked to class... at 11:30. I am not kidding you by the time I got to the music building my hands were like icicles. Apparently it can be both sunny and freezing cold at the same time. Who knew? So far I really love Autumn.