Thursday, December 4, 2014

Vogue 1203 - Fit and flare black w/ red polka dotted wool skirt

First I want to thank everyone who left a kind and heartfelt comment on my last post about baby Joshua. Your well wishes and encouragement really made my week. Adjusting to life as a family of six has definitely had its challenges (the laundry! packing!!) but I am gradually figuring it out.

Understandably there hasn't been a whole lot of sewing going on around here. I have managed to make a skirt out of some lovely Rebecca Taylor wool from Mood fabrics. I’ve been eying this fabric for awhile now but couldn’t quite envision what I wanted to make out of it. It’s been sitting in one of my many Mood boards just waiting patiently. I tend to go for bright/sparkly/interesting fabrics and this black wool is more quiet and subdued. But then I was checking through some of my boards hunting for fabrics that have sold out since I added them – as you do if you are as fabric obsessed as I am – and I saw that it was almost sold out. Ack! Into the cart it went, even though I still had no idea what I was going to do with it. And pretty much right after it arrived I knew exactly what I wanted to make.


This pattern is a Tracy Reese designer pattern that came out in 2010. Sadly it is now OOP, and I couldn't even find it on Vogue's website in their out-of-print area. (Though looking these patterns I see tons that I own and still plan to make. This is what happens when you let things marinate in your stash forever and a day.) One of the things I really love about this pattern is the shaped waistband. You can’t tell from the line drawing on the envelope, but the waistband flares out at the top, giving some nice breathing room to the wearer. I also adore the fit and flare shape. It's a nice change from the standard pencil or A-line that I normally go for.


Since my “print” was at such a small scale, I knew I could get away with a design with lots of pieces. However, I had to consider this fabric a stripe when cutting it out and stitching it up as I wanted all my dots to line up. Most of the work was done while laying it out on a single layer of fabric. I was also careful to pin the lines of dots as precisely as possible before running the seam through my machine.


Instead of the exposed metal zipper called for in the pattern I used an invisible black zipper. The envelope calls for a 9″ zipper but I didn’t paying attention and used my standard length zipper for a skirt which is 7″. Since this is a high waisted skirt I am sure I will have to wiggle into it. Next time I will use a longer zipper.


This wool pressed beautifully and was easy to work with. I would have been done with this skirt in record time but I at first thought I wanted to use the reverse side for the center front and center backs. It didn’t look as great as I thought it would so I took all the pieces apart and resewed them with the right sides facing out.


I tried really hard to line up my dots across the top of the skirt and waistband, and had to restitch this area several times. Also the waistband was abnormally large for a Vogue pattern. Normally I have to let this area out to accommodate my square shape but for this pattern I had to actually grade down for the waist.


The full lining was made in black ambiance from my stash. One thing to note is turning up the hem of the lining 1.5″ per the pattern instructions did not work very well with the flare of the bottom. I tried several different methods to make it work and finally had to cut off the excess fabric and do a simple 5/8″ double fold hem.


I am sure you are all tired of these dressform pictures. It's just not the same as seeing it on an actual body, right? Hopefully it won't be very much longer until I'm back in my pre-pregnancy clothing and am able to model my sewing creations. Yesterday for the first time I got a pair of skinny jeans on. (Never mind the muffin top covered by my loose blouse.)

27 comments:

  1. very cute and now I think you need a red silk blouse to go with it :) and the dots look great.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh thanks! I do love red but hardly ever make anything out of it. Not sure why though.

      Delete
  2. Replies
    1. Thanks Summer! It's pretty basic when I usually go for complicated but I have a feeling it will be seeing a lot of wear.

      Delete
  3. I love that fabric. What a great skirt it made up into.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The back side is fun too. More of a red dash then a dot. Thanks!

      Delete
  4. Your skirt looks great! I made this a while ago and the waistband was massive; as in it say about 2cm away from my waist. Was
    yours the same? Mine was then too tight at the hip... It's still waiting on (wallowing!) being fixed. This post may have been just the incentive I needed, thank you! Glad to hear you are settling into life with the wee one. Rachel

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yep! But I looked it up on pattern review and knew it was big beforehand. Also the measurements were printed on the tissue and I know what my normal measurements are. I cut it down one size in the waist, when I usually always have to go up. You should definitely fix yours so you can wear it! It's a great shape. Thanks for your comment!

      Delete
  5. What a beautiful skirt, and exquisitely crafted! Is the pattern 1203?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, it's Vogue 1203. I always put my pattern numbers in my titles - makes it easy to find things if I want to go back for some reason. It's especially handy now that I've had this blog for so many years. Thanks for your comment.

      Delete
  6. I'm going to come to your house and make you show me how you do your invisible zippers. They are impeccable. And, it wouldn't have even occurred to me to match those tiny polka dots. But, it makes a huge difference.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Well come on over! Seriously, if you are ever in San Antonio let me know. And thanks. Sometimes it takes me putting them in several times to get things just so. That is not a place I am willing to plow through and let stand if it looks bad.

      Delete
  7. Pretty skirt, I love the style.

    ReplyDelete
  8. It is amazing! Great skirt. I really like everything nice too with lines and dots.
    If you see in stores expansive clothing and lines running everywhere.
    Can you explain how to do such an invisible zipper? I do not get it..
    Good to hear that you can almost fit your "normal"clothing.
    Love, Wilma

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. After you start sewing your own clothes it is hard to buy them in the store and not scrutinize every little thing. I am with you on that. Clothing has to be pretty perfectly sewn to entice me to purchase it. I did do an invisible zipper tutorial sometime back, but perhaps I need to do another one since I've changed a few things since then. Thanks for your comment!

      Delete
  9. Seeing a new post from you in my news feed makes me smile! It's a lovely skirt, you always do such beautiful work.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Kristine!!! I so wish I could be more productive. I'm just too busy to get to it as much as I use to. Oh well, I'll sew more when my kids are grown and I'm an empty nester.

      Delete
  10. How pretty and classic. I love the pattern and the fabric :)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks Danice! I hope to be wearing it for years and years.

      Delete
  11. Omigosh, Amanda, I just read your post about Joshua! Whew, that must have taken a lot out of you. I am so thankful all seems to be well and you're doing ok. Glad your little boy is home. —Meg

    ReplyDelete
  12. Amanda, I've been away for a while so didn't know about Joshua. What a handsome young man! There is such a size difference between him and your little Rachel--he looks almost as big! Congrats.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Lovely skirt Amanda and what a great job lining up those dots! A classic that should stay in style for years to come! I hope to get a peek at baby Joshua again soon. I so love babies!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Diana! I will post an updated picture of him if I ever finish another garment - have had a string of wadders lately, all out of silk. :(

      Delete