It's about time I posted something that I designed myself! I made this skirt 9 weeks ago (so January 5th or so) but am only now getting a chance to post it.
Behold, the Sport Skirt! (I don't know why that name popped into my head whenever I thought about it, it just did.)
I also had leftover ponte knit fabric from my Kwik Sew dress from mid-to-late last year and wanted to get more into stretch knit pattern making (see below).
So, those two together..... TA DA!
I did have to adapt my old pattern to a stretch knit pattern. I actually didn't even use my old pattern but adapted my blocks to a stretch knit pencil skirt shape and used my old pocket pieces as a reference for how I would make the pockets.
As with most stretch knits, I accounted for needing some negative ease in the pattern, though I think I still could adjust the waistband to fit a teeny bit smaller. I also blind-stitched the bottom hem and used my serger for the entire garment.
Ponte knit might be my favorite stretch knit to sew. It reminds me of the polyester double-knit dresses of the late 60s/early 70s (which I have a few of in my closet) but it's somehow better.
Some detail photos:
As always, fully lined pockets:
I wore it to work yesterday and it was a huge hit. No one ever believes I make things most of the time from both customers and coworkers. I usually joke that this is my only benefit to having gone to art school: making clothing. This is what I get to do with my degree! Haha.
And pose like this:
But really! I am glad I have the time and talent to making things, knowing how to make sewing patterns, knowing how to construct, and knowing how to design. Anyone will always have skills to develop, but I'm pretty proud that I haven't abandoned something that I graduated with a degree in over the past almost 10 years. I know so many people who have given up or stopped designing from that time period, but here I am, chugging along.
Still honing your skills of pattern making, sewing, and designing takes quite a bit of dedication and for some reason, that's something that I have a lot of. I've almost stopped designing/sewing countless times but it's something I always return to. There is always so much more to learn and so much more to design!
Lately, I am really taking time to learn more stretch knit fabrics in both patternmaking and sewing. The dress for my drag queen was all stretch knit and that perhaps should be my next blog post so you can see more in depth with that!
I do have some fun things I'm sewing up soon so hopefully it won't take me another 9 weeks to post photos of those upcoming pieces.
What fabrics or techniques are you focusing more on learning lately?
Very cool sewing project! The shape is great! :)
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