Self Drafted Spotty Pencil Skirt

After attempting to draft a pattern for a top I thought I would have a go at making myself a pencil skirt. This time I used a combination of a skirt I owned and my measurements to make sure it would be the right fit once I had finished. The results were much better. When I wore it out I was complemented on it and they didn't ask 'did you make it yourself?' which is a sure sign it looks good ;).

The skirt is already slightly crinkled because I had been wearing it all morning by the time I took the pictures. If I was a contestant on the Great British Sewing Bee I think the judges would be fairly happy though, the patterns line up really well at the side and back seems. At this stage my pattern drafting isn't quite up to writing a tutorial for it though so you will have to wait a little while before I share that. I would definitely make myself another pencil skirt though. Have you started making your own clothes yet? I love looking at what others have sewn together so please share if you have. Zoe xx

Spotty Picnic Blanket Skirt

I am totally hooked to making my own clothes already. I decided my second attempt should follow a real pattern so I went with Tilly and the Buttons (you may remember her from 'The Great British Sewing Bee') pattern for The Picnic Blanket Skirt. Her instructions are well thought out and make it really simple to put together.

The skirt is made up of 5 rectangles of material so it couldn't be more straight forward. I multiplied my measurements by 2.5 instead of Tilly's 2.1 to get a fuller skirt which makes it excellent for spinning around. If you have a look at Tilly's pattern, you'll know what I mean. I made mine out of a very lightweight cotton which means even the gathering was really easy on my skirt.

I was going to go with fabric covered buttons but I started the project with pink nail varnish on and it looked so cute with the grey I couldn't resist. I really recommend this as a first pattern to try out when making clothes, I think I will be making another one soon. Zoe xx