Two, Two, Two skirts in one!

Confession: I have a lot of trouble sewing clothes. I don't know what it is. I pick out pretty fabric and what I think will be a cute (and hopefully not too difficult) pattern. In theory, all should go according to plan. In reality, I always struggle. Perhaps it's the fact that I like to change things around from the pattern. And that I'm often trying to squeeze the most I can out of a small amount of fabric. And maybe easy patterns are really meant to look like maternity wear. (Not a problem if you're expecting of course, but I'm not!)

 

Take this skirt as an example. I loved the look of Anna Maria Horner's Flirting the Issue Skirt. The pattern's a free download, and it looks so easy and cute! I also had been wanting to try out sewing with voile, and I love Anna Maria's Innocent Crush line. Seems like a perfect match, right?

Well. The voile is gorgeous. So gorgeous that I couldn't decide which one to choose. But then I hit upon this happy thought: why not get two patterned fabrics instead of one patterned and one solid? That way I could make my skirt reversible!

It all worked out in the end but let me tell you it was a bit of a pain getting there. Mostly I tried to follow the pattern, though of course it changed things making the skirt reversible. I also changed out the band a bit since I had a different elastic at hand. And of course I waited until almost the end to try it on, and it was HUGE. Like a small panda could have fit in there with me. I debated leaving it extra poofy but decided I'd be happier taking out some bulk. And I was.

It's funny, I was especially drawn to the little flowers on the "Maybe" pattern. But as a skirt I kinda like "Turn of Events" and its bold floral print. I like that I can wear it with a shirt tucked in or out. And that I could do a fast change in an elevator like in the opening of  The Pink Panther. (The Peter Sellers Pink Panther... the scene where the inspector's wife has to make a quick getaway so she reverses all her clothing while in an elevator to throw the police off her track! I always thought that was too cool.) So, all things considered, I'm happy with my finished reversible skirt. And the next clothes I sew? I'm not getting cute or clever with them!