Purple Flannel Herringbone Skirt

After I finished the blazer in the previous post, I looked at the remaining fabric and wondered if I could eke out a matching skirt.

And I could! Barely! And only on a technicality!

The last time I made a sheath skirt, I rambled about how I didn't know why I chose Simplicity 9185 instead of my usual New Look 6843, since 6843 includes size 18, right?

Well.

I guess I hadn't made the sheath version on 6843 since I finally admitted I should use size 18, because, when I started cutting the pieces for this project...I didn't notice that the size 18 lines were missing.  Not until I had already cut the front and had just started cutting the back pieces.

Not that a size 18 would have fit on the remaining fabric!  So I continued cutting the back pieces at size 16, then cut the waistband at size 18 and considered my options.

I pretty quickly decided to make the darts shallower, re-drawing them from the original point to a spot ¼"/6mm in from where they originally met the top of the skirt.  Since there are six darts on this skirt--two in the front and four in the back--that gave about 3"/75mm more clearance at the waistline.

I decided to take a risk and leave the side seam allowances alone, and, honestly? I might consider doing it this way on purpose in the future (as long as things stay generally the same size they are now.  I'm approaching 50 so I know that's a Big If.)

Just about everything else about the rest of the construction was completely normal.  I did my usual lazy "press the waistband in half, and then one edge under, before sewing it to the wrong side of the waistline and flipping it forward to encompass the seam allowance then edge stitch in place."

And a lockstitch machine stitched blind hem that disappears well into this fabric.

I used the same crinkle nylon lining as the jacket (there's a lot of it left.)  Angela of Looks Like I Made It recently posted a project made (more or less) from New Look 6843, and mentioned omitting the darts in the lining and making tucks instead.  I figured, since the darts on my skirt were so much more shallow than intended, I could distribute and ease them into the waist width.  It's a little lumpy in places, but no-one's going to see.

(and, yeah, I take adding a lining to this pattern so much for granted that I, upon reading the project linked above and how the lining darts were handled, forgot that a lining is not part of this pattern)

I left the white thread in the serger--again, no-one's going to see (unless I show them)

I remembered to make the waistband buttonhole significantly longer than the button, because there're so many layers of fabric and interfacing and lining there that it can be a challenge to get a button through when the buttonhole is the expected size.

It is a short skirt!  18"

But that's fine, because I have short legs

 

I took the above photo after I just tried the skirt and jacket on over (most of) what I was wearing yesterday (I had to take off the below-the-knee black flared skirt), and I thought the resulting combination was a lot of fun.  I also made the shirt and leggings (if they were blogged, I can't find the post) and necklace.

 And the reason I didn't blog the floral turtleneck when I finished it last week was because I immediately thought it would coordinate well with the planned jacket and skirt, so I waited until they were all finished.