This is what I have been up to today – making a really cute cord skirt with the flippiest flappiest kick pleats you have ever seen.
A winter skirt mark you …………. think about it!!! When the weather is grim and drying time outside is limited sometimes its easier to launder some thick tights than to wash and dry a pair of jeans.
With my low heel boots and ankle length winter coat – I can get away with wearing a skirt most days – and wearing something cute and girlie is definitely a mood lifter ………….. makes change from the usual winter wardrobe of jeans and fleece.
Anywhoo! it gave me an excuse to work in the office today with my sewing machine and my daylight simulation light – five hours of topping up my light levels should give me a bit of a lift soon I hope.
So have I gone daft and splurged on some luxury needlecord and fabric to play with??? ……………….. come on you know me better than that LOL
Exhibit Number One M’lud!!! A pair of gents needlecord trousers – nice and new looking and going at a bargain price.
Cos they were snaffled from the “Pound Rail” of the local Charity Shop – so reduced from £4.25 to a whole pound ……. perfect!!!
Also starring in my “Mental Makeover” – one tea towel ……………. actually a pressie from a lovely reader who I bet never dreamed that I would be turning it into something to wear.
Mmmm -looks really pink on the photo – but its actually scarlet and white polka dots.
So grabbing my trusty “Quick – un-pick” ……………. off with the waistband. It had that “expand at the sides with elastic” thing going on that they sometimes have in men’s trousers. Off!!! Off!!! Off!!!!
Doesn’t take too long although I confess its easier when you are working under a good light.
Whilst I was at it – I carefully removed the zipper – my local shop sells 6″ zips at £4.99 !!!!! Yup!! for the cost of a new zip you could buy a new skirt from Primarni!!! Still I have paid a quid for these trousers and I am having my money’s worth – out with the zip. A quick run over with the steam iron and its a good as new. Make do and Mend after all!!
With the waistband off – I folded the legs in half and gave them a run over with the iron.
Before cutting them through the fold into 1 upper leg and crotch piece and two lower leg pieces.
Set the lower leg pieces aside – you will need them later.
Working on the front and then the back of the trousers I cut a line down the grain from the waistband to the cut-off point. Cos these were cord it was easy to see where the straight line was. The aim is to have the side pockets and side seam in situ and to piece in a centre front panel to give the skirt shape.
The denim skirt is one I already have that I love the shape of. I lay the side seams of the trousers along the side seams of the skirt and you can see the wedge shaped piece that I will need to piece in.
So back to the bottom leg pieces ……………. I unpicked the side seams, leaving me with two front lower legs and two back lower legs.
Its hard to tell when they are sewn up …………………….
but one is a couple of inches wider that the other – so in this case I am using the wider piece and folded it in half. I lay the fold along the centre front of the denim skirt and flip the side front over into position.
A quick draw of a piece of chalk marks the position of the sewn seam
So flip the side piece open again …………………….
……………..and draw on your seam allowance …………………..
…………….before cutting it neatly with sharp scissors.
Now – remember this little freebie beastie???
Take the two narrower lower leg piece and with right sides together sew a centre back seam …………….. inserting a zip at the waistband edge. Head to Youtube to find out how to fit an in-seam zipper ………… its easy once you have been shown how.
Fold the centre back panel in half and lay it along the centre back of the denim skirt as before – marking the seam line.
And then the seam allowance before cutting.
You should now have two side pieces complete with pockets from the original pair of trousers. One wedge seamed piece for the centre front panel and one wedge shaped piece for the centre back complete with zipper. Set them to one side for a moment.
Back to the scarlet and white tea towel – this is going to be my contrast kick pleats.
Ah!!! that’s a better colour – although with all those dots its a little crazy on my ironing board.
The tea towel was cut into four equal strips width wise – so that I can create four red polka dot kick pleats in my plain black skirt.
The contrast fabric gets sewn onto the lower edges of the skirt seams. My hand is on the side piece of the skirt (original side seam of trousers complete with pocket), then the contract fabric, then the centre front wedge shaped piece.
Sew the two seams with the fabric right sides together …………………. use quite a narrow seam allowance as shown.
Now place the right sides of the skirt pieces together and sew from the waistband edge right down to 5cm after the contrast fabric begins.
Using an iron you will then be able to create the box pleat on the back of the kick pleat and tack it in place to hold it securely. This is from the front …………..
And from the back………..
You need to repeat this so that you have four kick pleats tacked in position – two on the front and two in the back.,
Copying the detail on the pleat in my denim skirt I marked a triangle at the top of each kick pleat …… This helps secure the top of the pleat where there is likely to be more strain on the fabric. Mark up the triangles and sew around them to reinforces the top of the pleat. Make sure that you catch the top of the pleat in the inside with your horizontal seam at the top of the triangle.
Now you begin to see the shape of the skirt ………………….. where the kick pleats splay out from behind the seams of the panels.
You should have one lower leg piece left – and cut in half lengthwise and sewing it together along the short edges you will have enough to create a 2″ waistband in the normal way to finish off the waistband edge of your skirt. Again – hop over to Youtube to find out how.
Leaving you a casual skirt – with deep capacious pockets (men’s trousers remember) and cute girlie kick pleats in a contrast fabric.
Not bad for a couple of hours at the sewing machine and a quid at the charity shop.
Mind you,might have to get DS1 to take some better photos – the “pose in the bedroom mirror” shots are a little bit dodgy LOL
So less of a pattern – more of a method of how to use something you know that fits and use it as a basis to upcycle something on its way to landfill into something fabulous for your wardrobe instead.
What do you think??
The post Adventures from the Pound Rail – Polka Dot skirt appeared first on Mortgage Free in Three.