From Wadder to Wearable-Pleated Skirt

I know. A month ago I was all "I'm back! Yay!" And I was. I've been sewing my little heart out. Honestly. I have 3 finished objects. But apparently sewing and blogging about sewing are 2 different things :) So here goes the blogging portion of the program :) I apologize in advance for the abysmal pictures.  Natural light is hard to come by in my house, and a blank wall is even more challenging to find. Also...LOOK! My in laws found a dress form for $25 at yardsale & got it for me! I still need to pad her out but she's pretty handy so far.

I got a little carried away in Photoshop. Just did away with the whole background

I had originally planned on sewing this skirt to wear at our annual convention. Two (three?) months ago. It didn't go well. The fabric I chose (a lightweight home dec) was too stiff for the pattern and it just looked huge & bulbous. So I literally wadded it up & threw it in the corner.

Fast forward to a few weeks ago, I found a pin of this tutorial & was like "Hey! She used Home Dec fabric for her pleated skirt!" So I dismantled my skirt, pressed it, hacked off a good 8-9 inches from each piece (front & back) to match the dimensions the tutorial gave, and voila! I had planned on cutting a new waistband, but the waistband from the original pattern actually fit!

I stitched the CB pleat closed so it would lay nicely

 Pattern: McCalls 6706, but not really.

Fabric:  Premier Prints Polka Dots Twill

Notions: Thread, 2 hooks & eye, zipper

Size sewn: 10

Alterations/Design Changes: I took in the side seams 8-9" to reduce the overall volume

Likes: The lapped waistband (but that was almost the only thing I kept from the design)

Dislikes: The result was too voluminous for the fabric I chose.


Time to Complete: For.Ev.Er. But not due to the pattern.

New Techniques: Blind hem by machine (which turned out great!) lapped zipper.

Total Cost:  A little under $20.