Sewing for others: Chambray Skirt

My last minute holiday sewing didn't just stop at a dress for me, I also made my mum a skirt. Much like the dress this was quite a last minute decision once we realised how hot it was going to be and that lightweight clothes were needed. Sewing really comes into its own at this point as I was able to whip up exactly what my mum wanted without her having to spend time searching for a skirt which would inevitably be too expensive, not the right cut or made from the wrong fabric if found in a ready to wear shop. 

I've become pretty quick at creating patterns from existing items of clothing. Finding an item of clothing with exactly the right fit can be really difficult so I think that copying a ready to wear garment that you already own is one of the best uses of sewing. I managed to create the pattern for this skirt and sew it up in less than a day - I had a lovely sewing spree before going on holiday that included this skirt as well as my dress and this top, so I created a lot of patterns too! The great thing with this pattern is that I can now reuse it to make the same skirt again but in a different fabric if my mum wants another one. It's a really simple design with darts at the back to add shaping and an invisible zip in the side.

This skirt is a very simple design but has a some really lovely details. I added a double row of topstitching down the centre front as well as a row at the pockets and even though it's done in a matching colour I really like the texture that the topstitch weight thread adds. My favourite part of this skirt is defintiely the bias-binding. It was my mum's idea to bind the skirt in a contrast colour and I think it looks lovely, a secret detail as you can't see it when she wears it. It also gives the skirt a really neat, clean finish. 

Because the chambray is fairly lightweight I decided to line the skirt. However, as the whole reason for making it was to survive a heatwave, the lining only comes down partway so it wasn't too warm to wear. It worked really well, once again a detail which is practical but aso has the benefit of giving the skirt a nice finish. 

This skirt turned out to be a huge success, my mum has worn it so much over the summer and I'm really pleased to have a pattern so that I can make more if she would like another.