Fairely Well Maid

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Thursday, April 29, 2010

Pictures of skirt

Day 5 - Finished

I promise I will post pictures and a pattern piece when I can.

Today I hemmed the skirt and I'M DONE.  Can I tell you, I really hate hemming.  It is the only thing I don't like about sewing.  And, with a gored skirt the hem is 3 times the yardage as the waist.

It's unfortunate that I just can't sew the skirt up in the 4 or 5 hours that it would take.  But, because of the Fibro I have to take 4 or 5 days, but at least I can get it done.

Here is what I learned:

1.  Make sure you have everything in the house before you start the project so you don't have to go out to the store.

2.  When cutting out the gores, round the edges of the bottom slightly so you don't have corners.  This will make hemming easier.

3.  The more colors you have in a skirt the more frequently you have to change thread.  A very minor annoyance, but something to think about when you are planning a project if you are under a time crunch.

4.  Make sure you get the good thread.  It may be a little more money but it saves frustration because it doesn't break or leave as much lint.

5.  If you doubt how a piece goes on, pin it then check it.  I wasn't certain how the waistband needed to go on, so I pinned it on first.

6.  Take the time to press the seams down and trim the threads.  It makes hemming and sewing the waistband on easier and it looks more professional.

7.  Clean your machine thoroughly after you finish a project and oil as needed.  You pick up a lot more lint than you think.

Wednesday, April 28, 2010

Day 4

The waistband is now sewn on.  I was successful lining up one seam on the black/red edge.  The other, where the opening is to feed the elastic through, is now exactly lined up.  This can be fixed once the elastic is fed through and I hand sew the opening closed.

The reason I didn't finish the waistband today is because I can't find the wider elastic I know I have.  So, off to the craft store (what a hardship giggle) to replace it.

Monday, April 26, 2010

Day 3

Today I pressed the seams along the gores.  I measured top of the black panels and the red panels.  I added 1/2 inch to each measurement so I could cut the waistbands.  I cut a long rectangle 4 inches wide and the number of inches long.  I sewed the two red pieces together (I couldn't get the length I needed from one piece) and that long red piece to one side of the black piece.  I folded this long piece in half the long way, with the seams on the inside, and sewed it together.

I pinned it to the skirt, lining up the black seams.  I will sew it up tomorrow and feed the elastic through.  I plan on closing the waistband casing with hand stitching.

Then all I'll have to do is hem (yuck).  I really don't like hemming.

Sunday, April 25, 2010

Day 2

I finished sewing the gores together today.   This is the easy part.  Next is ironing the seams flat then making the waistband.  I'm not sure that I'll need a two inch waistband.  Once I get the seams ironed, I'll hold it up and see if I need the extra length.

I'm hoping to get pics today.

Friday, April 23, 2010

Faire Season means a new project list

Oh my.  It's been a while since I've posted.  It's also been a while since I've really worked on stuff.

I did make some updates to my Irish Cape.  I took off the Fox Collar and put on trim at the collar for the spring.  I also re-enforced the stitching at the hand opening to be more sturdy.

On to the newest project.  I'm trying something a bit more fitted.  I'm making a gored skirt with a waist band.  I'm using a formula called the "Infinite Gore" because you can use as many gores as you would like.  I'm also using a 3:1 ratio.  I'm using a great red cotton and black cotton that is 41 inches wide.  I'm using 6 gores of red and 2 gores of black in the front.  I'm using a 2 inch waistband to get the 43 inches length I want.

Here are the measurements.  W is your waist measure with 1/2 inch added for each gore and a few inches for "wiggle room".  B = 3*W.  L is the length from your waist to the ground with 1/2 inch added for a hem.  T = W/# of gores (in this case 8).

I took the red material and folded it so I had 6 layers along the width so I can measure the gores without worrying about the length.  From the edge I measured in T inches and made a mark.  From this mark I measured T inches again and made another mark.  Between these two marks is the top of the gore.  On the bottom of the length I measured B inches and made a mark.  Connect the the top mark closest to the edge to the bottom edge, then connect the other top mark to the bottom mark.  These lines should form a triangle with the top flattened.  This is your gore pattern.  I cut 6 red and 2 black.

I'll see if I can draw it out and post it when I post a picture of the colors.

From here what I'll do is, first iron the gores, then sew the gores together.  Then I need to sew the waistband together.  I need to cut two pieces for the waistband.  One in red and one in black.  It will need to be 4 inches wide.  The red will need to be T*6 inches long and the black will need to be T*2 inches long.  Before attaching the waistband I'll iron the seams flat then attach the waistband.  Hem the skirt and feed the elastic through.

There is the plan.  Stay tuned.