Saturday 31 May 2014

New Skirt Project For My Birthday and A Gift



I don't like being celebrated on my birthday, but I love to make treats to myself. Yes, I'm a big girl now and it has become kind of a tradition to spoil myself on that occasion.

First of all, I plan to make a new skirt. I need new clothes as I lost weight (guess I mentioned it), and there's a gorgeous fabric I have in my stash that is perfect for summer. So I want to have that garment ready when summer is here. The fabric always was a little bit on the more expensive side, until I finally found a seller on Etsy that had it on sale.

It's "Frida's Garden". I guess I never wrote that in my youth (haha, I'm getting older!) I had a soft spot for Mexican culture and food, and I guess I somehow still have, even if not so much for the food anymore. This fabric is so gorgeous!


I bought 4 yards, knowing it should be enough to make a lovely full skirt. I was very happy when I got my order, as the seller sent quite a few inches more (how generous!), but I knew it was going to be difficult as it's a large-scale print. This is not the easiest fabric to deal with if you want the finished garment to look really nice.

I chose Simplicity 3033 from 1949 for the skirt. However, when I wanted to prepare my stuff for cutting, I found that my measuring tape was destroyed by my little son...



The pattern was still in factory folds. I think this is always one of the most amazing moments, unfolding  such pattern pieces that have been untouched for so long... Like opening Tutankhamun's coffin. Or almost. (Ah, the historian in me...)


I spent almost 2 hours placing the pattern peaces on the fabric and moving them around, again and again.

Finally, after discussing it with my husband, I decided not to make the pockets as shown for view 1 on the pattern envelope, but to rather chose the other style without. That made it easier and I finally could cut the fabric.

Now the pieces are ready and I almost can't wait to sew. And I still have some fabric left to make a halter top or a bolero to go with the skirt. However, we have still some garden projects to finish today and some laundry to wash. And tomorrow it's my mother-in-law's birthday, so we will be out. Argh, bad timing.

Finally, I would like to share a picture of another vintage fabric I found on Etsy some days ago. Yes, right, that's my own gift to myself, and it arrived so super-fast! I love border prints, but they're not easy to find, or they're incredibly expensive. I was lucky to find this one, it was affordable for my rather small budget. And it was in decent black and cream, colours that match well with others and are always nice to wear. A wonderful 1950s or even older cotton... The lace border looks like an applique, but it's only printed.


I'm looking forward to show you the finished skirt. In the meantime, while working in the garden and doing the laundry, I can think about the final decisions for the VPSA

6 comments:

  1. Wow I love that fabric, actually both of them! Great finds! Good luck with sewing!

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    1. Anthea, thanks! I must admit, I can't resist when I see such lovely fabrics, no matter if they're modern or vintage... :-)

      xxx Doris

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  2. Hi there! I'm visiting from the playsuit sew-along ala Flickr. ;) though, you may sometimes feel alone, Isn't it lovely to find new friends with the same interests via the internet? :).. I I love your vintage blog. and I LOVE this Frida fabric too!! I made my skirt some time ago, and it is my very most favorite to date. You can see my version here. http://kitschnsinkstudio.blogspot.com/2013/06/the-frida-skirt.html very nice to meet you. can't wait to see what you come up with. Kristine/ kitschnsink studio :)

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    Replies
    1. Hi Kristine, thank you for visiting! Yes, I would definitely feel like living on a different planet if it was not for internet that allows me to find like-minded and very nice people, vintage lovers and sewers from all over the world. Nonetheless, it would be lovely to have someone nearby to exchange ideas, wear vintage, go shopping etc. Nonetheless I'm very grateful for all the inspiring persons out there!

      I had a look at your Frida skirt, it's marvelous! Originally I wanted to buy the border print of that fabric, but then I realised the border is HUGE. I like your combination of the black and the white print, and the pocket with details is just the cherry on top. Well done!

      Hope to see you back here one day. Doris

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  3. wie lustig, ich habe mir aus genau dem Stoff einen Rock für meinen Geburtstag genäht :-D
    Blogpost dazu folgt natürlich noch ;-)

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    1. Hallo Steffi, was für ein Zufall! Der Stoff ist aber auch echt toll, ich hatte schon immer eine Schwäche für mexikanische Folklore, und die vielen schönen Farben im Muster sind echt super zum Kombinieren. Ich denke, mit so einem Rock fällt man bestimmt auf, so aussergewöhnlich ist der Stoff. Ich würde mich freuen, Deinen Post zu lesen!

      Liebe Grüsse nach Berlin, Doris

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