I told you I wasn't finished with New Look 6217 just yet! After helping my friend Emma to make her Budgie Skirt I had a sudden yearning to make another one for myself. The good thing about this pattern is that both front and back pieces are cut on the fold (the zip's in the side seam). So as long as you have a wideish piece of fabric where the selvedges can be folded into the centre, you only need a very small amount. Gratifyingly I managed to use up the last half metre of stretch polka dot denim from my Ultimate Trousers, yes!
I sewed a straight size 12 again, but could probably have done with sizing down at the waist as the fabric has so much stretch to it. I'm intending to wear this skirt a LOT over the coming months though, so it's nice to know I'll have a bit of a pie eating safety net built in!
To finish the waist I made self bias binding instead of the twill tape the pattern specifies. Because of the stretch in the fabric I cut the binding on the straight grain instead of the bias and it worked a treat.
But wait, there's more….. I picked up two lovely Swiss Dot cottons (one red, one navy) at the Fabric Godmother Open Day on Saturday and the red one seems to have magically transformed itself into a New Look 6217 top! I've used Swiss Dot fabric once before when I made a sleeveless Granville shirt and it's perfect for summer dressmaking. I underlined the pattern pieces on that occasion as the fabric was very transparent, but didn't bother this time as the colour is much darker. The resulting top is beautifully light and airy for summer, I definitely think this pattern benefits from using a fabric with lots of drape.
As before (here and here) I sewed a size 12 at the bust, grading down to a 10 at the waist and hips. I lengthened the pattern by one inch this time and it's a nice length on me either tucked in or untucked. As the fabric is quite fine I used French seams throughout and finished the neckline with red bias tape from my stash. Easy peasy.
It's also a perfect match with my new skirt! Have a good day!
As before (here and here) I sewed a size 12 at the bust, grading down to a 10 at the waist and hips. I lengthened the pattern by one inch this time and it's a nice length on me either tucked in or untucked. As the fabric is quite fine I used French seams throughout and finished the neckline with red bias tape from my stash. Easy peasy.
It's also a perfect match with my new skirt! Have a good day!