Monday 23 March 2015

Twirly Tiered Skirts


Do you follow me on Facebook, or on Pinterest? (Yes, I'm really broadening my social-media horizons lately ... I'm on Instagram too ... totally out of character for me, but I'm having fun with it so far!  I'm definitely a newbie, but you should totally come follow-along!)

Anyway, back to the topic ... if you follow me on Facebook or Pinterest, you may have seen when I found this adorable tiered skirt pattern, offered so generously and for free from Mama Says Sew.  I'd been thinking about making Hannah a tiered skirt as she's just such a girly, twirly, dress and skirt-type munchkin of late.  Tiered skirts are just so cute on little girls of any age too, huh!  I had planned to just take some measurements, do some math and figure out a basic tiered skirt design, but what I love about this pattern is that this lovely Mama really has done ALL the work.  I mean, there's waist and length measurements for 11 sizes ... yep, 11!!!!  And there's also measurements for cutting each of the tiers for both knee-length and maxi-length options.  Something about re-inventing the wheel popped to mind, and I decided I'd just grab some fabric and give it a whirl, or a twirl or something!
And here's what eventuated.  I spotted these lovely quilting-weight cottons at a recent fabric-shop peruse ... I know right, as if I'd ever be in a fabric shop ... cough!

Anyway, these fabrics were stacked together, and are a little fabric line, and I knew they just needed to be a tiered skirt, so home they came.  I decided to use the finest print at the top, and graduate down tier by tier to the largest print ... kinda like the heaviest flowers dropped to the bottom.  Squeak ... so adorable.

And what does Hannah think?  Well I think the twirling says it all!!

Now for the other half of this project.  Bethany, who received her very own sewing machine for Christmas, and is sewing like it's going out of style at the moment (which of course it's absolutely NOT!) decided that she'd like to make one of these skirts for herself.  (Just hold on while I wipe away my proud Mummy tears ... Ok, good to go!)  She decided to make the maxi length, and given free choice of the stash, she chose to use the exact same fabrics, only Bethany decided to use hers in a slightly different order.  I think she did a fabulous job, especially considering she's only 6. (OK, so she's 7 in less than a week, but Mummy's still in denial about that!!)

She needed help with the measuring, and I helped with pinning the seams and with ironing the waistband and hem to make sure they were straight.  I also overlocked (serged) the raw edges for her, but she totally sewed every seam, did the gathering stitches, sewed the gathered tiers together, topstitched and threaded her elastic.  Not to mention that she can now set up and thread the machine and wind a bobbin all by herself.  She's doing so well, and I can see many a sewing afternoon in our futures.  Do you like what she made?

Bethany's got some gorgeous new lace-up ankle boots ready for winter which is fast-approaching here in Australia.  I think a pair of tights and her boots will look so adorable in winter with this skirt.
Oh, and the amazingly generous Mama from Mama Says Sew is also kind enough to allow small-scale sale of products made from her pattern.  I had such a ball with this pattern, and my girls love their skirts so much that I sewed up a couple of extras and added them to my Etsy Shop.  There are only 2, so be quick.  I made up a size 2 and a size 4.

Well, that's it, except just one more pic, because these two just melt my heart!

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