One of the reasons I kept putting off sewing this skirt was the fabric issue... a long circle skirt for an adult can easily take 5 yards of fabric!
The other reason was the horsehair braid... it isn't cheap, and I didn't want to waste it. However, I eventually decided that since I'd already bought it, letting it languish in my closet was wasting it just as much as sewing it into something I didn't love. Besides, if I hated the results, I could pick it out.
Once I'd decided to just go for it, I just had to find fabric. And then I bought this tablecloth to use as an actual tablecloth, and couldn't stop thinking how cute it would be as a skirt. So yes, I'm literally wearing a tablecloth. =) It was really inexpensive, probably because it's polyester, but there was just enough fabric and it has a nice weight to it.
I added a waistband of plain black fabric... but I'm not entirely happy with the waistband. I should have either made it narrower or contoured it, because it sticks out a bit at the top. I also should have interfaced it, and the placket.
I tested out this method of making a placket, with some changes to the measurements. I didn't press anything (well, I finger-pressed, but I didn't use an iron at all), but I still think it came out pretty well. Imagine how pretty it would have been with a proper pressing and interfacing!
I used KAM snaps in silver as the closure... I was planning on black snaps but apparently I don't have any!
The horsehair braid definitely made quick work of that curved hem, but I accidentally stretched it while applying it in a few places, so in some places my top-stitching barely catches it and in others it's too far from the edge, like this.
Covering the ends turned out to be almost impossible, and in the end I left them uncovered. The binding I was using kept pulling out of the horsehair braid. Perhaps if I'd used a wider one it wouldn't have been so difficult. It looks decent on the outside, but between the uncovered ends and general scratchiness of the braid itself, plus the tendency to catch on things, I won't be applying it like this again. I'll either hide the braid between the outer skirt and a lining, or I'll add a hem facing that's just wide enough to cover the braid.
As for the skirt itself... I like it, but I don't love it.
When my shirt is tucked in, the proportions look odd to me, and I feel like the skirt emphasizes my hips too much. My husband says it looks best that way, but I like it a bit better with the shirt un-tucked.
I really like the look when I'm twirling though, so maybe it just needs a crinoline to look right to me!
The other bummer? I spent quite a lot of time leveling the hem... letting the skirt hang, rigging a system for marking it by myself, marking it, trimming it, and hemming it, and it's just not even. I'm not sure what I could have done differently other than having a friend help.
Overall though, I've worn it more than I expected to... especially since it's a style that a lot of people would deem too costumey and unwearable. My favorite piece to wear with it is the denim shirt I sewed a while back, which I think nicely complements the vintage style. My least favorite is probably the shirt in these photos, as it doesn't fit well at all, and is very uncomfortable. I bought it back when I only knew how to sew a little bit, and at the time I thought it fit very well. ;-)
Will I ever make another circle skirt for myself? I'm not sure... but I had fun making this one!
Thanks for stopping by,
