Basic Jean Skirt....

I finished my first garment of the year using this pattern:

The "My Basic Jean Skirt" pattern by Silhouette Patterns.  This is a great basic skirt pattern.

So far, I have made it twice but the first time it was a tad bit small and I did not finish it because of that.  If I should lose a bit of weight/inches and it fits I will finish it but for now it will remain a UFO.

With the second skirt, I made the following changes to the pattern:

1.  increased waist slightly, and
2.  made the side seams 1" wider.

Unfortunately, I needed all of the extra room.  I guess I expanded a bit over the holidays.  Sigh!  That's not suppose to be happening.

The most difficult part of this skirt is the top stitching but as with anything the more you practice the better it gets.  Of course, the skirt is almost completed by the time you can try it on.  This is when I realized that there was a length issue on the skirt that is much easier to fix at the pattern stage. This skirt will be high-waisted on me.  I will be removing 1 1/2" to 2" the next time I make this skirt to drop it down to more of a mid-rise fit.  The other issue is that the skirt is very long on me.  Maybe this is due to my just under 5'5" when the pattern is drafted for 5'8".  Unhemmed, it hits the top of my calf.  I removed about 4" to get it a little closer to my knee and 1" for the hem.

Here's my final result:

When ironing this skirt, I realized that I missed putting the belt loops on.  The belt loops would add a little bit of bulk and I would most likely never use them.  I suppose I will think on it whether to go ahead and add the belts or not.

Here's me wearing my new skirt.  Sorry for the dark picture but it is a dark day.  I know I will wear the boots with the skirt but not sure about the sweater.  Now, I need to locate some brown tights or fleeced lined tights/leggings.

Details:

Fabric:  100% cotton twill
Needle used:  100 jeans needle
Topstitching: 3.5mm
New technique:  edge stitching the waistband

Conclusion on this pattern:  Overall, I'm very happy with this pattern.  Once I get the fit perfected, it will be a TNT.  If this is a style of skirt that you like wearing, go get it.  It will become your go-to casual skirt pattern.  I can see having 2 or 3 or 4 more for summer when it is hot outside.

Oh, one thing that I did find was that the pattern piece was missing for the belt loops.  You will have to create your own pattern for this or just use a ruler and rotary cutter.  Another item that I noticed is that it doesn't mention needing a button on the pattern envelope.  Obviously, you need a snap or a button of some sort for a closure.


Happy Sewing!