*Voting starts today and ends on January 26*
When I originally picked the Clever Charlotte Chickadee to flip back in April, I figured I had plenty of time to put my look together. My intentions were to work on the flip a little bit here and a little bit there, finishing well ahead of the deadline. Um, yeah...that didn't happen!
I didn't start to panic until the beginning of December when I got the email from Emily and Ashley with the timeline of January's flip. All 4 competitors had to have their post in by December 31. (A genius way to do it by the way as I had no clue what the other ladies were doing until their flip(s) were released.) Panic set in because I still had a bunch of Christmas gift sewing to do so I knew I wouldn't be able to devote time to my flip until after Christmas. That meant I had 6 days to design my flip, pick fabrics, sew it together, photograph the outfit, edit pictures, and write my post...while keeping up with the normal stuff around here and making sure the kids didn't kill each other since they were on winter break from school.
Some of my initial ideas
My original idea was to do a dark gray a-line dress with scallops down the front and a white off set peter pan collar. But I wasn't in love with the idea. In the meantime, I had a corduroy print laid out on my cutting table (intended for a School Photo dress) and kept coming back to this skirt that I had pinned as a possible flip. I decided at the last minute to change plans and do separates.
I don't have step-by-step pictures of the process as I was flying by the seat of my pants and didn't know if any of the changes I made were going to work. But I can show you the changes I made to the pattern pieces.
The jacket changes were primarily to the front lower pattern piece. I drew lines straight down from the pleat markings and split the pattern on the middle line. I wasn't concerned with the lower front overlapping all the way to the hem as I wanted the t-shirt underneath to peek out.
See how the opening of the jacket lets the shirt underneath peek out? Just like the over skirt and underskirt!
The two lower front linings are cut about an inch narrower and shorter than the main fabric because I folded the corduroy flower print to the inside for a clean finish.
For the t-shirt, I used the back bodice pieces to create a simple block.
1. I scooped out the upper back pattern piece neckline by approximately 3/4" for the front of the t-shirt. The back is left the same. When you cut out the front and back, place the pattern piece on the fold of the fabric.
2. I eliminated the pleat on the lower back pattern piece and squared off the side.
3. I taped the upper and lower pattern pieces together, overlapping them by 1/2".
I didn't use binding for the neckline as I didn't have enough fabric. I simply turned under the neckline by 1/2" and stitched it with a double needle. The sleeves and hem are finished the same way.
photo credit: KMM
I mentioned in my reveal on Frances Suzanne that I thought the t-shirt would make a great sweatshirt...
And it certainly does!
To make this look, I scooped the front neckline another 1/2" since the sweatshirt fleece I used had no stretch. I then cut a 2" wide neckband from ribbing that is about 2 inches shorter than the neckline. I sewed the short ends together to make a circle and then folded the neckband in half lengthwise, wrong sides together, before sewing it on.
The cuffs are 3" wide and slightly shorter than the end of the sleeves. The hem band is 4" wide and also slightly shorter. They are both sewn on in the same manner as the neckband.
C'mon back on Sunday, as I'll be sharing how I flipped the skirts.:)
