Monday, August 21, 2017

Sew Much Fun blog hop - Back to School

The Stripwork Skirt- A great back to school project









Do you sew for your kids or grandkids? I do. Mostly for my grandkids, but there are times I sew for my big kids. Why do I do this? There are a few reasons. 1 is that I can get a better fit. My granddaughters are tall and skinny. To get the right length on a dress, they seem to fall of the shoulders. They also love the things that grandma makes.

Today I want to share a fun and easy to make skirt with you.  A few years ago, I was doing a shop hop with my daughters and granddaughters.  We found this really cute pattern at one of the stores.  Well, grandma decided she needed to make it. The pattern is by Pink Fig Designs and is called The Stripwork Skirt.





  The first one  I didn't make with as many strips as you are supposed to do. It is still cute, but not as full.  You can tell it has been  worn a lot.


The first of these skirts I made. This one I used only half the panels. 





 Well the granddaughter I made it for outgrew it and reluctantly passed it on to her little sister. It is getting too small for little sister, but she puts leggings under it. Now, the best thing about this pattern, is it is cut in rectangles.  So it is easy to lengthen.  You have probably noticed that your kids grow straight up faster than growing wide. This skirt is easy to lengthen, you just cut the strips in the body of the skirt a bit longer, you can cut the hemband a bit longer as well as the waistband. 




I like having more panels in the s

I don't have lace. Darn. I guess I need to go visit a daughter, because there is a shop I like that sells lace for a really good price, and the shop is close to both daughters and a son and daughter in law.  Or I just have them buy me the lace. I think adding lace to the bottom would look so cute.  



I have  been looking for this pattern, to be able to tell you where you might be able to buy it, and it sounds like it is out of print. I found a website with a pdf download, but I haven'the gotten a response that they are still in business. However  for this pattern, they have the chart that shows you how big to cut everything, so I will give you the link www.whimsicaldesignsclothing.com  go to pdf patterns and then click on Pink Fig Design, and just scroll down till you find it.  You can find the size chart on any of the patterns.  This next site has a really good tutorial  http://www.mothergingermama.com/p/stripwork-skirt-tutorial.html




I tried the skirt on both granddaughters and it looked cute. For the older one, I will not fold up the hem band, but I will do a small narrow hem and will add some lace. I hope by the end of the week, I will have a few outfits done, and I will share here  Facebook, and Instagram, so please stay tuned. 

I will also be making a cute t-shirt that she can wear with this. Maybe I will also make a cute button down shirt. Yes, I could just buy some clothes for them, but I enjoy sewing. I can use fabrics they like and fabrics I like. 

Is it less expensive to sew? I don't know. I don't buy a lot of clothes for my grandkids. What I do to make it less expensive is watch for sales. I buy patterns on sale and I buy fabric on sale. But, I dare say the quality is much better in handmade. I grew up with handmade clothes.  My mom sewed a bit for us, but I have an aunt that is amazing. I loved getting my cousins hand me downs. 

I have quite a few things I want to make. Do you remember the Daisy Kingdom patterns from the 80's?  I loved those patterns. I made some of those dresses for my girls.   I found some of those patterns at a thrift store. They are in my filing cabinet waiting for me to stitch them up.

I love your comments, so please feel free to share. What are you sewing right now?

17 comments:

  1. Nice to meet you, Kathy -- via the Martingale blog hop for Christa's new book. I used to sew most of my clothes but nowadays I'd rather make quilts. No alterations needed! (In case the urge to sew a garment strikes I have several bins of fashion fabric on hand.)

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    1. Nann,

      I too love to do quilts. I really love all kinds of sewing. Sorry it took a while to respond. Things have been crazy.

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  2. Very sweet skirts! I used to make my clothes, but not so much. I have a son, and so did some sewing for him early in his life, not so much now at 23!

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    1. Kathleen,

      I don'the know why, but as they get older, they decide we can'talk sew for them.

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  3. OH, these are sew cute! I might have to sew some up for my granddaughter. Thanks for sharing.

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    1. You really should try some of these. They are so easy.

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  4. I'm glad my daughter is in bed right now because if she saw this skirt, she would probably ask me to make her one (or two or three). Maybe as it gets a bit warmer - still winter over here and I tend to sew more in the warmer weather. I love the colours you chose. Beautiful!

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    1. Carissa,

      You will need to make some. Sorry I took a while to reply. Work has been nuts, in addition to other things I have been doing.

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  5. Cute skirt. Like you I do sew for my grandchildren. Good question..is it cheaper? Daisy Kingdom oh yes I do remember and I'm looking for my patterns now. Thank you for sharing.
    schimmel(dot)db(at)gmail(dot)com

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    1. Diane,

      This is a fun one. Hope you find your Daisy Kingdom patterns. I sent the skirt to work with my hubby, as it takes about 15 minutes for them to get to grandpa's work. My granddaughter called me, and was very excited to thank me.

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  6. Looks like fun! Thsnks for sharing

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  7. Wpw I remember Daisy Kingdom! My mother in law used to make dresses from Daisy Kingdom for my daughter. About a 1000 pieces but oh so lovely. Thanks for sharing your skirt on Wednesday Wait loss.

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  8. Love this skirt and so does my daughter!

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  9. This looks like a great project to use up all those scraps! I mainly sew for my boys and I love it. It's sew much fun to sew for little ones!

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  10. Very cute! I love to sew for my girls too and they would absolutely love this. I'll have to check it out..thank you!

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  11. I sew for my little guy,sometimes. It is so rewarding when they love it, but kinda sad that they grow out of them so quickly. I know many little girls that would be very happy to wear skirts like these.

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