Alabama Chanin Daisy Stenciled Mid-length Skirt

Storm blue, twilight, black, navy, slate ~ this color palette spoke to me. I knew it would make a lovely, versatile garment; and I liked the idea of a new, longer skirt. I'm fairly short, so the mid-length skirt pattern from Alabama Chanin was perfect for a warmer, winter skirt in these most delicious colors.

Earlier this year I set about making up seven "kits" to keep me stitching through the year and into 2019. You can read more about that here. I used Alabama Chanin 100% organic domestic cotton jersey fabric in storm blue and twilight. The stencil is Daisy.  Coats and Clark button craft thread in slate and navy were used for sewing the running stitch and also for construction. I used embroidery floss for embellishing with the satin stitch, feather stitch and accent knots.

I felled the outside facing seams open so that I could see more of the twilight color, making it almost like a stripe down the seams.

At first I stitched tiny "x's" on the seams. I wasn't happy with the way that was looking, so I went back in and added another stitch to make them look more like snowflakes. It lends a slightly nordic feel to the garment.

There are a variety of things going on with this skirt design, so I like the straight lines of the snowflakes and the parallel stitch used to attach the fold-over elastic waistband.

Here is my method of attaching foldover elastic to the waistband. Put the elastic very snugly around your waist, add about 3/4", and cut. I've learned over the years to make the elastic more snug than loose. You don't want the elastic flopping over and your skirt constantly slipping down. I then put a pin about 3/4" from one end of the elastic: Fold the elastic in half at the 3/4" pin and put another pin there: Fold it into quarters and put a pin at each quarter. It will look like this.

If your seams are equidistant, the pins will match up with each seam. Pin the elastic at each seam, overlapping the ending edge about 3/4".

Next, fold the elastic over the raw edge of the waist so the raw edges of the fabric are snugged all the way up into the fold of the elastic. Stretch the elastic to fit the waist, easing each section, and pin.

Baste the elastic onto the waistband and remove the pins. If you try to stitch the waistband on without basting and removing the pins, your thread will constantly catch on the pins and make the final stitching really frustrating. (Trust me!)

Use a stretch stitch with a single strand of buttoncraft thread  to secure the waistband. I used the parallel stitch. You might also try the cretan stitch or the rosebud stitch, among others. Take out your basting thread.

I wanted this skirt to be thicker, heavier weight for warmer winter wear, so I used the reverse applique technique instead of negative reverse applique. You can see below, the right-hand side panel is stitched but not cut, and on the left-hand side the elements have been cut.

I used a loose satin stitch, the feather stitch, and knots with tails to embellish this skirt. I wish the colors were more true on the screen, but my photos just don't do the rich colorway justice. It's beautiful and will match with so many things in my closet.

On the photo above I've placed the seams differently than on the photo below. This skirt is very adaptable, and I know I'll get a lot of wear out of it all seasons of the year.

Thanks for joining me here and reading my blog. I'd love to hear from you. If you ever have any questions,  please reach out as I enjoy helping when I can.