Sewing it all up

Day 5

After yesterday’s disappointment I am about ready to give up on this project altogether. I am a bit dejected but I decide to forge on for one more day. I have decided to give up the idea of the dress and just turn the bottom half into a nice summer skirt. I consult my mother and review the construction of a skirt I already own and determine that I don’t really need a waistband if I add some interfacing to the top of the lining.

The lining and the interface come together well enough, and I start sewing the main fabric together and I become convinced that it is cut out backward. (The side of the fabric that is printed is cut to face inward instead of outward.) The difference between the front and back of the fabric I bought is very subtle, and it appears I screwed up.

This is the last straw in my mind. I throw the skirt in a heap in the corner and go play with my daughter.

After a few hours to cool down I start second guessing myself, surely if the thing had been cut out incorrectly I would have noticed by now. I have sewn and tried on the damn thing at least twice. I go look again, and realize I was wrong. I didn’t cut out the stupid little triangles on one side, but they are supposed to be on both sides. All will be ok.

The remaining construction goes well. The skirt is sewn; the lining is sewn to the skirt. I have to stop and dig for my sewing machine manual to figure out which foot is the zipper foot, how to attach it and how to use it, but once the manual is located all is well. My daughter and my neighbor (who knocked just while I was trying the finished product on) both have nothing but compliments. I am victorious.

Will I be sewing clothes for myself after this experience? Honestly, I don’t know. The skirt does fit like a dream and is cute. But the whole thing was a rollercoaster and may have cost me more in time and money than just buying something would. I guess I will have to see how much I use the new skirt this summer. I doubt I will take on a dress again anytime soon, but definitely pajamas and easier separates are not out of the question.