Fabric:   Orange cotton gabardine, 1 metre, from Independencia, Santiago

Cotton astrological print from Casa Olivari on Catedral, Santiago

Notions: 6 vintage buttons, San Telmo market, Buenos Aires

Grey contrast thread

Pattern: Self drafted

Those were the days... of A-line skirts and bad cardigans

I toyed with naming this the Corey skirt after Corey from Empire Records, mainly because it makes me want to be really good at maths but also a speed addict and a bit of a wet blanket.

Not really, it just reminds me of that youthful nineties vibe. I used to have cycling shorts and t-shirt sets in lime green and orange. Hopefully it distracted onlookers from what else was going on sartorially, probably by blinding them.

When it finally got made it started to say 2001: A Space Odyssey or possibly Heather Graham in Austin Powers to me. So I called it the Ice Pop. Logic, eh?

Construction notes:

All of my self drafted patterns end up slightly large on me. I suppose I am used to squeezing myself into clothes that don’t really fit, as I mainly survive on clothes from England three years ago, when I was more svelte, and Chilean clothes, which are intended for the petite local ladies with giant boobs. Snugger clothes also hold the flesh in a bit, which is not necessarily a bad thing.

In conclusion, I think I need to take a couple of centimetres off my measurements to get a more streamlined effect. However, if I continue failing to prewash my fabrics perhaps it’s just as well that my patterns have too much ease…

In making this skirt I learnt exciting things about blind hem stitch, slipstitch, and buttonholes, which I intend to share in future blogs whether you like it or not.

I am particularly fond of the contrast waistband and pocket lining. It’s all in the details, man.

The fabric behind is some velvet devore type stuff I used to make a simple throw for our bed. It was pretty pricy, and I’m not sure it’s washable… ooops.