Amanda vs The Hollyburn Skirt

They always say that a good crafter should not blame their tools but themselves if something goes awry. Well here's the rub- I'm not a good crafter, I'm a sassy one. So when my first attempt at making a Hollyburn skirt failed epically I so blamed the corduroy that I used as a the problem. I mean, hello, that sucker just wasn't draping. Sure, it was my fault for picking it but really I feel the cord should have tried harder to drape when it was sewed up to make me happy. So attempt number one was filed away into hot mess territory and I had a second bash at making a Hollyburn but this time in a drapey fabric. And check me and my bad self out because this one is totes a winner!

Yup. That's a one way ticket to drape city! So let's take a moment to process the fact that I made something without a print. I know. This be cray-cray. Amanda without printed fabric is like a schnitzel without mushroom sauce or my phone without 5,274 pictures of my dogs. I'm not going to lie- this actually challenged me quite a bit. I felt extra pressure from myself to make sure everything lined up perfectly because there was no print to hide behind. And even more challenging was the addition of piping. For some reason the idea of piping a make has been terrifying me for ages so I was rather surprised with how stress free it was and also how well it turned out. I mean, check out the piping match on the back of this skirt. Straight as a ruler but far more awesome and pipe-y...

One thing I do want to mention is that I was inspired to make this pattern from a sewalong being held by the always lovely maker of rad clothes and fabulous sorbet Rachel from My Messings. And because I am also a bit of a lazy time-efficent lady I am so using this as well as my double sewing dare as provided by the sassy Gillian from Crafting A Rainbow. Gillian totes threw down sewing in a block colour and also trying piping. Three birds, one stone- I'm calling this a win... But I'm hyper-competitive with myself so I say why stop the shenanigans there? It was time to go even nuttier so I added an epic striped bias binding to the hem and then spent a few lunch hours catch stitching that sucker down good. Thank god I had to finish this before Thursday otherwise who knows where I would have gone next... Bedazzled pockets, a Victorian bustle, propellor wings. You know, the usual.

So let's talk about what worked with this pattern:

• The fit was nice and simple. Based on the adjustments I made with my Crescent Skirt I decided to trace the size down from what was suggested. And even with my ill fated corduroy make the skirt fit perfectly around the waist. It is super comfortable to sit in and the waistband lays flat when I'm standing. Win!
• I love the flow and drape of the skirt (once it is not a hot mess of cord). I just want to spend the whole time spinning around... If only I had a montage to show this...

Oh yeah. I totes went Rocky on you but with the added bonus of Pterdactyl arms. Yup. I went twirling dinosaur montage just for y'all. I montage because I care.

So what I would change for next time:

• I'd like to try the different lengths. I really like the look of the below the knee one for autumn/winter with tights and boots. Could be a winner.
• Tabs. I felt like it could verge into to much craziness happening with this skirt if I had piping and tabs with buttons on them. Who knows, it could have been the right kind of crazy. Or just plain old hot mess. I'm thinking tabs and I are going to be BFFs when I make a patterned version of this.

This skirt is just super cute and adorable and I must admit to being a little unsure on how to rock it. I mean, wearing this makes me want to skip through fields of flowers, hug puppies and ride a unicorn or something. Actually, that gives me an idea... 

Miss Bimble approves of this outfit. She also approves of your reading this post and commenting on her adorableness. Miss Bimble may be a little vain and fluffy but who am I to question her...