Floral Mimi G Mermaid Maxi Skirt

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.  He was in the beginning with God.  All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.  In Him was life, and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth."

John 1:1-5, 14

     Hey everyone! I've been busy working on some sheath dresses lately & needed a mental break from all the muslin-making and fitting:p I purchased a mermaid maxi skirt tutorial awhile back from the fabulous Mimi Goodwin and had the urge to make one lately, especially since I joined an online sewing group she hosts.  I went to Fabricville Sunday afternoon to use a coupon (love those;) and asked one of the lovely sales associates if they still had any of this textured floral knit (polyester blend I'm pretty sure) left. It was from their Summer collection so it was tucked away in their back room, but the employee was kind enough to go hunt for it & yay, she found it! My husband and I watched a couple of episodes of Duck Dynasty after the kids were in bed & I still had time to cut and sew this skirt before I crashed for the night!! I met some friends the next morning & was excited to be able to wear it! Talk about instant gratification project! I may have cut too much off the bottom so I might leave it un-hemmed.

  Its been awhile since I've watched the tutorial and had to go from memory since I didn't save the link that came with it (my bad, I should probably email customer service:p). She shows you how to draft a pattern based on your measurements. I actually just took a fitted skirt pattern I had and used part of it and went from there, instead of starting from scratch. I used Nancy Zieman's method of applying elastic. I used a length of 1" non-roll elastic my waist measurement (butted the ends and zigzagged them together).

Elastic is attached at the top of the waist with a wide zigzag stitch (like in swimwear). 

Turn the elastic under once to form a casing & stitch in the ditch on the side seams. So easy!

      I admit I haven't really been huge on maxi skirts. I prefer shorter & more fitted skirts and dresses, but I really love this "mermaid" style.  I was pretty casual today with my ponytail & V neck t shirt, but I felt a little glamorous walking around in this!:) Even just grocery shopping, lol. I love how it swishes when I walk in it;) Mimi G is such a great teacher & she has sewalong videos on Youtube for most (or all) of her Simplicity pattern designs. She has other tutorials on her blog as well.

     Well thats all for today! I have to adjust the shoulders on one of my sheath dresses and finish the other (hopefully this week!). Anyone else try this tutorial? Do you have a favourite maxi skirt pattern? Or do you prefer shorter? Its so nice to throw in a truly "instant gratification project" now and then! I don't remember the last time I bought fabric and made something with it the same day! That has to be some kind of record for me, lol:)

Til next time sewing friends!:)

McCalls 7467

 "Beloved, while I was very diligent to write to you concerning our common salvation, I found it necessary to write to you exhorting you to contend earnestly for the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints.  For certain men have crept in unnoticed, who long ago were marked out for this condemnation, ungodly men, who turn the grace of our God into lewdness and deny the only Lord God and our Lord Jesus Christ."

Jude 1:3-4

Connect with me on instagram,  @ rikkiboneschansker:)

  Happy Saturday my friends!:) I can't believe its September already! My last post I mentioned that I wasn't ready to give up Summer sewing quite yet, but now I feel ready to transition into some Fall stuff. Yesterday the temperature was definitely Fall-like, even though its technically Summer for another couple of weeks. I went to Fabricville the other day and all their Fall collection is out on display. I picked up a couple of remnant pieces of a lovely soft Fall knit & I'm already thinking about what to make with it:) 

I finished this dress earlier in the week & started on my last Summer project of the season, my "European Holiday Dress" (because of the print, not that I'm heading on any vacation, lol).  More on that next post! Now back to the current project!

   
       The floral print is polyester-lycra knit from my stash. The black is a heavier scuba knit. Initially I cut out the pieces for view D. I just love the look with the funnel-type collar. The black fabric wasn't stretchy enough for this patten though (you'd think I'd have learned by now, :p). I cut black sleeves & the back of the dress in the scuba knit & cut the collar but it turned out too tight & the collar didn't look like the illustration at all! I was pretty bummed about that:/ I basted all the seams together but I didn't want to unpick the middle panel so I left the black front sides. I really like the contrast & it makes it appear more hour-glass (bonus!).

    I then cut out the sleeves in the floral but I didn't like how it looked, so I made it sleeveless, with arm & neck band. I used 1/4" elastic to gather the middle panel after trying to gather the usual way which was a total fail! Next time I'll try something else.  The elastic is very uncomfortable against my skin so I need to wear a full slip underneath, which is ok, I have one I really like.

       So that's it for me today! How about you all? Are you done with Summer sewing? Have most of you moved on to Fall wear? What are you working on or what plans do you have? I'd love to hear!:) I hope you all are doing great & enjoy day!