Plus Size Style and Fashion Blog
It’s Saturday (honestly, I’m mostly reminding myself these days) and that means it’s time for another one of my posts! And this week I’ve been back at my sewing table making this upcycled vintage skirt!
Happy Saturday, darlings! How are we all doing? So due to preparing for something exciting at Vendula London, I’ve had some time off! I’m a workaholic at times, and having some time off has been both a blessing and a curse. The main thing, though? I finally got the time to sit at my sewing machine and make something! And here is my hot-off-the-machine gingham 50s skirt!
I bring up my love for gingham on a weekly basis. My rule is Gingham in Summer, Tartan in Winter. But hey, I’m throwing my usual rules to the wall recently with some pencil skirts so why not gingham?! I’ve been idolising Brigitte Bardot a little bit, and this photo has had me all sorts of swooning. So hell, a few meters of my favourite 1inch gingham from Rolls and Rems in Holloway and a day at my sewing machine and I have my new favourite skirt!
If you’ve been reading my blog for a while, this skirt might look familiar. That’s because it’s the same dirndl style I used for the Can I Be A Raccoon Dog skirt, Strawberry Sundae skirt and All Hail The Gingham Queen skirt. What can I say, if I like something I’m going to have twenty versions!
These skirts are generally the easiest projects to make in the world. It’s as simple as pleating a length of fabric to a waistband and then adding a zip and pockets. This version has nothing that the others don’t, it’s fully lined in white cotton, deep pockets trimmed with ric-rac and has a centre back invisible zip.
The back isn’t my proudest moment of sewing, since it’s a bit skew-iff and sits kinda funny. I made the mistake of making it just a touch too small, oops!
The reason I love these dirndl skirts is because they’re just so easy to wear. Jumpers, cardigans, t-shirts, crop tops – they all look good with this skirt. And I’ve mentioned I’m going for a Melody-Casual sort of look these days, which means these suit me perfectly. Effortless dressing is what makes good style, right?
And finally, accessorise with Vendula London! I love this Biscuit Shop (sold out) Grab bag, the white colouring seemed a little less me than some other designs, but I use it so often! And doesn’t it just look great with gingham?
So what are your thoughts, guys? Would you like a tutorial to make your own version? Or maybe you’d like to commission your own if you don’t sew? Comment below!
Have a wonderful weekend darlings!
Scarf; Vintage | Earrings; Bow and Crossbones
Necklace; Vintage | Brooch; Luxulite
Bangles; Splendette | Top; Collectif
Skirt; Handmade | Shoes; Miss L Fire
Bag; Vendula London (Disclaimer)
Let me introduce you to one of my favourite things in the world – The Tanuki. Statues of him sit outside restaurants and gardens to gather wealth. He’s boss-eyed. He has a gigantic scrotum. So naturally, I have a Tanuki Print Skirt.
Tanuki make me so happy, it’s hard not to laugh as soon as I think of them. I MEAN LOOK AT IT. I came across the statue when I was having a hard time in Tokyo in February. He just cheered me up to no end with his ridiculous little face!
Now, if you’ve been to Japan or have an interest in Japanese culture you’ve probably seen this guy before. However, have you seen Tanuki print fabric before? I certainly hadn’t until now!
I picked this fabric up in the remnant section just outside Shinjuku’s Okadaya in February. They have this great system there, where remnants are divvy-ed up into 2mt lengths and each bundle is ¥980. So thats what, roughly £7? Buying fabric per meter in Japan isn’t the cheapest, so this is a great way to get some quality fabrics for a good price.
My eyes caught this cheeky little Tanuki fabric and I grabbed two bundles and ran to that till! My god, though, the quality of this fabric is to die for. It’s mid-weight, and the texture is one of my favourite parts of this fabric. Japan does not do crap quality fabrics!
We’ve seen before that I’m a massive fan of the dirndl. Recently I’ve found myself more inclined towards separates to create outfits, and dirndls are an easy way to make skirts. Essentially, it’s a length of fabric gathered or pleated to a waistband. That’s it! Something so simple, yet makes the most striking of garments.
This skirt isn’t rocket science and it won’t win technical competitions. But hey, it’s got everything I need in a skirt; huge patch pockets, a nice sweep, a hint of pom pom and it’s red. Oh, and giant-bollocked raccoon dogs, of course.
I decided to pair this outfit with my burgundy doctor bag from Vendula London – mainly because of the frame charms. The Shabby Chic charms are pretty amazing since you can actually take the backs off to fill the frames with whatever you want. My tip? Match your bag to any outfit by using scraps of fabric in them!
Bodysuit; Primark
Necklace; Topshop (ooold)
Bangles; Vintage
Bag; Vendula London (Disclaimer)
Shoes; New Look (old)
My last post was showcasing the amazing photos Florence Carousel Photography took of me in September. I’d mentioned we managed to squeeze two shoots into one evening, and this was the first of the two. It was also my favourite. I can’t even explain just how much I absolutely adore these images.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, Florence is such a talented photographer. You need to check out her main website and her other site, The Street Style Carousel to see just how wonderful she is at capturing style and beauty.
This outfit is possibly one of my absolute bests because it’s so matchymatchy and delicious.
This skirt is another dirndl that was made around the same time as the All Hail The Gingham Queen Skirt. just my favourite cotton gingham from Rolls and Rems in Holloway pleated onto a waistband. This one is lined in white cotton, has a centre-back zipper and gigantic patch pockets with ricrac trim.
It may be a simple skirt, but its effective!
Teamed with my original 60’s cross-stitch bag with strawberries and strawberry accents on my Miss L Fire Sundae shoes (from 2013) and a handmade strawberry necklace – I will happily say I’m horrendously matchy-matchy, but god, doesn’t it just WORK?
Hair Flowers: Lady Lucks Boutique
Earrings: Bow and Crossbones
Necklace: Handmade
Brooch: Luxulite
Top: Collectif
Skirt: Handmade
Bangles: Splendette and vintage
Bag: Vintage
Shoes: Miss L Fire
All photos are taken by and belong to Florence Carousel.
I don’t get to make stuff as much as I used to these days, I’ve been spending so much time doing that whole traveling to China and Japan thing, and trying to fit normal life in between has been hard enough! But I digress, as I’ve gone and made this adorable tartan circle skirt!
I picked it up the fabric from my favourite bargain bin at Rolls and Rems in Holloway. Probably about two years ago now I had the idea of a pinafore in mind as I was buying it, and into the stash it went.
And in true Melody fashion, I didn’t. I finished it in February. Typical, haha!
The construction is incredibly simple, It’s a circle skirt (as always, I use the By Hand London Circle Skirt App) with ginormous pockets that could fit a small human with a literal square of fabric for a bib and strips for straps. I stupidly didn’t take a photo, but the straps cross over the back.
BUT THAT’S NOT ALL!
The bib of the pinafore is REMOVABLE.
You heard me, I only went ahead and made something cute and functional. AND I can do a Clarke Kent style transformation from pinafore to skirt in seconds!
The bib attaches to the front of the waistband with four buttons and at the back with one button for each strap. An incredibly simple idea, but it’s proved to be a goodun’ for me, since I like a bit of choice.
There was a few hiccups with this skirt, though. Using cottons for most of my sewing life, I have never experienced an uneven hem that was particularly noticeable on a circle skirt, I’m guessing because it didn’t have the weight to it that this does. So it’s a bit longer at the sides than the front and back, and although it’s not horribly noticeable it ever so slightly grates on my nerves.
You might be able to guess from the above photo – I aligned the pockets to the pattern instead of the shape! Which means as a semi-circle the skirt sits wonderfully, but they slope when being worn. An easy fix, since they’re just patch pockets – but you guys know I’m so lazy I will never bother!
Scarf: Vintage
Top: Primark
Earrings: Bow and Crossbones
Necklace: Handmade
Brooch: Second hand, god knows what brand!
Belt: Primark
Bangles: Splendette
Shoes: Miss L Fire
Bag: Vintage
I’ve said before and I’ll say it again – I bloody love gingham. And this time, I’ve made a gingham midi skirt that I’m head over heels for!
This is the second in three items I’ve made recently in gingham, and yes, it’s exactly the same gingham from Rolls and Rems in Holloway as every other bloody gingham item on this blog.
But hell, when something works for you, it works for you, right?
Guess what idiot had her bag the wrong way around? THIS IDIOT!
I’ve got a bit of a gap in my wardrobe for skirts, which have become my favourite thing. I especially have gaps for items that dress up slightly more casual outfits. So I pleated up a length of gingham and made a skirt!
There’s so little to say about this skirt, it’s fully lined and has gigantic pockets I keep trying to fit the dog in – with a bit of tiny pompom trim across to make it a little bit more exciting than it really is. It’s a simple dirndl skirt, with three-inch box pleats instead of the traditional gathering.
It just so happens that the day I planned to shoot this skirt, the amazing Katy from Luxulite sent me the most amazing brooch and earring set – IT’S BLOODY GINGHAM. Can you think of any accessory better suited to my severe obsession than this? They’re absolutely gorgeous, and I can’t recommend Luxulite any higher than I already do.
Hair Flowers; Lady Luck’s Boutique
Necklace; Vintage
Brooch and Earrings; Luxulite
Top; Boohoo
Bag; Vendula London
Bangles; Splendette and Vintage
A while back when I was checking my local fabric shop I came across this cotton. It’s black and off-white striped and near enough to a canvas but without the crazy stiffness. I loved it. I loved it more when I realised there was a few meters on the remnant table! So what did I need? A striped circle skirt!
It was sat in my stash for possibly about a year without much thought. I’d wanted to create a cute/spooky sort of vibe with it for a while, but it didn’t happen. Until I had the flu and finally just sat the hell down and got on with it!
Now, you might ask why I thought it was necessary to mention I was ill when I was making this skirt. My dears, in my flu-high, I managed to cut the thing arse about face! I ended up with a centre back seam that was… well… a little fucked up. I dashed back to Rolls and Rems to source more fabric, but I was unsuccessful. In the end, I decided to take my scissors to my pattern pieces in a desperate attempt to salvage the project.
And damn, if that doesn’t look like a purposely-decided design feature, I don’t know what does!
So I should possibly explain. Since my skirt has side seam pockets and a centre back zip, I had a half-circle for the front and two quarter-circles for the back. 3/4ths of this skirt was perfect and matchy-matchy. Then that last quarter panel was pretty much an exact copy of the other, instead of a mirror. Boo.
So with a little bit of brainstorming and some help from Rosie, I decided to split by back panels into eighths and take off an eighth either side of the front panel and mix it all up so that the panels’ mixed directions look a little less like a mistake! My visual help looked like this, if you were somewhat confused.
Whew. That was wordy. Anyway. It worked out pretty nicely, I’d say! Even if I did mess up for a second time and accidentally switched around two panels (Points go to anyone who can spot my mistake ;D).
Literally the only other thing I dislike about this skirt is I made the holes to the pockets just a tad too small. That’s it!
Necklace&Brooch: Vintage(This sewing post was originally posted on Bourbon and Bras on 16 March 2013)
Is it “Dern-dill”?
Either way, I made one.
I like a dirndl skirt, it’s just a length of fabric gathered or pleated to the waist, and voila! Instant, voluminous skirt with endless possibilities!
