My New Favorite Skirt

I love my new skirt.  The skirt pattern and the design of the leaves is from the Alabama Chanin book "Alabama Stitch Style".  I first saw some of these designs on the blog of www.stitchedincolor.com and I was intrigued.  I have always loved hand stitching and applique so I decided I would like to try a simple skirt.    I really liked the leaf design and there was a stencil included in the book that I could use without having to cut my own. 

This is a close-up of the design.  The process involves using t-shirt fabric (new or recycled, mine is recycled) to stencil the design on, and then you layer black t-shirt fabric behind and stitch around the steciled paint design and then you cut out the center of the design.  This is actually like traditional reverse applique.  I love the designs and stitching, but I really don't like all the prep work of cutting and doing the stenciling first.  BTW, there are different samples in the book showing with or without knots and tails showing.  I decided to go with leaving the knots and tails on the outside.  At first I didn't like it, but they have kind of grown on me. 



I used a t-shirt but it started out light blue and I overdyed it with an indigo blue.  I used a turquoise blue paint for the stenciling, to give some contrast.  Then the background fabric is a black t-shirt.  All of the stitching is done with heavy button and craft thread (as recommended in the book).

The book puts together all of the panels of the skirt with hand stitching.  I opted to machine stitch the panels together with the seam allowances to the inside but then felled the seam allowance with hand stitching.  After I got the skirt done and wore it once I really wished it had a pocket.  Then I realized I had taken a pocket off the t shirt before I cut out the skirt, so I stitched the pocket on up at the waist with a blanket stitch, and it is the perfect size for my iphone or keys.  The skirt is also so comfy to wear. 

I already have plans to do another skirt, but haven't found the perfect t-shirts yet.  If you are interested in this style check out the website www.alabamachanin.com they have everything you need for diy or they have already made clothes which are pricey but are also great for inspiration.