baby skirts!

I have a confession to make.  Um, I live in my pajamas.  Seriously.  I'm in them right now, and it's after noon.  After I shower, I just put on another clean pair of pj's, unless I'm going out.  And by out I don't mean to the yard or the mailbox, or the neighbor's house to let the dogs outside during the day.  I mean I'm getting in the car and heading somewhere.  There's no exception to this, except major holidays like Christmas and Easter, and not even always then.  I've been living this way for years now.  It's awesome.  

I pretty much don't dress Lila in "street clothes" either, unless we're going out.  But now that I've made a few of these skirts, I find myself actually wanting to put daytime clothing on the child.  During the day.  Even if we're not going out.  Yes!  That's how infatuated I am with these cuties.  My original "inspiration" skirt was a sweet find at a thrift store, before she was even born.  You can see her wearing it below - and OMG, I'm wearing street clothes, and I'm not in town!  It must be Easter.  Yes, that's from my Easter post.  Okay then.

So I liked that skirt so much that I made a sort of copycat, which you can see (not very well) in the photo below.  It's the only, and therefore the best, pic I have of her in it.  Sewing that skirt was a learning process for me, and it didn't turn out quite like I'd wanted.  But it's still cute on the girl.

And I've since made the two skirts you saw at the beginning of this post, one with gathers (which I adore) and one with pleats.  And just how cute is that mushroom fabric?  Too, that's how.  It's called "willow shroom" and it's by the Alexander Henry Fabrics Collection, 2009.  I think I picked it up at the Atlanta Sewing and Quilt Expo this spring.  As long as we're on the subject, the orange skirt is shot cotton by Kaffe Fassett.  Pictures cannot do it justice.  It's just so beautiful, soft, lightweight, and the colors!  Oh my.  You've seen me feature his shot cottons before, and you'll see them again, I'm sure.

Since my good friend Melissa requested that I make a tutorial for this skirt, well, I up and did!  Originally I was going to just do the pleated version, but then I made a gathered one for giggles, and liked it even more.  So you get both.  But you're gonna have to wait.  Not too long.  I've completed most of the tutorial, and I just need to find the time to put it all together with pictures and whatnot.  I expect to have it up sometime next week, with plenty of warm summer weather left.  Though I'm totally using the shroom skirt this fall and winter.  I'll just pair it with leggings.

The skirt will also come in two sizes - 12-18M and 2-3T, and can be made with or without pockets.  Plus the pockets can be square, U shaped, or whatever your heart desires.  So lot's of possibilities.  Okay, on to the action shots:

It was so hard to get pictures with the pockets showing.  So hard.  I mean this child just WILL NOT take direction.  Can you believe it?  It's like she has her own agenda or something.  Play, play play, all day long.  

Girl's looking a little wild in these pics.  I think because she needs her bangs trimmed.  I've done that once already, and she's not even a year old yet.  Do you know what I used?  Dog hair trimmers from Petsmart.  Bought them just for her.  They're perfect for the job.  What does that have to do with skirts?  Nothing. 

So be on the lookout for the tutorial!  I'm kinda excited about it, because I really am in love with the look of these skirts, and so wish to see them populate the Earth.

Best Wishes,

Teresa