Pattern Drafting – Project #1 Complete!

So the silk I bought for the skirt is pretty cinematic, right? (second photo)

With the help of the lovely Kristiann at The Workroom, I was able to finish the skirt I drafted this summer – so awesome. It’s a split tulip skirt and let me tell you, it was a lot of work. The fabric was easy to work with, but a little sheer. I used silk for the drape, and also because I would probably make everything out of silk given the choice. But as I had a bit of a Lady Di sheer skirt, backlit experience at Fashion Week back in March (don’t ask), creating a lining was important. Since lining the front wasn’t much of an option, I created a lining for the back panel only, which did the job of helping reduce the amount of light passing through the fabric.

The waistband was probably the most time-consuming. First I drafted a curved band that when straightened, was supposed to undulate elegantly. But it ended up looking a bit weak. So then I redrafted, adding knife pleats, which gave it more Valentino-like ruffles I thought.

In the end I was so happy to have it sewn together that I didn’t get a chance to iron the hem before the photoshoot, hence the wavy and flipped over a bit front panel in the last picture. But overall, pretty good for a first try at pattern drafting, right?