Burda Style 03/2012 - 128 Skirt

Well the sun that I was so excited to see last week has gone and it is now raining and chilly!  I'm soldiering on with summer sewing regardless.

I thought this skirt in the March 2012 issue of Burda was really interesting, although I rarely wear skirts with a tucked in top (I don't know why when I am happy to wear a dress?) so a bit of wardrobe experimentation will be required.  Still even just a few years ago I had never worn a shift dress and now, as you no doubt already know,  I love them so a bit of a shake up might be a good thing.

Here's the pattern per Burda

This is my muslin version (hence no pockets) and I liked it enough to stick a zip in and finish the edges to make it wearable, but I think it would work much better in something more drapy and weightier (but not bulkier) than my crazy raspberry hawaii print lightweight cotton.  This version will be fine for very casual hot days, or for beach holidays (I have one booked for May, yay!), but I think I'll make a more sophisticated version for city wear.

Waistband close up

Back view

I often buy cotton like this when I see it at the market to use as muslin if nothing plain is available cheaply.  Speaking of the market Nancy K asked if I could speak Cantonese and the answer, embarrassingly after 11 years here, is no not really, just the absolute basics.  This is usually enough and like markets anywhere in the world you can go a long way with fingers and a calculator.  Some of the stallholders have more than one stall or sit out the back drinking tea and playing mahjong and just leave a notice with their mobile number on to call if you want to buy anything.  Not sure my Cantonese is up to that so I tend to only go to the manned stalls - the market is pretty big so in a way this makes it a bit less overwhelming.

Worn here with the Jalie empire T I made recently.  It looks black here but actually picks up the wine colour in the skirt. Try and imagine sun, palm trees and blue skies....

If you decide to make this, in addition to choosing the fabric carefully, here are some tips;

This pattern has an unusual shaped front and I found it really useful to write "top" and "side seam" on my traced pieces (they are marked on the pattern).  The instructions are actually OK in that they worked, but I think one step in the instructions is wrong.  About 2/3 into paragraph 2 Burda says;

"Pull integrated yoke of left front skirt panel out from inside, through opening in right side seam..."

The opening is actually in the centre front seam.  Once the front is in one piece it is just like any basic skirt pattern so I didn't use the instructions at all after that.

I think this could work in a jersey without the zip.  I know there is a similar jersey skirt in the same magazine (#118) but it is just made from a rectangle of fabric which just sounds too easy to look good.  Has anyone tried it?