Sewing Machines and Sew Forth: White Denim Wrap Skirt

The skirt and the butternut squash plant look great

My first go-around with this Simplicity 8699 pattern was last fall. I used a lightweight denim and have liked almost everything about how the skirt has worn this summer. The only quibble I had with the pattern is that there were no pockets. This is understandable though, given that it is a wrap skirt, and I don't think that has actually deterred me from wearing it regularly. Earlier this spring I was gifted 1 1/4 yards of white denim from my brother's mother-in-law, Lillian, when she was cleaning out her stash. I first toyed with the idea of making shorts, but eventually decided that I would probably wear a white skirt more often than white shorts.

White denim

I used the same view D as last fall and the only minimal changes I made were to the lining for the front flaps and the buttons. When cutting, I put the pieces that fold over to be the linings for the front right and left edges on the selvedge. That way I didn't have to finish the inside edges.

Selvedge along the left side will the finished edge of flap

There are only five pattern pieces for the fabric and four for the interfacing so the cutting proceeded smoothly. My earlier time-saving strategy of employing the selvedge, a good idea, was balanced out when I managed to iron the interfacing on the wrong sides of the left and right waistband pieces, a not-so-good idea. Now on the inside of the skirt the interfacing shows on the band. It's the same white as the fabric though and only visible when I'm not wearing the skirt, so I didn't bother to recut new pieces. I wonder if that will hold up in the wash?

The buttons are from one of the sewing boxes that accompanied the treadle sewing machine Willie and Janyce delivered earlier in July. The machine originally belonged to Janyce's grandmother and has been passed along in the family for a few generations. I don't know how old these buttons are or when they joined the collection, but they were perfect for the skirt. The buttons needed a larger buttonhole than I have made before though, so I had to read the instruction manual for adjusting the buttonhole attachment on the Singer 201. After several trial runs I felt confident in maneuvering the buttonholer mid-buttonhole to create holes of a consistent size. Button placement took awhile as I did not use the template suggested in the pattern. I wanted to use all five buttons but not fasten the whole flap closed.

Placing and marking buttons

I'm sure there's a better way to do this, but here's what I came up with for reinforcing the back of the buttons. They're a bit heavy and I didn't want them to tear through the fabric. The layers of little white squares remind me of trying to cover a shaving nick with tissue. Fortunately, none of this is visible when the skirt is being worn.

Reinforcing the buttons

Lastly, I put a hook and eye on the inside of the waistband above the dart on the right. This will help keep the lower flap from hanging below the waistband and take some of the stress off the buttonholes.
Pictures were taken on a sunny day in the garden. When I went to look for a top to complete the outfit, I found this white t-shirt at the top of the pile. It's one that I made while while trying to get the perfect fitting t-shirt. After seeing pictures I think all white is a bit much, so I'll probably wear a shirt with some color for future outings.