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Monday, March 2, 2015

Once Upon a Skirt

Once Upon a Time is, hands down, my favorite show. If you've never seen it, it's basically the story of all the famous fairy tale characters cursed to live their lives trapped in our world, the "land without magic." It's full of true love and heartache, good and evil, princesses and pirates, and some of the most stunning costumes I've ever seen. So, in honor of its winter premiere last night, I want to share a project that was a long time in the making.

Back in season two, Belle (yes, as in Beauty and the Beast) wore this skirt and I loved it as soon as I saw it and knew that I had to have something like it.

This project wasn't at the top of my list, so I worked slowly over the next few months, planning it out and hoping that I would happen across the fabric. After compiling and analyzing images of the skirt, I settled on a 3/4 circle skirt with about a 2" waistband.



One of my favorite details about the skirt is that it isn't hemmed. Instead, it's left to fray with a line of thread about an inch above the bottom to keep it from unraveling too much.

Source

In researching it online, I came across two exact matches on WornOnTv and read that it was lined with yellow fabric. I couldn't find any pictures of it, but I could catch a few glimpses of it during the show and in gifs.


So when I came across a cut of this fabric in a second-hand shop for $3 I was ready to start sewing. It was remarkably similar to Belle's, only slightly more blue. Unfortunately, when I got it home and unrolled it I found that there was hardly anything there. Less than a yard, in all.

So I spent a few days marking out my measurement with pins, taking it all out and readjusting to try to get enough out of it. I kept trying to get it all cut in two to three pieces, but it wouldn't all fit onto the fabric. I shelved the project for a few more weeks, wanting to wait until I'd drafted a paper pattern that I could cut up and piece together as needed.


But before I got around to it I found this pattern on sale for $1 at Joann's; just the thing I was needing.


I was just able to cut out all that I needed. I had to make one piece into two parts (making a 5-piece skirt instead of 3-) and cut the waistband out in three parts, but it worked out in the end.




I dug out some blue fabric left over from a project from a few years ago to line it with. It hangs loose, a couple inches shorter than the outer layer, and makes a rather lovely swishing sound when I move.


Final Product:

Front                                                 Side

Back                                                 Lining


It closes with a zipper at center back and two hooks-and-eyes on the waistband. I had to help the fraying hem along a little, pulling the strings carefully apart around the circumference, but it is still one of my favorite things about the skirt.

I finished it back in the last few weeks of January and have worn it several times since. It's definitely one of my favorite pieces to wear.

Have you ever made anything inspired by a television show? How did it turn out?

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