32 Things: 2nd Eyelet Skirt, Maybe Not so Good. Oh, and a Shirt

Two stories for you today.

Story 1: The skirt.

Sorry the picture is so bad. 

 Again from my sister-in-law.  This is a very full (or would you say wide??) a-line skirt from Bananananana Republic.  Of course, it's a 6 and I am (ahem) not a 6, so I can't really wear it without some muffin-top action going on unless I hike it up over my belly button.  Neither are good, right?  So I did what any girl would do.  I cut it apart and made a different skirt!

I like an a-line that wants to be a pencil skirt, so I cut off the little waist band and cut the skirt apart.  I made the a-line less of an "A" and cut a wide waistband.  I used one of my Simplicity patterns for this, but I can't remember which one.  It wasn't this one, but the waistband was pretty much the same.  I like wider waistbands like these because I feel like they give a nice, flat line on the front of the skirt around my belly pooch and who doesn't want that?

Anyway, I sewed it back together and all was right in the world until I got to the stupid invisible zipper.  I've had great success with my invisible zippers in the past, so I guess I got a little too cocky with this one.  It was not good.  The bottom of the zipper kept poofing out giving me some wonky saddlebag on that side only, and no matter what I did I could not get it to lay straight.  I blame this on my shoddy cutting of the skirt along with my crap-tastic installation of that cursed zipper.  I made it work, but it's not great.  The pictures don't really do the crappiness justice, though it could just be me looking at this skirt through swear-filled, blood-red colored glasses.  You know how when you make something and you see every single flaw because you put the damn thing together and you know it's just looking at you with a smug look on its stupid face because it has defeated you, but no one else sees the flaws and then they maybe think you're crazy when you say how ugly the thing is?  Yeah, this is maybe one of those instances.  Maybe.

Story 2: The top.
A couple of years ago, I made this dress:

It was one of the first projects I made in what has now become my constant sewing escapade.  At the time I made that dress, it was probably one of maybe five items I made in a year.  Now, I make five items a month because I'm obsessed with sewing.  Drives my poor husband crazy, let me tell you.

Anyway, because it was one of the first garments I had made for a while, the fit was meh.  Not good.  Not bad, but not as good as I was hoping.  Plus it ended up falling apart at the seams after only a few washes.  I couldn't really wear it, but I didn't want to toss it.  The fabric is a lovely, navy-blue linen that I got from Michael Levine in LA's Garment District for $5/yard.

Let me repeat.  I spent FIVE DOLLARS A YARD.  This is waaaaaaaaaay more than I am willing to spend anymore because I am so, so cheap, but I used to just throw caution to the wind!  Five dollars a yard?  No big deal!  Oh, how times have changed.  I pinch a penny until Lincoln screams these days.

Anyway, I couldn't get rid of the dress, so I cut it apart and made this tunic:

I made the two pieces to coordinate, but I think I gathered the tunic too much and it now has too much volume to wear on the outside of the skirt, or tucked in like so:

It looks cute with my white shorts, though.  I guess I'll just have to make another top to go with this skirt.  Oh, however will I manage?  ;)

xoxo,