ADJUSTING SKIRT LENGTH VIA WAIST TWEAKS

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2014

Remember that wedding I attended recently?

This is the skirt I wore.

It's leopard and feisty hahaha.
I'm ok with feisty as long as it's classy.

I wanted to wear something I hadn't already worn
but also didn't want to go buy something.
I thought I'd try the skirt I purchased months ago,
on line and at the time, in the wrong size.
BOO.
And not just because of the length :/

It's hard to gauge what you'll look like months after having
a child. 
Whether you'll have any well fitting clothes,
have to keep wearing the tummy band or maternity wear,
be in between sizes,
etc,etc.

But I'm happy to say the skirt I shunned;
 threw to the back of my closet;
was finally on better terms with me
and much gentler to my body.
And with 2 slips on,
 I was able to get enough coverage & some distance from the actual skirt,
saving me from the lumpy pillow look.
Eek, haha
I'm serious.

//////////


Before I get to that though,
here's a bit about the couple
(with permission)
I got to watch say 'I Do'.

Why?
Because they're so stinkin' cute
 and I love them :)

A + J

Shreeve Photography
 Crystal Shreeve FB

Aren't they a gorgeous couple?

 They'll make beautiful babies one day :)

Each wedding we've been to, 
has been special for many reasons.
The common one being, that its been for one of our old youth group students 
or discipleship student we've housed.

(can't believe we're that old)

In this case, both bride and groom had been discipleship students,
with J being our "son" for a while.

We've known him since he was a teen, have watched him grow,

enter discipleship, be one of our hosted kids,

go through internship, work hard, serve, lead an outreach ministry,
court his beautiful bride to be,
find out that she was in fact 'the one',

 to finally saying "I do" in front of hundreds!

borrowed from A

A is one special young lady as well. 

She's got a huge heart,

a smile to match, amazing talent, a passion for missions and hurting people

and guess what?
She married her best friend.

borrowed from A

It's the way to go people,
it's the way to go.

We were blessed to watch this union
and everything wonderful to come.

//////////

Now for my redo.

BEFORE

Aside from not fitting me properly,

the length and the waist were my other issues.

My tummy is still a problem area for me,

so I desperately needed to change out the elastic in the waist.

/////

Let me explain why,

which ALSO applies to anyone with extra "padding"

on their back.

 -Not backside, I'll get to that next-

If you have some bulginess,

waist or back

 it is best to find WELL FITTING:

undergarments,

slips,

jeans,

skirts,

belts,

bras,

that will sit across that problem area,

NOT above or below because that accentuates it more.

It creates a dividing line of sorts, distributes the "bulge"

and creates the illusion of a flatter area.

I KNOW, I've been "illusioning" for years lol

NOW for the backside,

if you have a well endowed bottom,

the OPPOSITE applies, in regards to the seat area.

Depending on the type of undergarment you choose, 

make certain it is not tight,

or you will be creating dividing lines in awkward places.

I've seen too many times where a woman has

"double buns".

You know, the portion above the underwear line

and the portion under it.

Even if you DON'T want to minimize your bottom,

you at least want to create a smooth area.

/////

In my case, the elastic was not wide enough.

Instead of removing length from the bottom,

I removed from the top so that I could also switch out the elastic.

After trying it on I needed to remove about 6 in.

I used regular chalk, marked the best I could

and pinned.

L. I then cut 1 in. short of my measurements: at the 5 in. mark.
R. Old elastic (1 in.)which I'll save for later and the new elastic(1.5 in).
It's technically undergarment elastic but all I had in a wide width.

FYI  I used the width of the old elastic as a guide + added 2 in. for overlapping.

Sear ends with flame, overlapped 1 in.
and sewed a rectangle, back-stitching a few times.

Here's my overly explained photo :)

Turn skirt inside out.
1. I pinned the elastic seam to the back seam of the skirt, directly across on the front side and then the side seams (4 pins).
2. I then pinned between those 4 spots (1/8 sections) by finding each new middle,
extending elastic to one direction and the skirt the opposite way, 
3. Met those two spots and pinned.
4. I continued until there were 16 mini sections.

I used stitch #2 to attach the elastic to the skirt.

I didn't show it here but I prefer to remove pin,
lower needle into elastic BEFORE stretching.

Pick a spot, remove pin, hold both firmly and extend

as you sew.

Stop at next pin with needle in fabric, remove pin and repeat.

You're working in small sections, allowing you better control 

and even distribution of the fabric and elastic.

Not perfect but works.

The elastic before was just folded over from this point,

providing a seamless look.

I'm forgoing the seamless look and sewing the elastic down one more time.

If you do a better job than I did above,

you can leave as is.
Otherwise, follow the next few steps.

1. Leave skirt inside out, fold waist down/out and begin to pin 1/4 sections as before.

2. Pin 1/8 sections. 

You may continue to pin 1/16 sections but isn't necessary.

3. Follow the sewing instructions as before and sew close to the edge.

I have trouble getting a good seem when sewing inside out

so I'm forced to sew on the outside/correct side.

That's it!

New waist

And my wedding attire!

Sleeveless blouse:Old Navy sale/ Grey camisole:old/
Earrings(3 pack) + necklace: Old Navy/ Leopard skirt: Secret Catch Via Jane.com/
(much cheaper through Jane.com!)
Elastic belt + heels: thrifted/ bangles: gift.

Like the high-low skirt? Go here

So, what do you think?

I prefer this length much better.