Introducing the Ladies Explorer Skirt!

She’s arriving November 12, are you ready?

Some things you should know about her.  A knee-ish length – I say ‘ish’ cause if you’re tall she’s probably going to be short, and if you’re short, she’s probably going to be long.  But given you’ve been tall or short for a while now, I guess you’d be used to that by now?  Like, I’ve never, in my life, ever, bought a pair of jeans that I didn’t have to take up.  But you can extend her length or chop her off to suit.  She’s pretty easy and fuss free like that.

She has a flat waistband front, 2 pocket options – curved or straight, and my favourite, a gathered elasticised back waistband.  A gathered waistband obviously means there’s going to be more fabric in the back than there is in the front which makes it super comfy and roomy, and the elasticised waistband makes it an easy fit and easy wear wardrobe staple.

You gotta gotta gotta make sure you take your proper measurements before choosing a size and cutting your fabric.  Don’t assume you know what size you should be according to what size you usually are.  If in doubt or if you are right on the cusp of a size, go down.  There’s plenty of room and give in the skirt to be forgiving.  None of the testers reported the skirt being too small, if there was a problem with sizing it was because it was too big.

Some of you have let me know that you really don’t like overlocked edges, either because you don’t have one or you just don’t like them, so in this pattern the seam allowance has been included so you can choose a narrow French seam or an overlocked seam.  The skirt also has a separate waistband, so those two things combined mean you need to be aware of your seam allowance, otherwise you’re going to end up with a waistband that doesn’t quite fit and you’ll be making good friends with your quick unpick. Don’t let any of this scare you or stop you from using the pattern, I just want to give you the heads up that while it’s a simple and fairly quick pattern, it’ll pay to take your time.

Something to keep in mind: Just like not all clothes suit all body shapes and types, not all patterns will suit all body shapes and types.  I feel that this pattern is a perfect all rounder, with a flattering wide flat front waistband, generous fit and an elasticised back waist band that is not only comfy but means you can tailor the waist to fit you perfectly, but you and I both know that doesn’t mean it’s going to fit everyone exactly the same.  You could be the exact same measurements as someone else and the skirt will fit you both differently.  Maybe one set of hips are wider and one bottom a bit rounder.  Those two skirts are going to look very different.

Why am I pointing this out?

My aim of this skirt was to create a pattern that would be comfy, easy to make, quickish to sew, and have the best chance of fitting the most people in the most size ranges.  You know your body type, you know your shape and you hopefully know what suits you best, what is most flattering and what is comfy for you.  (Dresses.  I’ve never worn a dress.  Ok, no, I’m pretty sure my mum has a handful of photos of 3, 4, 5 year old me wearing dresses, but me and dresses?  No.  NO.)  If this skirt is not for you, then that’s ok, this skirt is not for you.  There will be others that are.  Point is, don’t let a skirt pattern make you feel like rubbish, ok?  Cause I love you too much and if you do that then I’ll cry.

She arrives tomorrow morning, while you wait, why not get on the email list if you haven’t already?  20% discount for the first 24 hours but you gotta be on the list before the pattern goes live, otherwise you miss out and I don’t want you to miss out!