Modern Edwardian Walking Skirt
Inspired by the video Bernadette Banner did on making a modern walking skirt I decided that I wanted one of my own. Originally, I tried to follow the same drafting guide Ms Banner uses in her video but I quickly established that I didn't have the floor space to feasibly do this in my shared London flat so I purchased a Folkwear pattern from The Foldline.
Project materials, fabric and notions purchased from my local fabric shop:
Folkwear 209 pattern - shortened to roughly knee-length
Black cotton twill outer
Light blue cotton poplin flatlining
Black buttons
I decided to flatline this project as, although the twill fabric had a decent body itself, I wanted the skirt to have a little more structure so it could hold its shape when worn. This process involves cutting all pieces in both the outer and lining fabric then basting the two layers together before construction of the skirt actually starts. Once the outer and lining are joined, each piece is treated as one despite the two layers.
The skirt came together very quickly and the biggest bit of work was flatfelling all the seams down by hand. I quite like that not have an overlock machine forces me to use more historically accurate seam finishings.
I had also recently watched Abby Cox's video about making an 1890's skirt and loved the way she added a 'butt pocket' that hides its bulk within the gathers at the back which allows for the pocket to be really large. I followed the instructions for constructing a bag-shaped pocket outlined in Bertha Banner's Household Sewing With Home Dressmaking and added this into the side back seam.
Despite following the measurement guide, I found the skirt didn't have a very snug fit at the waist so I added a second (and later a third!) button on the waistband which allows me to have different waist measurements depending on the day. Moving forward I think I'll be taking the waistband off and adjusting the gathering at the back to fit without the placket needing to overlap quite so much.
My feelings on the pattern: it's very easy to make this pattern and it comes together very quickly so definitely a great pattern for beginners to historical sewing. One thing to be aware of is that if you are using a thicker fabric (like I was) then it will probably work better to knife pleat in the excess at the back rather than gathering it up as instructed in the pattern. This is something I'm planning to change to when I fix the waistband size as I can't gather down the back any further.
All in all, I love this skirt and I wear it to the office almost every day when the weather's nice and warm and I think the length is really flattering. The longer hem at the back took a little getting used to but, as identified in the pattern, this is the historical style and is really quite flattering.
Have you made this pattern or have you made a modern walking skirt another way? Let me know in the comments!
