The Viola Skirt

I really enjoyed sewing this pattern.
I saw the skirt made up at the knitting and stitching show in October, and really liked the style with the longer inner skirt showing beneath the shorter outer, so I bought the printed pattern. I have been sewing for a couple of years but still consider myself a beginner. For example, this skirt was my first attempt at buttonholes and a placket!
I found the pattern very clear and I think it is really nicely produced.
I traced the size 10 from checking the finished garment measurements, and it has come up very close to the measurements given.
The instructions were easy to follow. I did get a bit confused at some points but that was mostly from not reading carefully enough. For example I first attached the contrast binding to the wrong side of the waistband fabric and the placket to the wrong side of the skirt. However the pattern diagrams are clear when I checked. Newbie error! ?
The one part of the pattern I wasn’t convinced by was to sew the hem facings along the side seams before attaching it. this didn’t work very well for me but I think it was because I shortened the skirt by about 2 inches. Although the hemline was only slightly shorter than it would have been, I ended up sewing the hem facing side seams by hand after attaching it to the skirt, instead of the other way round. Not difficult and it looks neat enough for me to be pleased with it. Perhaps my inexperience shows in how I shortened the skirt, resulting in the hem facing being too wide!
I used the tutorial on how to sew a four step buttonhole from Tilly’s blog, and practiced first as recommended, and I was very pleased I did as it took several goes before I was confident of getting a good result.

All in all this is a really great pattern for someone wanting to expand their skills and take on something a bit more interesting. I love the final skirt. The longer skirt is a printed cotton and the shorter is fine corduroy. It has a lovely weight to it although I admit it probably isn’t truly reversible as the corduroy won’t really work as an inner skirt. However I wanted the two skirts to show so I’m very happy with the fabric choices and the result!