Flirty Skirty Ends the Mommy Clothes Rut

Hey Craft Lovers!  Less than a week to go until CraftShare begins. I'm excited to share what I've been learning and see what good ideas you have to share too. There are some really great guest posters lined up as well, so there's loads of good fun coming!  Join in on the fun & spread the word by grabbing the CraftShare button.  Our first topic will be Laminated Cotton. Projects, tips, tutorials & more and remember to add any photos of things you've made with laminated cotton to the CraftShare Flickr group to show off your handiwork:)

Now on to my latest project.  Improvements to my summer wardrobe have been desperately needed.  Having been pregnant last summer means there's not a lot of properly fitting stuff in the ol' closet and I've fallen into the trap of the "Mommy Clothes Rut":  t-shirts, jeans, plain shorts and boring shoes.  Practical, but ugh in the style department.  With the warm weather finally here, I'm determined to break out of the blah with some flirty, girly clothes.  I finally tried out a book I got for Christmas called Sew What! Skirts that gives loads of techniques & design ideas for skirts.  Here's my first item:

Design-wise it's nothing fancy, just a full skirt with an elastic waist, but this fabric doesn't need an intricate shape to look pretty, so why gild the lily?  I do love making stuff, but sometimes I have to wonder when I see other blogs spend HOURS on lots of intricate assembling for everyday shirts or skirts.  I can appreciate the skills & effort put in, but when you've got several kids to chase after, is it worth it to spend several hours or even days on lots of pieces or tricky stitch work when it's just going to get ice cream, hose water or sand spilled on it?

My solution is to cut some time crunch corners: find a basic shape that looks good and let the cuteness of fabric do the work.  This took about $7 of fabric + $1 of elastic, an hour's worth of time and the result will work for a night out or a day at the beach.  And if it's introduced to some chocolate ice cream or some misplaced sunscreen, I won't mind;)