Hey friends 💝 I received this lovely pink and gold scuba knit fabric from Minerva earlier this year! All the details on the fabric and how I drafted the top and matching scarf will be on their new website soon.

For this post I’m sharing the behind the scenes of the skirt!

This skirt has princess seam ruffles and a 2-dart skirt back. And surprise! No zipper or closures. I intended to add a side zip, but since it fits exactly to my body, I got away with being able to slip the skirt on. That’s the great thing about self-drafted patterns! Read on for more details on how I created this skirt pattern. 🌺

Behind the Scenes

Not gonna lie, my self-drafted patterns aren’t the most neat! Most of the time I just want to get to the final product already!

Supplies Used: 🌺Pink and gold scuba knit 🌺Pattern Weights 🌺Off-white Thread 🌺Pattern Paper

I drafted a new skirt block based on my measurements at the time. I drafted the back and front separately. I knew I wanted a simple 2-dart back skirt cut on the fold, so I drafted that first.

I have a sway back so learning how to draft the perfect skirt back has been a great skill!

For the skirt front, I drafted a one-dart skirt block. Then, to create the princess seam panels, I cut away the dart to create the Side Front and Center Front panels. I made notes on the panels to add seam allowance!

The other important pattern detail is that both the skirt front and back are a slight A-line shape. I drafted this by eye, and memory, from already having an idea of how the fabric fits since I created the top first.

I did not match the fabric design (I did on the top). Seeing it lay flat here, the side fronts match up nicely, and the CF panel is a little off center for the design. But in the final look it’s not noticeable, and I think that’s what important when deciding to match the fabric design elements on different pieces.

To create the ruffles, I cut a long 2.5″ wide strip, about double the length of the princess seam, along the straight grain. I sewed the side front pieces to the center front panel then topstitched the ruffle piece.

Fun fact: since I drafted the top and skirt earlier in the year they were both big on me by September! (I had a baby last year so my body has still been adjusting). Before I took these photos I had to take in the back darts and side seams. I didn’t take the top in, but when I looked at the photos, I realized it was quite loose.

Which set would you wear? The matching set or the skirt? Leave a ❤ for more behind the scenes of self-drafted patterns! -Ammara