sewVery: The Tilly Skirt

Sewing Mama RaeAnna has just released her latest pattern, The Tilly Skirt! Since we are good friends, she gave me a sneak peek of the design and pattern before it was released to the public. I couldn't wait to sew one up for Ella, and it was one of the quickest projects I've made in a while!

I made this skirt back in late April, and Ella has certainly enjoyed wearing it over and over again since then. In fact, I desperately need to make her another one! Maybe I'll do that this afternoon since it only takes about an hour.

The Tilly Pattern is a basic a-line skirt design that fits sizes 12 months to 6 years. I made Ella the size 6, and it fits perfectly! I'd say this is a great pattern for a beginner sewer, and RaeAnna does a terrific job with the pattern instructions and tutorial.

Since I only had 3/4" elastic on hand, I cut out the waistband piece half the width of what the pattern called for. This was the only modification I made to the design on purpose! Because I accidentally omitted the interfacing to the front waistband as the pattern instructed, the front waistband folds over. Since this Tilly Skirt is made with quilting cotton and has a flat front design, it is essential to add the interfacing to the waistband so that the skirt wears properly and comfortably. I certainly won't forget to add it next time!

The Tilly Skirt is so simple but has some fun features to it. For one, it has pockets, and every little child loves pockets! Although Ella was busy playing with bubbles this particular day, she often has some tiny toy treasure hidden away in the pocket. I'm awful at checking pockets before I wash things, so I oftentimes discover the items in the washer or dryer later!

The other adorable and unique feature to this skirt design is the pleated panel on the front. This addition is a great way to add a coordinating fabric or as some of RaeAnna's pattern testers did, make it into a themed pirate or cowgirl skirt.

For the point on the front panel, I mitered the corner to make it nice and neat. I used the method I show in my sewVery Simple Reversible Placemat Tutorial to create the mitered corner.

Here you can see the simple back with the elastic waistband.

I can't wait to make more Tilly Skirts for Ella! Like I mentioned earlier, I may just make one this afternoon! I'm thinking this would look great in linen or a linen blend, and it would even be adorable without the front pleated panel. It's really like you get two skirt patterns in one!