Pillow sham Prairie Skirt

For a long time I had a pillow sham I loved very much, because it was brown with most of my favorite colors, plus paisley, plus flowers, plus a ruffle! A big 80's era ruffle. Because I liked to look at it, but it did not match anything on my bed, I used it as a sewing machine dust cover. Not that my machine ever gets real dusty, but that gave me a reason to have it out.

Then one day I decided to turn it into a skirt. My husband advised against this.

I ignored him.



As I mentioned to the lovely Jessica awhile back, by trying to make the perfect summer clothes, I was getting a case of sewing paralysis. Thus, I have decided to join her in some ridiculous sewing, and at the same time refashioning, in styles of decades past.

This skirt, which is supposed to look like one of those late 70's prairie skirts, is a refashion, a summer staple, a nod to my distant teenage obsession with this style, and at least slightly ridiculous.

Specs:

• fabric: thrifted 50/50 cotton poly pillow sham. 80's vintage. (The ruffle went around the whole outer edge and took me an hour to unpick.)
• thread, zipper: thrifted
• pattern: none. The front is one rectangle, the back is two small rectangles with a center back zipper. Ruffle is 2.5 times longer than the skirt bottom and the waistband is my waist plus 2" (1" for ease and 1" for seam allowance.)
• cost: 3.50 ?
• time: ripping serged ruffle out= 1.5 hours, sewing= 1.5 hours (mostly sewing the damn ruffle back in.)

For the full story read on here.