Okay, you're about to meet one of the coolest girls I've found in blogland...her blog is absolutely awesome and her etsy shop has the most adorable crocheted baby & adult (!) hats you'll ever see (as well as other amazing things)... seriously, Rachel is fantastic...and her sense of humor and the way she writes has me laughing out loud. Reading her blog is always a bright spot in my day...but, enough of my gushing...here she is...you're gonna love her...
Hi there! I'm Rachel, the brains (or not; sometimes I wonder) behind Maybe Matilda, where I blog about clothing refashions, sewing, crochet, and whatever crafts strike my fancy.
I'm really excited to be here today--Midwestern Sewing Girl is one of my absolute favorite craft blogs to read, and I'm still a little surprised that Maggie would want me here. But it's too late for her to back out at this point, so while you're stuck with me I'll go ahead and share how I made this adorable peekaboo lace slip!
I don't know about you ladies, but I love to wear skirts--they're breezy and cool for the summer, and I never feel prettier than when I'm in a skirt or a dress (I clearly haven't yet outgrown the little girl princess fascination). But I sometimes feel like my skirts need a little something extra . . . this is where the peekaboo lace slip comes in! With one simple, easy to sew piece, you can add a whole new look to the wardrobe you already have and really spice up your outfits. Let's get real; what outfit couldn't use a little extra lace? Think it over, and when you've decided that they all need more lace, let's get to work!
You won't need much, and might even already have all the materials on hand:
I used:
- a bit of muslin (no need to buy fancy fabric for a piece of clothing that's going to be hiding underneath other clothing!)--I believe I used about 1 1/2-2 yards
- elastic (cut to fit snugly around your waist)
- lace (you won't believe it, but the pretty lace peeking out from under that skirt? It came from this goofy old curtain panel that I picked up for free at a craft swap. I see these curtains at thrift stores all the time for super cheap . . . bet you never thought they'd come in handy!)
Start by cutting your muslin for the slip--you'll need to cut it to your waist measurement times 1.5 (mine came to about 50 inches) for the long end, and the length you want your slip to be plus about 2 inches (to allow some extra room for the hem and elastic casing). You can cut it a tad on the short side since you'll be adding length with the lace at the bottom.
Sew the 2 short ends of this rectangle together to make a big tube, then finish the edges to prevent fraying (either with a serger, if you have one, [I don't] or by just sewing a zig zag stitch over the rough edges)
Now we're going to make the casing for the elastic waistband. Fold over one end of your muslin tube roughly 1/4", then fold again to the width of the elastic (I believe my elastic was 1"). Begin sewing this casing down as close to the edge as you can.
(Rather than pinning the casing in place, I like to just plunk the elastic where it needs to be and fold the fabric over it as I sew. That way, I can be positive that the casing is the right size for the elastic to fit through without measuring and pinning. Just make sure not to sew through the elastic!)
Stop sewing about an inch before you get back to your starting point--you need to leave an opening to feed the elastic through.
Attach a safety pin to one end of your elastic and feed it through the casing, using the safety pin to pull it through. Make sure you're keeping the safety-pin-less end of the elastic outside of the casing and not letting it get pulled in and lost inside. (I've done that before . . . )
When the elastic has been pulled through, overlap the ends and securely stitch them together (make sure you sew back and forth quite a few times--you need that to be a strong seam!), then sew down the last inch of open casing.
Now to create the bottom hem (you're almost to the fun part!)--just fold up the bottom end by 1/4", fold it again another 1/4" (so the rough, cut edge of the fabric is completely covered), and sew it down. I feel like I should tell you to iron and pin, but I rarely do that myself. But it certainly wouldn't be a bad idea.
This is the best part! Take your lace (or, in my case, ridiculous curtain panel) and, if necessary, cut to the size you need--I cut about a 4 or 5" wide piece, right through the center of the sheep motif. Lay it on top of the hem you just created and stitch it on, ruffling as you go. Rather than sewing a wide stitch and gathering it up, I prefer to just bunch up the lace in front of the presser foot, like so:
When you get back around to where the lace begins on your slip, cut any remaining lace length.
Overlap the ends and sew them together.
I love what it adds to this basic pencil skirt:
And it looks equally cute under a casual A-line style as well:
Now, seriously, isn't that about the most fantastic tutorial? I love it...and I can't wait to do this for some of my skirts...thank you so much, Rachel, for coming today!!!
