Ot Just Clothes !!!Length of skirt ?

I actually haven't given thought to whether they make me look dumpy or not - or, to be more honest, I tend to look dumpy in anything!

But I find loose, flowing skirts that come somewhere between my knees and my ankles by far the most comfortable summer skirt type. I have a couple that are less loose and come just below my knees with side slits, but I don't like them as well.

I almost never wear skirts or dresses in the winter. I walk a lot and don't find them practical (and I HATE pantyhose!). I do have a multipurpose black fake velvet skirt that comes nearly to my ankles with a modest slit in the back which I wear in the winter if I absolutely must wear a skirt. It's comfortable and very versatile since almost any kind of top can be worn with it. Add of course I have the required conservative dress with jacket in navy for wearing to job interviews. That comes to about mid-knee, I think. It's been a while since I needed to wear it. If I need to attend another job interview (God forbid!) I may need to buy something a bit more up-to-date!

Cheryl

How fortunate you are to be able to make your own clothes! I wish I'd been taught as a child. I'm now learning the hard way to make clothes as I never find a size 6 petite in the UK. While I lived in the US, 4P was fine and I stocked up on trousers and jeans, but never found frocks that I liked. I quite like crisp, shapely dresses, and most of the dresses in shops are made like pillow-cases with a belt in the middle! Anyway, I've just stitched my first frock from a pattern. The best thing that can be said about it is that it fits. Otherwise, it's ghastly. I've never done any sewing before, and I've started finished rows without proper back-stitching, with the result some seams are already bursting open! In addition, I had the misfortune of stitching a jersey fabric (which I chose for its colour than for any other reason) which refused to stay put. Every time I pressed the seams open, they curled back. Every time I folded a hem and pinned it, it got out of shape by the time I tacked it. Anyway, it looks good enough to wear at home, and if I spill turmeric and chilli powder on it while cooking, I won't break my heart! I guess it was a bad beginner's choice. For my next project, I've got a light-weight denim (and some stout needles), so hopefully, I won't have these problems.

-Shanti.

Shanti, don't worry about your first attempt being a bit creative in its finishing! Knit fabrics are very easy to sew, but they do take a bit of practice and there's a number of ways to finish seams and set the garment up so that it looks like a bought one.

Advice I always give new sewists: get hold of the Reader's Digest book of Sewing (can't remember the title, but it's a huge fat book - 2" - and has everything in it you'd ever want to know). It's out of print AFAIK, so you have to find inexpensive secondhand copies (often seen on ebay).

Anything by Kerstin Martensson is good! She's the Queen of Sewing with Knits and her techniques are simple to follow and easy to adapt. If you ever want to make kids' clothing, she has several wonderful paperback volumes that contain entire wardrobes of patterns! Wonderful stuff! I've used her patterns since my DD was born (she's nearly fourteen now) and made all sorts of clothing including swimwear and dancewear.

The main thing is to keep on keeping on. Sewing's a skill that comes by practice and is *so* worth doing. Look for Easy Sew patterns - they're usually clearly labelled by most pattern companies and enable you to make easy garments fairly quickly and easily. Success is always a great boost to confidence, I find!

Have fun! ;-D

Don't worry, you'll get better with practice, and knowing how to sew your own is a great benefit because you have more choice about what to wear! I rarely use knits and find them tricky but a lot of people sew them at home and get so good at it they don't want to sew anything else. Light-weight denim is an excellent choice for your next project, especially for a beginner.

Please avoid like a plague any of the numerous artificial fabrics that ravel if you even look at them the wrong way and which slip and slide so you have to pin them and baste them and even then the pieces don't want to stay put long enough to be sewn! I recently volunteered to sew up some curtains which turned out to be of sheer slippery material which was a real pain to handle.

Cheryl

Short only. No matter how thin and fit a tall girl is, capris and 3/4 length sleeves will always look like she's outgrown her clothes.

Trish and Cheryl,

Thank you for encouragement. I'm definitely going to continue with my attempts at dress-making. I was able to pick up some cottons and poly- cottons at the Birmingham Rag Market at bargain prices, and some Simplicity Easy-Sew patterns on eBay. I am going to eschew knit fabrics and synthetics until I know a little bit more about sewing! Hopefully, my next attempt will be better.

-Shanti.

In addition to all these good ideas, I recommend you spend some time in your local free public library, curled up with lots of different sewing books. Some of them will "talk" to you better than others. Personally, I have a whole shelf of sewing reference books, acquired over the years, frequently at second-hand shops or off the remainder table. If you spend a while looking at them, you will quickly find out which are the first ones you should buy. "Sewing for Dummies" is good, several of the Singer series are also good, and later on you will probably want to look for older editions of the Vogue and Good Housekeeping ones.

Stick with it. We ALL started out as beginners!! Read rec.crafts.textiles.sewing and, more important, alt.sewing (that is where a lot of the REAL experts hang out)and ask questions whenever anything comes up.

Olwyn Mary in New Orleans. (but born and brought up in Northeast England)

I agree, stick with it. My favorite fabrics are usually found in the quilting section (I like the old-fashioned muted colors with little prints.)

Alison

Totally disagree. I am neither short nor very thin and fit and I love capris. I wear almost nothing else in the summer.

Elizabeth

Well, perhaps a tall girl will look that way, but I quite like both capris and 3/4 length sleeves on a tall woman. My sister, who is tall and fit looks smashing in them.

Elizabeth

And I'm short and very thin. Not so fit, but slender with long legs and I hate capris. I wear them a lot because they are so comfortable, but I still don't like them.

Thank you Bruce , this time the connection worked and i read it with interest. For a Hebrew speaker , it is immidiately obvious That the name memorizes a Skull .. Gulgoleth,,,,, Thus i read and expected some Horror story :>:>:>

mirjam

Becky i like the tiered skirts as well,,, in the last years i preffered the 2 tiered ones , mainly because i was tired of sewing endless seams :>:>:>:>

mirjam

Shanti, you are right , those of us who can sew our own are lucky , not only for being able to make our own That Fit, if we are not the Accepted 90-60-90, [ most women aren`t even one `size` all over their body ]. But it also gives us more choice of color , pattern and saving. i do a lot or recycling my clothes. And last year when i have had enough of some of my cotton skirts i made cushion covers from them ,,, Buy yourself [ if you can find it ] a GOOD sewing book with Good pictures] , and start with cheaper cloth ,,, it takes some time to get better , but it is better every time, I am very fond of a book called "Sewing without a patterm' , try and find something in that line ,,,,, it helps !!!! mirjam ,

Yeah - I think it has to do with proportion - that they're not so tight that you look like an inverted triangle. And wear appropriate footwear. I keep laughing at seeing younger women in spike heels with capris! Not the cute wedge sandals, or espadrilles - but huge spikes.

Ellice

Again - I'm with Elizabeth. I think it's about fit and proportion - if they're cut to fit well, it looks nice. OTOH, if the material is not good, and it's all pulling then it will look not right.

Ellice - who spends too much time watching "What Not to Wear"

I believe that unless you're 16 and slim as a reed, you should never wear anything skin tight. As to spike heels with capris, I wish I could still wear them. Nothing makes a woman's legs look as pretty and sexy.

I do, however, agree that 3/4 sleeves look either like you outgrew the garment, or you ran out of material. There's also the fact that on my very long arms they generally come just to where my elbow bends and look silly.

Lucille

Nah - the worst are the woman 40+ in skinny capris, spikes and a top that doesn't meet the top of the pants and the belly button ring.

Capris are okay because they're so comfortable, spikes I wish I could still wear.

The top that doesn't meet, I don't think so---the belly button ring-- ick, ack, ptui, even on a 16 year old. What makes a belly button so pretty that you would want to highlight it?