Get My Stitch On: Tania Culottes

Wednesday, October 1, 2014

Tania Culottes: A Perfect Match

While browsing through my stash I discovered an unexpected surprise. One of the block printed cottons I bought in India was a perfect match to the leaf green knit I used to make my Jalie 2566 cardigan. Look!

The fabric must have been really inexpensive because I bought 4 meters of it. Since I had so much, I could make a fabric hog like the Megan Nielsen Tania Culottes.

I made this pattern once before and loved the result:

Original Post

I made an XL an added 3" to the hem length just like last time. It was a quick sew, I hung it up for 2 days before hemming and it was done!

Since it is essentially a circle skirt, it's very swishy!

Wednesday, August 14, 2013

Love is All Around: Tania Culottes

When the first wave of Megan Nielsen's Tania Culottes was making its way around the blogosphere, it was love at first sight. I looked at them and instantly I knew: that is something that I would wear and something that is totally me! When I went in search of an online supplier I was frequently accosted with "Sold Outs", or "Available in July". July? I...must...have...those...CULOTTES!

My patience paid off and I bought them from We Sew Retro. They were shipped out on July 11th and they came with the cutest little note card:

Seriously, how cute is that?

I used a rayon challis from Fabric Mart with lovely drape. Look who else made something gorgeous from this same fabric: Marrie from Purls and Pleats! It doesn't seem like they have any more in stock...sorry!

A little about this pattern. There are only 4 pieces and the construction is very simple with an invisible side zip. I added 3" to the length and was able to cut an XL out of 2 yards of 56" fabric. That being said, there were only small scraps leftover. Other than the added length, I made no changes. I could have/should have taken the waist in a tiny bit, but since I typically don't tuck my shirts in, it's fine.

Before hemming, I let the culottes hang for 3 days so that the bias would stretch out. Trying to get a straight hem on a circle skirt (or culottes) is not the easiest thing. Since I didn't have any helpers around, I tried something new: I used my new laser level (this one)! I stuck it to the metal leg of my cutting table and aimed it at my culottes which were carefully clipped to a drawer. I pinned along the laser line on both the front and back. I pinned the back to be slightly longer since the back of the culottes need to hang over my curvy bits. ;)

Laser Level marking my hemline!

Once pinned, I carefully cut off the long portions and proceeded to follow the directions for hemming. It suggests sewing 1/4" from the raw edge and then turning up the 1/4" along the stitching, pressing it flat, and then turning and pressing again. The rayon challis pressed beautifully and this method worked really well. I would recommend using a fabric that will press well otherwise you will have a nightmare trying to hem these neatly.

So here it is: