It seems that when I have a small amount of stretch fabric left over from something else, I turn it into a Mabel skirt.  I have now made five of them.  The first three are here – and these are the remaining two.  I’ll show you how they look close up, then how I actually wear them. These photos were all taken at the end of the day, so there are a fair few wear creases.

This one was sewn at Sewjourn in May. The fabric is a little unusual – it’s a knit, but more like a stretch bengaline in density and stretchability than a double knit. It came from Darn Cheap Fabrics. As you can see, I sewed the version with panels in the front and the kick pleat at the back.

All the vertical seams were topstitched. The instructions also tell you to understitch the top of the facing – I have no idea why, as this is a pull-on stretch skirt and as soon as you stretch out the waist to pull it on the understitching pops. It’s a technique that would work well if there were a zip, but not on something that is meant to expand! I think that I made this as a Medium throughout. It’s pretty firm. Some would say it’s too tight, but I like my straight stretch skirts to be slim below the bottom, as I wear them with tops out over them.

I didn’t even hem this one properly – instead I used fusible tape to secure the hem. The fabric didn’t like being sewn across the grain, and I was concerned that a stitched hem would look terrible, and a hand-stitched hem….well, I was too lazy to do one. It is lasting well through the wash!

This one was made in mid-June. The size of the scraps I had available necessitated a centre front seam. From memory this is a Medium, graded to a Large waistband. Once again all the vertical seams have been top-stitched, and the fabrics were all from Darn Cheap.

Gee there are a lot of wrinkles after sitting all day! This time I did a simple stitched hem. These skirts are comfortable to wear due to the nature of the stretch fabrics, and they are very fast to make.

The Mabel skirt was reviewed recently over at The Curvy Collective. The comments made for interesting reading, especially in regards to what people consider to be good fit and/or what they consider to be flattering. I’ve also read some comments on terms like flattering and related discourse on what makes for “good fit” or clothes that suit people recently that give me food for thought. My opinion – is it comfortable (doesn’t rub or bind or pull) and do you feel good in it? To me, that is what is most important, not whether it makes you look taller and/or thinner (which is what most people tend to imply by “flattering”). What do you think?