Skirting around the issue

I've been suffering from bloating, and it's been very painful.

 

I decided to make some skirts with bigger waistbands, to relieve the pressure on my abdomen.   It took me about a week to clear the breakfast bar,  clean it,  get out the cutting mat, get out the patterns and cutting tools,   and sort out the pattern  - I wanted to make a skirt from a woven fabric, like cotton, which is much cooler in the heatwave, and I wanted a full maxi skirt not one with a split.   I decided to try 5 out of 4's "Virginia Maxi".

 

5oo4 Virginia

Eventually, I managed to cut the skirt out, and to sew it up. I then considered whether to just do one of my normal yoga waistbands or whether to try and do something a bit better.  And I pondered on whether I should gather the skirt first, being as it's woven,  rather than using the stretchy waistband to gather while I sewed.

 

I used up all my available energy thinking about it, and my back was killing me,  so I just put everything in the spare bedroom until I'd recovered,

  

Eventually I really needed the new skirt - or the large waistband -   so I decided to just do the usual waistband routine.  It worked better than I expected. I'm really really happy with the end result.   I wanted to make another one but it needs wider fabric (because its quite gathered), and I couldn't easily find something suitable in my stash.  

 

A few days later, I used my go-to pattern (Pattern Emporium's Heartlight) for a stretch fabric maxi skirt and I cut out two skirts before my energy was sapped.  While I had the cutting mat out, I  used the remainder of the two pieces of fabric to precut some yoga waistbands for other skirts.   If the fabric has enough recovery, I use the same fabric to make the waistband as I use for the skirt.  Some fabric doesn't have good recovery which means the waistband gets looser and looser during wear, until the skirt slides off.  That's where these waistbands come in.    I've long given up tucking my top in so no one but me knows.

 

I can only find a photo of one of the Heartlight  skirts, I'll add the other later,