After the reaction the orange skirt Daughter No2 wore with her wearable toile Carme, I decided I’d better give more info on the skirt she had on too! It was made in July 2012, so it’s had its fair share of outings already, but it was never blogged. I had used Simplicity 6896, view C. I liked the box pleats and the wide belt loops.
The fabric had been a plain white linen that I’d dyed this fabulous orange the year before. It had been a long piece of fabric, I cut it in half and dyed half Dylon Sunflower Yellow & this was Dylon Goldfish Orange. I had no idea what I was going to do with it, but once in the stash it was ready when I was! I then saw an a-line skirt in a friend’s Boden catalogue, the online details are no longer available, but here’s an image someone has pinned to Pinterest.
It was linen and had been embellished with rows of equally spaced French knots in a contrasting colour. At the time I’d been making French knot sheep on pincushions and cushion covers and totebags, so a few more French knots on a skirt weren’t going to lose me any sleep! I found enough turquoise embroidery thread in my stash & bought a turquoise invisible zip too.
I made the skirt up first, then measured the width and divided that number into equal parts. I marked the position of the knots with a disappearing marker and got cracking. The result is really eye-catching, and it cost me a fraction of the Boden skirt! Yay for DIY fashion!
Just such a simple embellishment changes it from a normal skirt to something a little special. If you’d like to do something similar, here’s a French knot tutorial. I hope you’ve enjoyed our little journey into the past with this make, now I have to get on with a pair of trousers. I have a wedding reception to attend next month, and would you know it – I haven’t a thing to wear…
Oh – don’t forget to vote for my competition entries: The Monthly Stitch has the Carme in Liberty & the Dressed to the Nines is being re-run, my entry there is A Snowball for the Summer. Thanks! 🙂
THE COMPULSIVE SEAMSTRESS 
Great idea for embellishment! The little things make garments all the more special. Do you by any chance know where your daughters shoes came from, because I have been looking for some just like that forever without any luck!
Hey Lauren, she got them from New Look a year or so ago, sorry!
Voted! Too bad about the voting in Dressed to the Nines. I really respect how it was handled.
Okay, I’ve bookmarked how to french knot. The skirt is so pretty, and combined with your expert dying skills, {that’s fabric dying, :)} well, it’s just a Anthropologie designer look!
Your white climbing hydrangea is blooming beautifully!
Thank you! I love hydrangeas & that is wonderful! It smells like watermelon… Mari is the queen of diplomacy, she’s gone about the whole thing brilliantly. Thank you for your vote, now I expect to see loads of colourful knots on your next make! 🙂
What a cool skirt and perfect with the complimentary color of blue! I left a vote for you and continue to enjoy reading and seeing your garments inside and out!
Thank you for your vote & for stopping by. 🙂
Such a super summer skirt, so glad she got her own post 😉 Of course, I now want to put French Knots on everything!
Be warned – they are incredibly addictive!! I must have done thousands on those cushion covers, but still did more. Sucker for punishment! 🙂
I’d done french knots on a blouse last year, but hadn’t thought about doing such a neat design on a skirt – thank you for the idea!
del xx
French knots are going to conquer this year! 🙂
I think we were right to have asked for a post on the skirt haha! It’s delicious and I want to try French knots on everything as well! Thank you for sharing! xx
haha, glad you liked it! 🙂 Those French knots are soooo addictive, you have been warned! 🙂
Lovely skirt! The french knots are such a great idea and the color is wonderful!
Its the little things that count.
Beautiful Skirt!
Ah I have got to keep up with my reading! This should have been gushed over days ago!!
haha, that’s ok, gushing at any time is always welcome! 🙂