By Hand London: Charlotte Skirt

I am a sucker for a pencil skirt. Always have been, might always be. They are just so sensual and elegant and impracticable, that they are hard to resist. They work for so many occasions and you can dress them up or dress them down. I have tried many different pencil skirt patterns over the years, trying to find the great oracle, so when I first saw the By Hand London Charlotte Skirt pattern, there was no doubt in my mind that I would try this baby.

Working in my Spring 2019 color palette, I found this lovely cotton poplin on Mood. When I received it, it was a little lighter weight than I was expecting, so I decided it is definitely going to need an underlining. I believe the underlining will give me just the right amount of coverage, so all my lumpy bumpy bits stay only for those a little closest to me to view. I have also lined the skirt and added a kick pleat for a little bit more modesty.

I made a second in a floral print from the Wildwood collection by Rifle Paper Co.

The directions on this skirt are great. By Hand London is a pattern company out of the UK. I appreciate that they have both the metric measurements and the imperial measurements. The pattern fit beautifully. I am on the shorter side, so I had to shorten it by 6 inches, but the circumference measurements were perfect. I took about 3/4" in at the hip,but everything else is as out of the pattern

I lined the skirt with an old bed sheet that had a little whole in the corner. The fabric was still super soft and there was a huge amount of good fabric. I bagged the hem, for a clean finish. I hand closed the slit in the back though. As I was sewing the skirt, I got over excited and closed the slit in the back. When I tried it on, I quickly realized that walking was going to be an issue. No big deal when you have a seam ripper. With my trusty unpicker in my head, I got to work. I left a 5" slit up the back and clean finished it by hand. I went with an invisible zipper. I also went a little crazy with the snaps. I put three in the waistband closure. I was considering four, but that felt like overkill.

Over all, I love this sew. The skirt is easy to wear and a quick little sew. This pattern, without a doubt, will be a stable in my sewing wardrobe.

Happy Sewing!