Wednesday, April 16, 2014

Finished project: Colette 1029 - Mabel skirt

I just made up the new Mabel skirt from Colette patterns, and I kinda love it:

Colette Mabel skirt - Version 3 (pencil skirt)
The Mabel and Moneta dress were officially released on Tuesday, but I pre-ordered a pattern bundle (along with the Colette Guide to Sewing Knits) and actually received my patterns on Saturday. The Mabel is a simple skirt designed for stable knits and has three views:
  • Simple mini-skirt
  • Mini-skirt with faux placket embellishment
  • Seamed pencil skirt (with kick pleat in back)
Mabel envelope cover with line drawings
I lacked any pencil skirts in my wardrobe. I know that they're a classic and a wardrobe staple for most women and that they're supposed to be flattering on all figure types. Unfortunately, with my own insecurity about my figure, I couldn't get past the curve-hugging nature of the pencil skirt and had avoided them in favor of fuller skirt silhouettes. However, I've been wanting to dress in more body conscious clothing; I think that (well) fitted clothing generally looks better than oversized clothing, and I love how well-fitted body conscious clothing looks on other women. I think this skirt might be a baby step in the right direction for me.

The rear view is surprisingly not-horrifying:

Colette Mabel rear view with kick pleat
Here's the lowdown on fit, sizing, and constructing this skirt:
  • I made Version 3, the seamed pencil skirt.
  • My skirt took ~1 yard of fabric.
  • For fabric, I used a black ponte knit that I'd bought six yards of back when it was FabricMart's "one crazy priced fabric" a few months back.  I think this was a good choice for this pattern.
  • The pattern envelope calls this a one-hour skirt. I suspect that's the case for the most basic view. The pencil skirt has a few more seams/details. Once I had the pattern and fabric cut out, this skirt took me two hours to construct.
  • My measurements put me squarely as a 2X on Colette's size chart. With this being my first pass at this pattern and having no pattern equivalent to compare the pattern pieces to, I sewed a 2X straight out of the envelope. The skirt that you see in those photos? I made ZERO fitting adjustments.
  • I've been seeing some concerns online about the skirt fit being too tight on the lovely plus sized model on the Colette web site. Somewhere in Sarai's blog most, she mentions that the model is a 2X. You can see on me that while the skirt is curve-hugging, it's not overly tight, and I went by the size chart.
  • For hem length reference, I'm 5'2". I made no adjustments to the skirt length because I wanted a skirt that hit me just below the knee, which this skirt does.
  • The waistband does crunch down a little on me in front--I suspect that this has to do with me being short/short-waisted. I'd never tuck a blouse into this skirt, so that doesn't bother me, but other short sewists who do tuck might want to check the waistband height on their figures.
  • Construction is pretty simple:
    1. Construct the waistband, which has no elastic.
    2. Sew the skirt back/kick pleat.
    3. Sew the skirt front.
    4. Attach the waistband.
    5. Hem.
  • The kick pleat does lay flat nicely. These photos were taken after having worn the skirt all day.
I will definitely try the other views, albeit probably lengthened a tad for wearability. I think that the faux placket detail is cute and can add interest to a solid color whereas the simplest version (Verison 1) would be great for a print.

If you're on the fence about ordering/making this pattern, I hope that I answered some of your questions. If you have any other questions/concerns, please post them in the comments and I'll answer them honestly.

Gratuitous daughter shot

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21 comments:

  1. I think it looks great Michelle! I made my Mabel out of black ponte too, with a textured cotton front panel. I made the 2XL, but it was a bit big at the waist so I just nipped that in a bit and it worked. I feel like you have to think carefully about what to wear with it - I wouldn't wear a clingy top - but as long as you get the right combo then it looks fab - as it does on you!

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    1. I ran into the same thing with it being a little big at the waist, but I forgot to mention it in my post. :)

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    2. Of course, our 30 lb lap dog was insisting on claiming my lap while I was waiting for my husband to finish whatever he was doing so that we could take photos. Granted, a garment in my wardrobe isn't really a garment in my wardrobe unless it has dog or cat hair on it.

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    3. I grew up with a white dog, and our pup who passed last year was a multi-colored insane shedder. Our one guy now is a soft-coated white dog and the other is dark, semi-wiry mix. There are tims when I think I'm growing some weird hairs on my arms or legs, and its just dog hair that has shedded and clings. It is on all my clothes. One time, the hubs made some beer that dog hair-- alot-- fell into. He chucked it, but we joked he should keep it and call "hair of the dog" and see what happened.

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  2. This looks great. I am a 42 waist but 55 hip so I will have to grade a bit but I'm still stoked Colette finally has some in my size range!

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  3. Looks great on you. Based on the pictures at Colette's website, I was concerned that it would not be "office appropriate", but view 3 looks like a great option for work. Thanks for posting your review.

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  4. I feel like I've been on another planet. I had no idea Colette released two new patterns! Thank you for reviewing Mabel. I am going to check out this and the knit dress pattern as well.

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  5. This looks great on you, the fit is spot on.
    After seeing this on the Colette blog, I was a bit weary, but you may have just sold me on my need for a ponte pencil skirt!

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  6. Michelle, thanks for the great review. I am short waisted too, what do you mean by "crunch" in the front? Thanks.

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    1. There's no interfacing or elastic in the waistband to give it structure, and I obviously have a less-than-svelte build, so in front, the waistband crunches down on itself. It's a common problem that I have with waistbands that sit at the actual waist--it's easy enough to cover up by not tucking in your top (which I never do anyway).

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    2. Thanks, that helps. I will be finished tonight with my muslin (obnoxious printed knit). My skirt seems to be a little loose in the waist area but I think that might be because of the thinner knit I'm using.

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  7. You know what top would be totes adorbs with this??? An HP Tie Me Up Ti Me Down....

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    1. I agree. Unfortunately, I have no idea what happened to that pattern. BUT I do have upcoming plans to make an SBCC Mimosa top out of a black and white print with a black pussy bow. ;)

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  8. Hi Michelle! I think it was a good idea to try the pattern with a simple fabric. I agree with you on the magic back view :)

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  9. I wasn't sure about this pattern due to the snug fit on the Colette model, but it looks work-appropriate on you. I'm more apt to try this now. Thanks for your detailed review.

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    1. Right? It's curve-hugging, but not inappropriately so. I get what Sarai was going for with the photo shoot, but it would be a shame if she did the pattern a disservice with how it was styled.

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  10. Very nice on you! I think you can go casual with leggings & sneakers or work appropriate with tights and flats :-)

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    1. I agree. Another blogger basically said that this skirt was the skirt equivalent (comfort-wise) to yoga pants, and I agree. I actually just bought another pair of boots just so I'd have another footwear option to wear with this (and future versions of this) skirt.

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  11. This looks so fab! Very wearable! Great job!

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  12. I love your look! I too am hesitating about embracing the pencil skirt, even though I am trying to wear clothes that show that I do indeed have a shape. Can you tell me if the skirt grabs you under the tummy? I tend to wear my shirts so that they hit around the navel, which works with my current skirts, but would look horrible with a skirt molded around my tummy bulge.

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