Halfmoon Atelier Roma skirt, blast from the past

 

Suddenly saw a pool of leftover silk velvet on the floor and thought it would be a mighty fine Roma skirt.  I had a piece of fabric earmarked for it for years, but left the pattern at my parents and the fabric went to something else.  The first version took a long time to make as I didn't have an overlocker and I had a specific bias-tape related vision.  The pooling in the front was present then, but I had forgotten about it.  I don't think it lasted very long in my wardrobe.

This is truly a fast thing to make, obviously even faster if silk velvet isn't involved. I apparently made size M and seem to have shortened it approximately 8 inches.  I wrote the SA on the pattern and didn't engage with any instructions.  I overlocked the edge and folded it over, getting a bit lazy on one curve but otherwise the overlocked edge is under 1cm. On the previous version I overlapped the edges whereas this time I sewed them together but I don't think it would have changed the size much.

 

It took about an hour. Final thoughts:  that pooling in the front belly is really hideous, and the skirt pulls upward in order to create that pool.  I would need to size up even more, and it's getting silly for me to make an XL.  It's a cute skirt but not the nice fun loungeskirt I had envisioned, despite the feel of the silk.  I do think silk velvet is a great choice for this!  In fact, stretch velvet would probably work out nicely - I think this pattern would suit stretch fabrics really well although I don't have good advice on getting rid of the front pooch.  It's probably one I won't make again. 

Halfmoon Atelier Roma skirt

This project was theoretically a quick mock up to see how the Roma fit.  I adore the Halfmoon Atelier patterns, but I always think they won't suit me.  So I wanted to see how this would go and whether I could make it work.  The linen was salvaged from a very shapeless dress which didn't work out so it has various seams in it.  It is heavyweight linen from Merchant & Mills - very heavy, consistent with the website - but still somehow difficult or different than I expected.  It's expensive stuff so I really did want to make something great with it.  I removed something like 8 inches of length from the pattern - a LOT, but I don't remember quite how much.

And then I didn't have the right kind of bias binding.  I ended up ordering some on Etsy.  And by the time it arrived I no longer had time and this project wasn't looking so easy!  So it became a UFO and I went travelling.

It was with unexpected surprise that I saw it come together now.  It's a quick make.  I had lost my pocket markings so I had to make the entire skirt in order to decide where to put the pocket, therefore ensuring that sewing it on would be a total pain, but the skirt was looking so cute that I knew I had to commit and stick with it.  I also customised how far down to sew by just pinning and trying it on, but I don't think I left the slit much higher than the pattern recommends.

I cut a size M!  I sized up based on my hips and an assumption that it would be better loose than too tight.

There is some bagging around my waist due to the thick fabric and the way it pools from the elastic waistband.  I think it's more obvious to me, looking down, than it is to the viewer, although I also don't think the skirt looks flattering, at least in these pictures.

I actually love this skirt!  The slit means it has great mobility and doesn't feel like a pencil skirt (a silhouette I really don't trust) and I am super happy with my gold bias binding.