Amy Butler Barcelona Skirt

I was feeling so confident after making the Lazy Days Skirt, that I opted to tackle a slightly more complicated project - an a-line skirt for me. Oh boy.

Even before I got my machine, I sort of fell in love with Amy Butler fabric. It's really pretty and girly, but also polished. The Barcelona Skirt caught my eye while I was drooling over the fabric and it had good reviews on Pattern Review. Thus, it became my first foray into sewing clothes for myself. Eeeek!

This pattern includes pieces for three different skirts; a basic a-line, a layered skirt and an apron overlay. On this first pass, I opted for the basic a-line. It's a fairly simple pattern with only 6 separate pieces, 3 for the outer skirt and 3 for the lining. However, I'm learning that even a "simple" pattern still takes quite a bit of time for a beginner. Oh, and this skirt also has an invisible zipper. Yikes! They are notoriously difficult to put in and I was very intimidated. Thank God for this review that I found which includes a link to a tutorial on how to install an invisible zipper with a regular zipper foot. They really helped me get through the construction of the skirt with minimal seam ripping and cussing. ;)

From start to finish, the skirt took me all weekend. The majority of this was due to it being my first clothing garment and I was really nervous in getting the measurements right. I had to do adjustments to the pattern before cutting and I took forever to do them to make sure I had it right. Even with all that time spent, I still cut it too big (better than too small though!) in the waist, so I had to spend some additional time in adjustments.

For the fabric, I chose a navy and aqua tropical-inspired print from Amy Butler. Once I realized that the skirt was actually coming together pretty well, I decided to wear it for my birthday party. It was a perfect summery skirt for a very hot day. I also wore it home from Napa so I could show my mom. She was thrilled. :)

I really like this pattern and already have plans for another basic a-line skirt in a dark print for fall that I plan on pairing with tall boots and a sweater or wrap top. I would also like to eventually make the apron overlay skirt, but it will take the right combination of prints for it to look good. Might be something for next summer. Another pattern that I highly recommend, especially for forcing you to learn how to put in an invisible zipper. :)