DENIM SHIRT TO DENIM SKIRT

I've been experiencing a bit of sewing performance anxiety recently. My parents bought me a new sewing machine for my birthday, a Janome 2030DC. It's awesome. It’s a world away from my old machine, a John Lewis mini. Don’t get me wrong—I LOVE my JL mini. It’s red and super cute. It’s tiny and light weight and really easy to transport, which was very handy when I was doing my Åsom sewing course. Not to mention, I’m a bit sentimentally attached to it, as it was a spontaneous gift from Graeme when we first started dating—I’d seen it in store and mentioned to him how cute it was, and then one day I came home and there it was, sitting in my bedroom. I've since used it for tons of projects, including several dresses and skirts and pillows and other projects. But lately the seams have come out a bit wonky. And let’s be honest, there’s a lot of things the JL mini just isn't made to do.

Enter the Janome 2030DC. It has a ridiculous amount of functions (especially for someone used to using what is essentially a kids’ machine). Every time I turn it on, I squeal with excitement as the LCD screen lights up. And so many features! It’s got 30 seams! Various feet! It can make button holes like no other. When I made this skirt with my old machine,  I had to do various calculations to determine the button hole size, and then do each one by hand, which took me about twenty minutes each and didn't even end up being even. No more of that! In short, this machine is a bit of a revolution. And I've been pinning tons of inspiration and projects to try. But, where to start? With great sewing machines come great sewing expectations, right? (teehee—see what I did there?)

But eventually, after trying to decide between all sorts of elaborate ideas, I ended up just sewing something that’s been on my to-sew list for a while: turning an old denim shirt into a denim skirt. Said shirt used to be a bit of a favorite (aka. I used to wear it far too often), and I was absolutely gutted when it tore, so it’s nice to be able to breathe some new life into it! To turn it into a skirt, I cut across under the arms, cut and hemmed the bottom, and used fabric from the sleeves to make a waistband. I meant to cut it a bit higher, so that I could use one of the buttons on the shirt in the waistband, but alas I ended up accidentally tearing it and went with plan B: using a clasp from an old pair of suit pants. And as a result of the tearing it ended being a bit shorter than what I had planned, but I’m still pretty happy with the results. Looking forward to wearing it bare-legged in the summer!

Hoping this will put my sewing performance anxiety to an end! Can’t wait to try that button hole function.