Skirt marathon

What can I say?  Life got in the way of blogging, and sewing for me.  My daughter arrived in March for a long visit.  She left yesterday.  My son was home for Easter.  He left - my daughter's fiance arrived for a few days.  We had a lot of sorting out to do, issues to deal with, etc., etc., etc.
My jacket did not get done for Easter.  I tried, but it needed super concentration and care, which was quite impossible under the circumstances.  I did take pictures as I worked along, so eventually, when I do get to it - I will have the whole process to show.  I was sewing an hour before heading off to church - "slightly expanding" the waistband on my son's suit pants.  (Must be all the tasting that he does as he cooks!)  That was not fun.
While waiting for my daughter to arrive for her visit, I had this fantasy in my head, how I would sew her lovely things while she took care of household duties.  Then reality hit.  What was needed, was not a few lovely things, but an entire wardrobe.  Lack of funds, hanging on to things for far too long, resulted in a rather sad look.  My baby needed a "What Not to Wear" makeover!  Yikes!  Impossible to sew so much in so little time.  We had a tight budget, but we did it.  We scoured clearance racks and sales and put together a very workable wardrobe that (mostly) fits Taya's lifestyle.  Okay - she probably didn't need another pair of high-heeled party shoes - but they were only $20.  The Easter dress was also purchased.  (Less headache for me.)  Problem with sewing for Taya - she won't stand still long enough for things to be fitted, and she is not an easy fit.  That was always the case.  Mind you, she has no problem trying on 20 items of RTW at the store.  I don't get it.
I did sew a few things.  First was a remake of a formal dress into a skirt that was worn for Palm Sunday.  Taya loves the fabric, but she outgrew the dress (at least the top), which was made when she was about 15.  We purchased a cami and a cardigan to make an outfit (sort of a "vintagey" look?).  I bought the belt a few years ago and never wore it - works much better on Taya.

Somehow, pictures didn't get taken on the day this was worn, so this and all the other pictures were quickly snapped as things were getting folded into the suitcase on Monday.  Couldn't do without the fuzzy helper!
A few summer skirts were needed to round out the wardrobe, so these were whipped together in two days.

A straight (very slightly flared) mauve cotton print from New Look 6018.

Then it was elastic waists and ruffles at the hems with Butterick 6944.

Red polka dots in a nylon knit.  Mauve shoe print in polyester georgette.

Then I really sped things up by combining the two patterns - layed one on top of the other to produce straight skirts with elastic waists.  Both the lime green and turquoise are a seersuckery polyester.  Leftovers from both of these were made into sarongs for beachwear.

Last but not least - a princess print in sheer nylon knit.

No time for styling outfits, so please excuse the non-matching Audrey t-shirt.  Yes, we bought all sorts of t-shirts that will go with these skirts - cardigans, too.

The lime, turquoise and mauve cotton print fabrics were purchased - everything else was from the stash.  And if that wasn't enough - there was the Wizard of Oz fabric that followed us home.  What could be done with that?

For these I used Butterick 6837.  Love pyjama pants with no side seams!  They zip together in a flash.  Trying to place the print was quite a feat, and I ended up cutting these single layer, so that the pictures were at least lined up straight across.  Oh well, they're only pyjamas.

Now there's somewhat of a mess back by the sewing machine.  Somewhere in between the shopping and the skirt sewing I had to finish a cassock that had been promised ages ago.  No pictures of that.  Cassocks are big, black and a real pain to sew.  Enough said.  We're trying to get back to normal around here (whatever normal is).  I have a depressed dog to deal with.  All his company left, and he's not very happy about it.  The ants have invaded the kitchen and refuse to leave, despite my best efforts to convince them that staying is definitely hazardous to their health.  The weather is miserable, and I'm seriously considering to continue winter sewing, because I'm not in the least inspired to sew summer clothing that I might never be able to wear.