Sewing a Vintage McCall’s Skirt Pattern

This is my very first completed vintage sewing pattern piece, and I’m so pleased with the way it turned out!

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The Back Story

There’s a thrift store near my house that always has the cutest vintage sewing patterns. I found this McCall’s skirt pattern, and immediately bought it…for 25 cents! When I got home, I was excited to try it out, but to my dismay, it was a vintage size 10, meaning the waist measurement was 25 inches. I had never sewn a vintage sewing pattern, so I was nervous to try and resize one on my first try.

After months of procrastination, I decided to take the plunge and try to make pattern A. I watched a few Youtube videos about resizing patterns, but I ultimately ended up roughly resizing it with a measuring tape and fabric marker because the pattern was only draw for one size, and that posed kind of a challenge. I figured since it was a loose fitting skirt, it would be more forgiving of any errors than a shirt or pants would be.

The fabric I used for this pattern was a rust red linen/rayon blend that I had bought forever ago, and I think it was the perfect weight for this skirt.

Sewing Techniques Used

The pattern was pretty simple a straight forward to follow, which was a relief because I’ve heard that vintage patterns can be really confusing to follow.

• I learned how to sew pockets, yay! Also, this was a win in general because I love skirts and dresses that have functional pockets.
• Gathering in the front and the back of the skirt to make it all nice and ruffly
• This was the first time that I used the buttonhole function on my sewing machine, which turned out to be really fun and pretty easy to do!
• The waistband needed to be hand-hemmed, which I think adds a nice handmade touch to the garment.

Sewing Notions

• I had some vintage buttons that I had thrifted (shocker!). They are gold colored with some kind of intricate design on them, and I thought they contrasted well with the color of the skirt.
• The waistband required some interfacing, so I just used Pellon Iron On Interfacing.

This skirt is definitely not perfect, but I’m really proud of how it turned out. I can’t wait to continue to make more clothes! I’m hoping to have a good amount of handmade basics in my wardrobe soon.

I hope you enjoyed seeing the finished product! Let me know what you’re working on, and if you have any pattern recommendations. I’ve really been on a sewing kick lately.

If you’d like to read more, here are some other blog posts I’ve written about sewing.

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