Refashion Friday Inspiration: Front Tab Denim Skirt

Morning Refashioners! Here's a little skirt I made out of two pairs of unwanted jeans. The basic pattern is a high-waisted skirt style that I shortened and split up into panels so it could be cut easily from length of jean-legs. It's the same basic shape and style as this skirt, in fact. 

The main difference with this style is that it fastens with a centre back zip, and it has this simple little tab detail on the front. I'm a big fan of using tabs to add quick interest to fairly plain garments, and I used to use them a lot when creating clothing for TRAIDremade.  

To make them you need to draft your desired shape with a 1cm seam allowance all the way around. There's no point in adding a wider seam allowance because you're going to trim most of it away anyhow. The tabs work better if they can really hold their shape, so add at least one layer of fusible interfacing to the back of both pieces. 

Pair the pieces up, right sides together, and stitch around the edge with that 1 cm seam allowance. Remember to leave a gap along one of the longer edges so you can turn it through to the right side. 

Before you turn the tab through, you'll need to trim away most of your seam allowance, particularly at the points to remove bulk and help you get a crisp corner (if you are making a pointy tab like this). When you turn the tab through to the right side, you may need something 'pokey' to get those corners as  sharp as possible. Give the tab a good old press with an iron at this point, making sure that the edges of your opening are nicely tucked in. 

Stitch at least one row of top stitching along the edge to both close the gap opening and the create a nice, solid effect. Contrast top stitching could look fantastic, as could a couple of rows of top stitching. 

The tabs don't need to be this shape of course, rounded ends also look nice. You may wish to make a pair of tabs and trap one end of the tabs inside a seam (the side seam for example) for a different effect.

I secure the tabs down by then applying buttons, although you may wish to do some more secure secret stitches to keep it in more firmly in position. The buttons give the impression the tabs are removable or adjustable, which of course they would be if you created them to be so. But mine are faux and quick to make and apply!