Linen Safari Skirt Sans Dinosaurs

I made a vintage style safari skirt (think Rachel Weiss in The Mummy) using the 7 panel skirt portion of McCalls 7718. I shortened the pattern piece by 10 inches and by the end of the hang time, I ended up taking off/hemming up 14″ to get it all even.

The hem is exactly 16′ (4.88m) which is awesome because I’m going to hand embroider 16 dinosaurs spaced 12″ apart. I thought I was going to do 14 and zhuzh it, but I can’t pass up the exactness of it. And yes, I will include some popular ones, but also some really obscure ones like the Amargasaurus! Can you tell that I loved Ms. Frizzle and the Magic School Bus as a child?

I drafted the waist and the pockets. The waistband is 1″ wider at the bottom than the top. The belt loops are sewn into the waistband. Other than the slight angle at the side seams only, the pieces are rectangles. I made sure the side seams of the waistband and the skirt lined up.

The pockets also started off as rectangles, but I did a fairly steep angle to the top for visual interest. I also added the tab with the button closure (functional) more for aesthetics than function, but who am I to argue with getting two for the price of one?

The skirt took approx. 5 yards of 45″ linen (which was from stash). It’s FULL. It’s pictured with a petticoat under so it doesn’t just sag about.