Green, in every way

Inspired by this post on the Wardrobe Refashion blog, I knew I wanted to make myself a sweatshirt skirt right away. After school, the first thing I want to do when I get home is change into comfy, warm clothes. A skirt made from a sweatshirt is exactly the thing. Plus, since the knit jersey of a sweatshirt won't fray, I knew it would be relatively simple to sew.

I also knew one of my favorite thrift stores would be having a 50% off sale on New Year's Day, so I waited until then to pick up this little number:

I love that it's literally green, and that I'd be refashioning it into a new garment, so it would be ironic and perfectly fitting that it would also be eco-friendly, too. Plus, it had that adorable M&Ms applique on the front:

I didn't take pictures of my process, but here's what I did, in a nutshell:

1. Cut four equal-size trapezoid shapes (thank you, 2nd-grade math) from the sweatshirt. I used the front, the back, and each arm to get my four pieces. The top of each trapezoid was my waist size, divided by four. I did not leave any extra for ease or seam allowance, since this is a knit and I knew it would stretch, which it did. I even had extra room when I was done, which is why I added a drawstring later. The bottom of each trapezoid was about 2" wider than the top.

2. Serged the four trapezoid pieces together, into a circle. I heart you, serger.

3. Took what used to be the waistband, cut it to the size of the top of the skirt, and serged it on (again, let's hear some serger love). The waistband is still a double-thickness, which is important for the next step. It needs to be a tube.

4. Took some scraps and sewed them together to make a drawstring, about 36" long. Stretched it out and threaded it through that "waistband" casing at the top. I cut two small slits in the front of the skirt so the waistband could come out each side and I could tie it into a bow.

5. Cut the skirt to the length I wanted, and serged the bottom edge (have I mentioned how much I love that machine?).

5. Paired it with the leggings that I also got for 50% off (so I paid 50 cents for them), and here you go:

The whole process took a little over an hour, and I was so inspired to do it that I completed it the very day I bought the sweatshirt. I know I'll get a lot of wear out of it. I bet I'll even make a more lightweight one for the summer, to wear without leggings. But it will be hard to top Miss Green.