Gzhel

Yesterday was Transfiguration, and on Saturday, I pulled this skirt out of the naughty pile where it had been since late spring.

I made it in April or May out of a very small gifted remnant of fabric, and it was a squeak!  I actually didn't have enough fabric to cut the side panel for the everyday skirt, so I cut the front panel wider and hoped for the best.  I had to use some plain broadcloth for the pocket facing, it was that close.  I think I have a 6" square of fabric left.  Whew!

I made it up, pleated the front, finished everything, tried it on, and...not good.  The waist was weirdly big, both in front and back, and the front poofed out weirdly around the pleats.  At the time, I didn't really know how to fix it (and didn't want to), so I put it in time out for a while.

I pulled the skirt out on a whim on Saturday and tried it on again.  I thought maybe a center pleat fix like on my chambray skirt would work, but it looked strange.  Then I decided that front darts would probably fix it, as well as snugging up the elastic a bit.  It took about an hour to unpick, repin, and resew, but I finished it just in time to wear for the feast on Sunday.  (For the record, Transfiguration is a liturgically "white" feast in the middle of the Dormition fast, which is blue, so I figure this one ticks both boxes).

I think it turned out reasonably well, given what I was working with.  The fit still isn't perfect, but it looks fine, and was nice to wear yesterday.  I'm calling it the Gzhel Skirt because the print reminds me of a particular pottery made in Russia called gzhel.  It is similar in look to Delft, but the florals are more rounded.  I'm not even sure I can properly call it an Everyday skirt, since the lines are much straighter, but I did use the pattern as the base of the skirt, so I'm just going to go with it.

It goes well with a gray cardigan I have as well, and I think my blue top with the battenburg lace inset would look nice too.  It's not a great skirt for wearing all the time for a variety of reasons, but it is nice to have a couple of special pieces for once in a while.

The fabric is some kind of linen blend, I think, and is from Germany.  My friend had made napkins out of the original yardage when she lived there.

We also bless fruit (particularly grapes) on Transfiguration, so that was half the baskets lined up after liturgy!  (There were an equal number on the other side).  In southern climates, grapes are the fruit of choice, but in places like Russia, grapes don't grow, so they tend to bless apples (or sometimes peaches).  In the U.S. it seems to be fruit more generally, with an emphasis on grapes.

It is also the only fish day during the Dormition Fast, so I splashed out on some salmon for dinner.  

I finished watching a really excellent indie film last night called Zoe, and I think I might have to write a whole post about it.  I can't stop thinking about the film--there is so much texture and complexity to the film.

Happy Feast!