Greetings!
I’m delving now into a bit of my fangirl side with my new Tardis skirt!
If you follow me on Instagram, you may have noticed that I purchased this Tardis fabric a while back. I just now got the chance to sew it up after finding a pattern that I knew would work for it. (BTW, the TARDIS is the ship that the Doctor on Doctor Who uses to travel through space and time, if you are not a Doctor Who fan. It just looks like a 1950’s British police box from the outside as it’s “bigger on the inside”. ) 🙂
[source: Pattern Review]
The pattern I used is view A of Butterick 5285, a now out-of-print pattern. It’s a gathered skirt with a back zipper and a waistband. Very simple and fast to make and doesn’t take much fabric.
I ordered this Tardis fabric from Spoonflower. This was my first experience ordering from there, but as there is no where else to buy such fabric, I paid the overpriced amount of $24/yd for it. I ordered the “silky faille”, which is a polyester fabric. I rarely ever buy fully synthetic fabrics, but I wanted the color of this design to show and not drain out as I have seen other Spoonflower fabrics that look faded. I’ve worked with silk faille and rayon/acetate faille and this is unlike either of them. Faille is usually thicker and stiffer with less drape. I honestly doubt that I will ever order this fabric again. It’s printed on the fabric and you can see every pin/needle mark, plus the pins/needles also take out some of the printing on the fabric every time you stick one through it. God forbid you have to take out a seam as the marks will still be there. It probably wouldn’t show so much on a lighter colored fabric, but it does on this one. I’m not even certain how it’s going to wash and I’m a bit afraid of that prospect, so I may have to take it to the dry cleaner. I ordered other fabric from Spoonflower recently that is a kona cotton and it came so faded and looked nothing like the photo…. I wish they had examples of each design on different fabrics. I doubt I will order from there again unless there is something I really want that is not commercially produced.
However, I am very happy with my skirt and I just love to wear it. I wore it to a party after I took these photos and received many compliments, even one from someone who knew it was a Tardis skirt and who actually has a Tardis entryway in her garden! How cool is that?!
I paired my new skirt with this Doctor Who shirt showing all of the Doctors since the start of the new show. I guess the whole design is a bit hard to see as my boobs/belly get in the way…. lol. My favorite Doctor is David Tennant. 🙂 What about you?
Didn’t notice that the cows were in the background until I edited this photo! lol
I wasn’t sure if my fern earrings are too blingy for this casual tee, but oh well, they match, plus they remind me of my family in New Zealand.
Although I love my classic prints, it is really fun to make something that shows off one of my interests. I plan to do more of this in the future, including a Doctor Who dress, which I already have the fabric for (and not from Spoonflower!!). 🙂
I’m normally a dresses girl and wear a dress most every day, but I really am seeing the fun in wearing skirts. I generally relegate my skirts to the winter with straight and pencil wool and denim skirts that I pair with sweaters and riding boots, but I am seeing how fun skirts are like this and how you can pair them with awesome tees. So I’m definitely going to be making some more!
Happy Sewing!
- Skirt: Butterick 5285 in Tardis print polyester “silky faille”, made by me
- Tee: Tee Public
- Shoes: Swedish Hasbeens cork wedges
- Earrings: Bauble Bar
I hope I’m not the only one who didn’t know what Tardis was!! Still yet I think it’s an adorable skirt. I’ve never ordered from Spoonflower as I have always been afraid to spend that much and not like what I got. I wonder why they are so overpriced?
Ah, no one in my family knows what the TARDIS is, so you’re not alone! 🙂
I’d recommend ordering a swatch from spoonflower first. Not sure why they cost so much! Maybe BHL will be cheaper when they start with their custom fabric.
LOVE the skirt! Yes, Spoonflower seems to be slightly disappointing but I’ve still loved the projects I’ve made with their fabrics. I haven’t had my cottons fade but I’ve also ironed the crap out of them so that helps heat set them.
Tempest did a Dr. Who sewalong last year, maybe she will do another this year : )
Even if I knew then what I know now about the fabric, I’d still order it!! I did see her Dr Who sewalong after the fact after someone mentioned that we should have one. Hopefully she does it again! 🙂
Aw, that’s too bad that Spoonflower fabrics aren’t all they’re cracked up to be. I’ve had my eye on a print from them that looks like one of Matt Smith’s button-down shirts as well as a damask that’s comprised of light blue TARDISes and sonic screwdrivers and whatnot on a dark blue background. Where else will we go to find our Doctor Who fabrics?!
In any case, your skirt is adorable! My husband got me a t-shirt last year that says “The angels have the phone box” and I have plans to turn it into the top of a dress because I don’t wear t-shirts that often. I love the shirt, though, because that’s one of my favorite lines from the series!
I know so many people who would LOVEEEE this skirt. It’s so awesome!!!!!!
Thanks, Erin! It’s no doubt my fave!
Too blingy? Perish the thought- an adorable jolt of frisky. Thanks for the thoughts on Spoonflower- I’ve been very drawn in by the bright, fun looks…..
I love the designs as well. Perhaps ordering swatches is the way to go to test the patterns and inks. That’s what I should have done first. But honestly, I would have purchased the fabric regardless!
Hi from New Zealand! You look fantastic in your tardis skirt. Just perfect for a Dr Who viewing session. I have a bucking bronco blouse for horse riding – although I hope my horse never gets ideas about bucking. The fern earrings are fab too. I love your blog and your amazing creations. I’m just getting into sewing more of my own clothes and am having a tricky time with fitting. Catering for my curves seems to create sagging gapes everywhere else. I shall battle on inspired by lovely, clever ladies who have won the fitting battle! XXXX
Thanks. Poppy!! I wish you luck with the fitting battle. I’m going to try my hand at some pants one day soon with hopes they are a success. That seems like it will be my hardest area to fit.
I also bought some “silky faille” from Spoonflower, not realising it was polyester (for some reason I thought it was cotton) and trust me – pins leave holes even in the ligther colours! Although it’s awesome getting such interesting patterns, I wasn’t a big fan of the fabric itself, nor of the cotton interlock I got so like you I probably won’t buy more.
Love the skirt though! I really should start watching some Doctor Who… any recommendations as to which season to start with?
Yeah, definitely not buying that again!!!
I’d start with the first season of the new show, which was 2005, I’m pretty sure…. the first episode is kinda lame, but it gets better!
What a fun skirt and I love the vibrant colours. Thanks for the info on Spoonflower. I have been considering using them but I don’t think I will now. That skirt looks great on you.
I wish I would have heard some negative reviews prior to purchasing, although I probably would have just bought it anyway. As you can’t get it anywhere else and I wanted it! I’m hoping it lasts….. We’ll see and hope for the best!! Thanks!
Tanya!! i love this! I have been wanting Tardis fabric for EVER but keep holding back. It’s a little spendy! But well worth it as I see. Your skirt is AWESOME! 🙂 On another note it was wonderful meeting you at the LA Meet-Up and I hope we can all do it again! I hope you got some GREAT fabric!
Thanks, Laurie! If I ever see some more commercially made Doctor Who fabric, I will let you know about it. They made some a few years ago, but sadly didn’t continue with it. That would be cheaper and better quality than Spoonflower.
It was wonderful meeting you! Can’t wait until the next time! 🙂
I love finding another Whovian on the internet! And who knew? I dig all things sci-fi, but my heart belongs to the good Doctor. Love the skirt!
I so love finding other Whovians in our community as well!!!! 🙂
There’s some really neat Star Trek fabric in the Fat Quarter Shop I’ve been debating about. Personally, if I were to cosplay anyone, it would probably be Miss Frizzle from the Magic School Bus because her stuff was awesome. I dig your tardis fabric, but I’m sad that it was hard to work with. Maybe they just need to refill their dye cartridge? I’ve heard mostly positive things about Spoonflower and the like, but mostly through the quilting community.
I plan to make a Star Trek dress sometime when I can decide which fabric to use. I like the idea of everyday cosplay a lot! The colors are great this fabric, I’m just worried about the wash/dry clean and long term status of it. I had never heard anything about spoonflower until people commented here. I would think that a quilting cotton would hold up better for the printing, although not sure.
I love this! The colors are great, I hope they hold up. BTW, how did you like DTLA? I assume you had a chance to visit the fabric district?
I hope they hold up, too! It was great, albeit a short trip as we were only there for about 24 hrs. Only went to one fabric store down there as I didn’t want to subject Brian to fabric shopping, but I guess I should have! We’ll be back down in a few months when there are [hopefully] less tourists!
I love the skirt. I keep seeing doctor who inspired outfits popping up in the blogging world. I think we need a Doctor Who Sewaong!
Well, if they can do one for David Bowie, we could do one for Doctor Who!
Love this outfit! It’s hard to pick a favorite Doctor, because I love the Ponds so much that it skews Matt Smith to an unfair advantage for me. Christopher Eccelston is so dashing though, I’d have to go with 9 for the reboot Doctors.
Thanks for your feedback about the quality of the Spoonflower prints. I have a friend who bought some of the cotton poplin to make a skirt for her femme fifth doctor cosplay (lol with the Spoonflower/ Whovian connection) and I liked the print quality, but it was a simple stripe.
I love the Ponds, too! I was sad to see them go. Christopher Eccleston was also awesome. I’ve probably rewatched the first season about 4x now.
I love how many Doctor Who prints are on Spoonflower! It’s a shame that they are not as good quality as I would have imagined (at least in my experience).
I love it! While firmly identifiable, I like the how two-dimensional the print is. They’re definitely tardises, but not too realistic! I, shamefully, haven’t seen the latest Dr. Who series… so my favorite Doctor is the second one, I think. The one with the go go boot wearing assistant. We didn’t have television channels growing up, so we would just watch the taped from TV VHS copies my dad somehow acquired… I’ll always have a special place in my heart for Dr. Who 🙂
Thanks, Kelly! 🙂 Also, from further away it looks like some kind of geometric print, so not overly nerdy. I wore this with another shirt (a plain one) and it is less “fangirl”. I only got into Doctor Who the last couple of years and have been watching what Classic Dr Who they have on netflix. My childhood was full of Star Trek and all of it’s spin-offs as my parents were always watching that. 🙂
What a great way of spreading the Dr Who love … although I am a recent Matt Smith convert and wait with bated breath to see how Peter Capaldi will manage the role.
Love the skirt and thanks for the notes on Spoonflower fabric. I have heard a few people say that it’s really faded which has always put me off ordering any cotton. Can’t wait to see your Dr Who inspired dress!
I didn’t think I would like Matt Smith as the Doctor, but I enjoyed his interpretation and will miss him. Peter Capaldi is still that jerk from Torchwood to me…. but I think that will change once I see him as the Doctor for longer than a minute.
I am wondering if By Hand London’s upcoming fabric printing will be better, although they are using a digital printer which may be the same thing Spoonflower uses.
I think of him as the weasel from Torchwood, too! I just have never seen Peter Capaldi play a strong leader, so it’s kind of tough to see him in that role. I do hope that he will surprise me, though.
I know, he was a jack ass on Torchwood!!! I’d much rather think of him in the Pompeii episode. Only a little over a month away until we can see what kind of Doctor he’ll be!!! 🙂
YAY a fellow Whovian! 😀 I love the skirt and I can’t wait to see your Doctor Who dress! Thanks for the tips about Spoonflower. I wanted a few prints there, but I think I will look for the print I want elsewhere, especially considering Spoonflower’s prices. I did order a free swatch of their faux suede so I am interested to see how that turns out. It’s a cute print of cartoony looking Doctor Who monsters. 🙂 I am going to make a wallet out of it as it’s 8×8.
My fav doc is David Tennant, too! 🙂 Who is your fav companion?
Thanks, Andie!! 🙂 Yes, if you can find it elsewhere, don’t get it from there. Although I saw people on etsy selling fabrics printed off spoonflower…. I’d love to see your Doctor Who wallet! They sent me a sample of the faux suede when I ordered some Gallifrey print cotton and it looks like it would work for something like that
My fave companion will always be Rose. 🙂
First, can I say it makes me happy that David Tennant is your favorite. He IS the Doctor as far as I’m concerned. Despite the fabric incident, it’s a fun skirt and looks great. You make me want to copy you!
*Fun fact, one time I saw David Tennant at LAX getting off an international flight with his family. Took everything in me not to run up to him*
I love all the doctors, but even as I rewatch episodes, I still love him the best! 🙂 I saw a Tardis circle skirt on Her Universe and that’s what inspired me to make my own. Also, I’d probably would have wanted to run up to him, too! I usually just walk on by celebrities as I see them as I know they want their space.
Your skirt is really cute! I love the idea of Spoonflower, but have heard of enough disappointments with the fabric printing that I haven’t given their fabric a shot yet, which is a bummer because I love the IDEA of Spoonflower. But for their prices…I can’t take that kind of gamble.
I had never heard any negative reviews before, so I thought it would be better quality as their prices are so high. Sadly, not. But if you want something and its not commercially produced, I guess you will pay it, like I did. It only seems slightly better than printing fabric on your home printer.
That skirt is perfect, despite the fabric problems!
Thanks, Kate! Probably should have ordered some swatches, but oh well!!!
Absolutely love it! It’s a shame the fabric was problematic but what girl doesn’t need a TARDIS skirt.
Every Doctor Who girl needs a Tardis skirt!
Cute skirt! I’ve had bad experiences with Spoonflower, I must say – both the knit and cotton sateen fabrics ran terribly when they were washed – to the point of being totally unwearable
:(. I would definitely try to avoid washing this if at all possible – hopefully it survives dry cleaning!
That’s terrible, Jenny!!! I’m going to try hand-washing a scrap of it first and see. Will be crossing my fingers!
Tanya, your skirt is cute. My daughter would love that fabric!
Thanks, Susan! That’s cool that she’s a Doctor Who fan!