Pattern Reimagined

Winter months always scream "wool plaid skirts" to me, but I'm not much of a traditional-plaid-skirt kind of girl. Typically your options are a pleated skirt (too Mean Girls high school vibes for me) or a fitted pencil skirt without stretch (no thank you, I'd like to eat my burritos in peace please). However, I scored a beautiful plaid wool on sale from Pendleton in Portland and immediately knew I wanted to make a skirt. Osaka offers some hidden benefits to my skirt woes.

Osaka Makes the Perfect Plaid Skirt

Osaka is a form-fitting, reversible wrap skirt with two versions to optimize your fabric combinations. It closes with snaps or buttons.

If you're anything like me, your weight might fluctuate on a regular basis. Osaka does not have a defined waistband, which means you can sew on more than one button and easily adjust the size of the waist—or wear it high-waisted one day and lower the next.

Since I didn't have a lot of the plaid wool fabric, I chose to make the lining pieces a solid black lining fabric, and I won't be treating the skirt as reversible. I wanted to really show off the plaid print, so I shortened the length of the contrast pieces. When trying on my muslin, I wasn't crazy about the curved hem in the front, so I straightened the hem.

Here are the changes I made to the Osaka pattern:

Shortened the contrast band 1.5"

Shortened the front 2" to eliminate the curved hem

Lengthened the darts

Drafted new lining pieces to eliminate the contrast band

Pattern Hack Ideas

If you want to try hacking the Osaka skirt, check out some of our free pattern hacks.

Create an angled hem with this hack from issue no. 33.

Lengthen your skirt with this hack from issue no. 33.

Add some rouleau button loops with this tutorial from issue no. 33.

For help lining up plaids and stripes, use this tutorial from issue no. 10.

Don't be afraid to think a little outside of the box when it comes to classic and traditional pieces—your overall look can be determined by what you pair it with. A plaid skirt can be a really fun and versatile piece with fresh and modern styling.

How to Style a Plaid Skirt

Pair Osaka with the Savannah camisole and Oslo cardigan to wear to a nice dinner.

Wear Osaka with a shirt-length Neenah turtleneck for the office.

For a day around town, pair Osaka with Astoria.

In warmer weather, wear a tank top like Julia with your plaid skirt.

About the Author

Wallis is a patternmaker here at Seamwork, and she loves to see what you make from the patterns she drafts. When she's not sewing, she's fostering dogs, so you'll most likely find her running around with her rescue golden retriever and gang of foster pups.