The Thistle Kilt (free pattern • Mood)

The Thisle Kilt skirt pattern was released in September 2022… just as I was starting to work on my 2022 Christmas gift list.

I saw it and immediately thought of my niece who has been going for a kawaii gothic look for the past few years.

It seemed to me that this pleated mini-skirt in black would be perfect to complement her red & black checkered looks.

The Thistle Kilt free pattern

As a bonus, the pattern is free and available on Mood Sewciety, the blog of the legendary New York fabric shop.

I’ve already successfully sewn a few patterns from Mood Sewciety and the patterns are correct.

The explanations, however, are to be taken with a very active critical mind!

The Thisle Kilt is a wrap skirt with a flat pleated front, a wide shaped waistband and a closure with kilt buckles.

So, as well as looking very 90’s, it has the added advantage of being adjustable.

The Thisle Kilt is available in sizes 00 to 32 (from 58.5 cm to 151 cm waist) in a 47 pages PDF.

The explanations are only available on the blog, illustrated with photos and in English. I found them clear enough but the pattern is not very complicated either.

The skirt Instagrammed by its new owner in the wake of the gift opening!

Sewing The Thisle Kilt

I sewed this pattern in a size 8 and the pattern fit very well when I tried it on…

For the recipient, I probably could have gone up a size. This would have provided more overlap between the front panels of the skirt.

The pattern offers optional lining pieces with express explanations for assembly.

But I preferred to take care of the finishing with topstitched French seams. This gives the impression of folded seams and it’s clean on both sides.

However, the hem is simply overlocked and folded once to avoid overthickness on the pleats.

The flat pleats have been topstitched flush with the fold using a blind hem foot over a distance of about ten centimetres (2 in) from the waistband… 

… but also at the bottom on the reverse side to make sure they hold up properly over time.

The sewing went smoothly, the hardest part being to find the kilt buckles.

I searched several websites, usually very well stocked, to end up at Fil 2000 in Paris who also let me down in this quest.

Fortunately, IDM, my plan D, managed to find 1 model at the bottom of the shop’s stock… I was so out of ideas that I didn’t complain too much about the price per piece. 

Conclusion

The Thisle Kilt was a hit with the recipient who exclaimed “But it’s totally my style!” when she saw it. Well… I had badly placed the fasteners but a bit of hand sewing after the gifts opening quickly solved the problem.

This is a good project for a beginner sewer because of the lack of zips or buttonholes. Especially since the pattern calls for stable, medium-thick fabrics: the easiest kind to sew with. And the adjustable feature also makes the pattern very practical for a gift…

I’m thinking of sewing one for myself and re-adopting the look of my high school years… after all, I already have the Docs and the leather jacket to go with it!

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