After working through a bunch of 1940s sewing projects in preparation for attending a reenactment – including an elaborate-for-me cocktail dress using some very slippery crepe-back satin that was a pain to work with – I found I still had enough time Saturday afternoon to whip up a skirt for Labor Day. 

I've had the skirt of this late 1940s/early 1950s Mail Order dress in mind for a while as a stand-alone skirt, and thought the fabric would be a perfect fit with white buttons down each side.

I like the way it isn't very wide and has waist darts front and back, but has some front fullness with the pleat. 

After I had it finished, it reminded me of the vintage western split skirts (only of course it isn't actually split).

I had three yards of this cotton, and after cutting out the skirt, I debated trying to squeeze a matching vest or perhaps contrast for a matching blouse, but decided instead to do a triangle scarf and holder, similar to one I had seen on another 1950s pattern.

The result paired perfectly as an ensemble with a western flair!

So I paired it with a western belt and buckle (since we are Idaho-ans now I can dress western with a clear conscience) and a white 1940s eyelet blouse I had made earlier this summer to fill a need for some basic staples in my wardrobe.

Our beautiful Idaho hills made a good backdrop for photographing a western outfit.

I studied this fabric for a while, trying to decide if it could be considered a polka dot fabric and thus be part of my Polka Dot Project I've been working on this summer. After consideration I decided that since the print was mostly tiny rings, it wasn't technically polka dot – but it's still definitely dotty!

The skirt buttons completely down each side, but since I was making a skirt instead of a dress, I did a once piece waistband that fastens on one side so the opening on the other side is just for show. But the overlap and double row of buttons look nice!

There are other ways to wear the scarf too – keep tuned for a this month's delayed tutorial next week on how to make your own scarf and holder!

The outfit was quite fun to make – I loved working with cotton again after the crepe-back satin project – and was happy that it went together easily and fast enough that I could cut it out at 4:00 on Saturday and still have it all finished by bedtime. Which meant I could wear it for the Labor Day holiday, shared with family, grilled hamburgers, and a trip to a favorite antique mall.

Hope your holiday was a fun one too!