One of my largest puppy peeves about women's apparel is that it so often lacks wallet. I understand the reasoning at the back of it: women are more likely to worry approximately looking fat, so they frequently choose the slimmer profile of pants or skirts with out pockets. But even full, voluminous skirts, much like the only I offered for my community purchasing venture very last spring, are often pocketless. I guess in these times, the designers determine there's no need to go to the greater cost of along with pockets when maximum women supply handbags besides. But no matter the truth that I by no means exit without my purse, it surely isn't a reachable manner to carry whatever I want easy get right of access to to, which incorporates a handkerchief. Although my contemporary purse is definitely as an alternative small thru my everyday necessities, it despite the fact that holds nearly as sizeable an assortment of stuff as Mary Poppins' carpet bag, and I'd in no way manage to maintain off a sneeze lengthy sufficient to find my handkerchief in among that lot.
I've visible numerous tutorials on line at the way to add wallet to a garment that lacks them, but with my instead rudimentary sewing skills, I've hesitated to attempt it for worry of ruining a wonderfully authentic skirt. Besides, even though it labored, I'd nevertheless need to do it once more severa times to adjust every pocketless garment I very own. What I actually need is a few form of portable pocket that I can pass from one garment to each different, tucking it discreetly below the waistband. But the way to preserve it in region? Safety pins? Velcro? Hooks on the edge of the pocket that would connect to eyes sewed into the waistband of the skirt?
This morning, I observed this concept niggling at me once more, and I determined to move rummage thru my bin of scrap fabric and spot if any thoughts struck me. What I in the beginning had in mind became doing away with the pocket from an antique pair of pants and seeing if I may additionally want to rig up some kind of suspender for it, however after I came throughout an vintage pair of underpants that still had a serviceable waistband, I perception,
First, I traced the rough outline of a U-shaped pocket onto the fabric just below the waistband. I made this one just big enough to hold a hanky, but you could do just about any size as long as you had enough intact fabric.
Next, I cut around the waistband and the outline of the pocket, giving me a circle of fabric with two attached flaps. I was in such a hurry to see how it turned out that I cut through both layers of fabric at once, and the resulting shapes came out a bit scraggly and uneven. If I attempt this again, I'll do it properly, tracing the outline on both sides of the fabric and cutting them separately.
I then sewed all the way around the edges of the flaps, making a little pouch attached to the waistband. At this point, the pocket was usable but not wearable, because the waistband was effectively sewed shut. But that was easy enough to fix...
...by simply cutting across the top of one flap and then hemming it...
...to produce a complete (if somewhat lopsided) pocket attached to a waist belt. Ladies and gentlemen (but especially ladies), I give you...the Underpocket!
This can be worn over top of my regular undies, underneath my skirt. It's not quite as accessible as a side seam pocket, but I can still slip my hand into it through the waistband of the skirt.
I wore this around all day and I found that it's not an ideal solution. Its waistband allows you to position the pocket anywhere you like, from right in front to over one hip, but that's not necessarily an advantage, since it makes it a bit tricky to find the pocket without looking. Also, even if I manage to locate the pocket with my hand, it's not that easy to fish anything out of it (though it's certainly easier than fishing in my pocketbook, which would probably require a rod and reel). So the design probably needs some modifications to make it more useful.
Still, it's far better than nothing, and as far as I can tell from Google, it's the only garment of its kind currently in existence. So unless someone else comes up with a better design, I'm going to keep fiddling around with mine, in the hope of one day bringing pockets to the pocketless masses.
