Get Ready For Summer With A Closet Full Of Tinleys

…Fabric Choices For the Love Notions Tinley Skirt & Skort

• Updated with new Tinley photos July 2024

Last August (2023) the Tinley Skort, Shorts and Skirt was released. I was days away from my 2 week vacation in Coastal Maine, but I quickly sewed one up and packed it to go. I can’t tell you how much I wore it! I wore it so much that when planning my summer/vacation wardrobe I sewed up a few new ones!

The Tinley is on sale today, Friday 5/16/2025 for just $6! Remember to use my new code LOVEMARY10LN for an additional 10% off.

*This blog post is all about the fabric choices I made for my straight skirt/skort version of the Tinley. If you want all the details on the Tinley be sure to visit this blog post. There you will find all the pattern details, how I adjusted it to fit my petite pear shape, the modifications I made and a few sewing tips too!

The Tinley can be made from both knit or woven fabrics. If you have a knit in your stash that doesn’t have enough stretch for your other patterns, this is the perfect pattern to use. (As I typed this last sentence I was reminded of a gray French Terry in my stash that I haven’t used yet for exactly that reason! I think it’s destined to be a Tinley!)

Wovens

Pretty much any light to medium weight woven fabric will work for the Tinley. If making the straight skirt(or shorts) version you may want to steer away from lightweight drapey wovens like rayon challis~ however those are perfect for the fuller short/skirt version. I’ve made my three versions from midweight stretch cotton twill, stretch cotton poplin and cotton madras. Other great choices would be midweight linen and linen blends, chambray, and lightweight denim, I’ve even seen a lightweight corduroy version posted in the Love Notions Facebook group that was fabulous.

I fell in love with this print the minute I saw it. I knew it was perfect for a Tinley skirt. This fabric is a mid-heavy weight stretch twill. It’s pretty heavy and would have worked for pants or even a jacket. The fabric has 50% stretch which is awesome for a woven fabric. As soon as I tried this skirt on, I knew that it was going to become a favorite to wear.

Last Fall on my birthday, I was in NYC for a show and I saw this fabric. I grabbed it for just a few dollars and set it aside knowing it would become a Tinley! This is a lightweight stretch cotton poplin and will be perfect for warm days. Since is has some lycra in it, it doesn’t wrinkle as much as regular cottons.

This Navy Sailboat Tinley is made from board short swim fabric. It’s lightweight, doesn’t wrinkle and is perfect for active days. This fabric has NO stretch to it all, so it does fit a bit closer than my other version.

Last year I made this patchwork cotton madras version of the Tinley. I wore it so often. It is a lightweight cotton, yet still has enough body for the straight skirt. It does require ironing, but I don’t mind. It is about the same weight as a quilting cotton. So yes, quilting cotton will work for this version of the Tinley. It would NOT have enough drape for the full skirt version though.

I’m still planning on making a few more woven Tinleys this summer. Those plans include seersucker, denim and a neutral linen versions.

Knits

My favorite knit fabric to use for the Tinley is Swim Knit~ but that’s because it’s the only knit fabric that I have used so far! EDIT: I’ve made a French Terry version, and while it is very cool to wear in hot weather, I feel that the French Terry is too thick for the back waistband. I made the pocket pieces out of cotton jersey to reduce the thickness in that area. I still have plans for a Cotton Lycra version. The important thing is to make sure when selecting any knit fabric for the straight Tinley is that is has good recovery. You certainly don’t want to have a saggy butt by mid afternoon. More stable knits are more suitable to the straight skirt/skort. Ponte and double knits would both sew up nicely.

If you are making the fuller skirt/skort, lighter weight and drapey knits would work really nicely.

If you love bike riding like me~ the straight skirt made with the biker shorts attached underneath is perfect! Made in swim or athletic fabric, it’s perfect for all outdoor activities including pickle ball and tennis! I have always loved the Lily P. skorts, but they are always just a tad too short for me to be comfortable in (and a tad more $$$ than I want to spend). So of course that was the first Tinley sewed up last year! The first Tinley I made for this season was another swim knit version. Both skorts above have shorts attached made from cotton lycra. Another great thing about these knit versions are that they don’t wrinkle making them perfect for traveling!

I have plans for one or two more Tinleys like this. I find them so comfortable and cool to wear. They would also be great to pull on over a bathing suit! I’m starting a Zumba class later this month and I think I might actually wear one of these!

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Thanks for stopping by! I truly appreciate all of you that visit!  If you enjoyed this blog post, consider subscribing to my blog to stay up to date with all my posts!  Be on the look-out for my future Tinleys! I absolutely see denim, natural linen and striped seersucker versions in my future!

Mary Anne 🙂

Remember to follow me over on Instagram to see all my latest makes!  @sewmarymac

You can also follow my Facebook Page~ Sew Mary Mac. On this page you will find information on my makes from all pattern companies. If I know of any good sales(pattern or fabric) I will also feature this information. I have had many of my loyal followers send me friend requests on Facebook. I do post in the Love Notions group under Mary Anne MacLean, however this Facebook account is private. There is no sewing content on that Facebook Account.

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You can grab the Tinley pattern here.

This is an affiliate link. It costs you nothing to purchase from this link, it just helps fund my fabric addiction which allows me to test and review more patterns.

To receive an additional 10% off the pattern price, use this coupon code LOVEMARY10LN.This coupon code can be used at anytime on any pattern….even a $5 Feature Friday pattern. My code does change quarterly, so please always check the newest blog post for an update if you find a code isn’t working.

Fabric Resources

The blue stretch twill fabric and the “Barbie” pink geometric cotton poplin are both designer deadstock fabrics from the NYC Garment District. They both came from Chic Fabrics, 247 W. 38th Street. It is very close to Port Authority and easily walkable from the Broadway area. If you are ever in NYC, it is worth the trip to stop in! My daughter both live and work in the city, so I am there often. Sometimes I don’t have a ton of time to shop so I just pop into one or two of my favorite shops.

The cotton Madras patchwork plaid fabric is also designer deadstock from Chic Fabrics. You can follow them on Instagram, @chicfabric

The Swim knit and Boardshort fabrics are from Raspberry Creek Fabrics.

The Navy Abstract Shell swim knit is from the 2024 Swim Collection. All designs in this collection can be ordered in either swim knit or board short fabric. You can find that fabric HERE.

The Navy Seaside Sailboat board short fabric is from 2024 Summer Collection. It is available in either swim knit or boardshort fabric. You can find that fabric HERE.

The Navy Floral swim knit I used for my skort is from my stash (2021 Swim Collection).

The 2024 Collection is filled with lots of awesome prints. You can also choose one of the thousands of print designs available to have custom printed on swim or any fabric of your choice. The 2024 designs can be found at the link below.

Raspberry Creek Fabrics Swim knit is high quality and UPF 50+. It’s the perfect weight for tops, skirts and dresses and isn’t too clingy. And of course- it’s perfect for swimsuits! The best thing about RCF Swim is that it is available in the cutest prints with coordinating checks, stripes, polka dots and solids!  I also find RCF swim easy to sew with. It’s thick enough that the edges don’t roll and isn’t too slippery.

To read more about sewing with RCF swim fabric you can visit this blog post.