Simple Skirt Tutorial

Here is an extremely easy way to sew a cute skirt...

 

1. Find a knit t-shirt that you don't wear anymore.  Lay the shirt out flat with the front facing you.  Using the chart below, measure the appropriate height up from the bottom hem of the skirt.  (Example: I made a 2T skirt, so I measured and marked 10 inches up from the bottom of the shirt.)

2. With scissors or a rotary cutter, cut straight across the entire length of the shirt when you marked the height that it should be.  You can see where I cut across 10 inches up from the bottom of the shirt.

3.  The beauty of using a knit shirt is that you already have the bottom hem and side seams done for you.  All you have to do is to sew a waistband.  Turn the cut fabric wrong side out.  Fold the top (raw edge) down one inch and pin in place.

4. Sew 1/8 inch up from the bottom of the waistband where your raw edge is.  Leave a 2 inch gap at one place so you can thread your elastic through.  Then sew a line 1/8 from the top of the waistband where the fold is in order to stabilize the waistband.  Sew all the way around the top.  Do NOT leave the gap that you left at the bottom.  Tip: Before you begin sewing, be sure to set your machine to the appropriate settings for sewing with a knit fabric and use a ball-point needle.

5. Using the measurements from the chart above, cut a strip of 1/4 inch elastic to thread through the gap you left at the bottom of the waistband.  Tips: Attach a safety pin to the end of the elastic in order to thread it through easily.  The elastic measurement in the chart is an estimate.  You may need to use a little less if you child has a very small waist.

6. Once the elastic has been thread through the waistband, sew the two ends of the elastic together by making several stitches back and forth with your machine.  To finish the skirt, sew up the gap you left at the bottom of the waistband.

 That's it!  A simple skirt in six easy steps!  Of course, you can always add ruffles, broaches, flowers, buttons, or any other embellishment...or you can just keep it simple.

And here is my model in her new skirt...
She's so busy that I have to just catch snapshots of her in actions.

Happy Sewing!