In order to add some variety into my wardrobe, I decided to try to find a few skirts that I could wear for everyday occasions. I looked at a number of different stores, and the skirts were either expensive, the wrong length, didn’t look good on a plus sized person, or all of the above.
Since I studied clothing design in school for a few years, I decided to break through my sewing fear (from an expensive and botched project) and to try a simple skirt. There were a lot of patterns out there that I liked, but they all had techniques that complicated the pattern. I decided, in order to get my sewing mojo back, I would make the simplest skirt I could.
And, it worked. Granted – I haven’t sewn a stitch of it. But the pattern drafting was extremely easy, and cutting it was a cinch. Since clothing can get expensive – and some of us can be picky about the styles we wear – I decided to round up some information that others might be able to use.
Skirts are really, really simple. I would have been done with mine in less than 20 minutes had I decided to do an elastic band waist, but because I am a bit larger I decided to put a zipper in to eliminate bulk.
I mainly used this tutorial here. It went really quick – drafted a quick pattern, folded the fabric like it said, and laid it out and cut it out. With the way the fabric is folded you have a skirt that has no seams in it – in total, it’s one piece of fabric. Put on a waistband/zipper or make a channel for elastic, hem it, and voila – you are done!
I am partial to the circle skirt, but I plan to try other varieties, too. Some sites I have turned up:
Circle Skirt Directions (includes a calculator that you enter your measurements into)
The “Oh Wow That Was Totally Easy!” Skirt Making Tutorial
And since I haven’t sewn a zipper in years, I decided to see if there was any tutorials out there that might smooth out the process, since zippers can sometimes be nightmares. I found this absolutely awesome zipper tutorial over at Sew, Mama, Sew! It uses a glue stick in order to hold the zipper still – genius! It makes installing a zipper a lot less scary!
In regards to fabric, you will probably have to guesstimate how much you need for your size. I tend to get 2.5 yards of 60” fabric. And if I find the fabric on clearance, that can mean a really inexpensive skirt! Also, if your fabric contains natural fibers – cotton, etc. – then I would suggest pre-washing the fabric if it is washable, to prevent shrinkage.
Please let me know if you have stumbled on any other great skirt or sewing tutorials out there – I’m always looking for something new to try!
Saving in Cincinnati 