Winter is on the way and the temptation to go out and buy a whole new wardrobe (no, you do not need 5 pairs of black leather ankle boots) is getting harder and harder to resist. Well, fear not, for I am going to show you how to make a super easy circle skirt, just like this one from American Apparel – which, by the way, costs the princely sum of 40 great British pounds (or 50 rooster house chicken nugs) – for a fraction of the price.
You Will Need:
1.5 Metres of Fabric, Scissors, Pins, Tape Measure, a Zip, a Button
Right, first things first, put on some sewing choonz. Tay-Tay Swifty, Queen Bey, even a bit of Shakira or any other certified independent women are perfect choices to cheer you on while you are being a SISTEEEEER WHO’S DOIN IT FOR HERSELF.
1. Fold your fabric in half lengthways, then in half the other way so you have a square.
2. Measure your waist (at the point where you want your skirt to sit) then divide it by 6.28 to get the radius. Mark out that length along the corner and draw out a quarter circle with chalk. That will be your waist.
3. Stand in front of a mirror and hold the tape measure at your waist and get one of you housemates to measure the length that you want your skirt to be (if you bend over the measurement will be too short).Then draw this out onto the edge of your folded fabric, leaving some allowance for hemming and make that into a quarter circle as well.
4. Cut round this hem and cut out the waist.
5. Then you have to pin all the way around your hem. Make sure you’ve cut it with the same allowance all the way round and are turning up the same amount otherwise it’ll be all bumpy.
6. Cut down from the waistband to the hem. This will be where you put a zip in.
7. Right. Prepare yourself because this will probably be the longest hem you ever sew. You might want to turn off your choons for a bit and whack on an episode of new girl or something to keep you company and give you some moral support. Seriously. This will take a while. Before you start, try it on, just hold it closed where the zip will be to make sure it’s the right length.
8. Once you’ve done that – actually first of all well done young crafting warrior for getting through it-just take a break. Have a kitkat or something. Once you’ve done THAT, zigzag stitch over the raw edge where your zip will be. If you have a serge setting on your sewing machine you go ahead and do that, but those of us that don’t can just use a zig zag stitch. It’s not even that important tbh, just makes it look a bit neater and it’ll stop it fraying if your fabric is particularly fray-y.
9. Next step- put your zip in. (here’s a guide to help you http://www.makeit-loveit.com/2011/10/sewing-tips-installing-a-basic-zipper.html)
10. Now you can make your waist band. Add a few inches onto your waist measurement so there’s space to put a button on. Measure this length out along the edge of your fabric, there should be the perfect amount left at the bottom after you cut the skirt out.
11.Fold the edge over however thick you want the waistband to be, pin it and cut it out. Sew along one end and the long edge, leaving one end open.
12. Then turn it inside out using one of these bad boys. If you don’t have one of these then LOL HAVE FUN. No, but seriously, if you don’t, you can just sew a short piece of thread onto the closed end with a darning needle then feed the needle up through the middle of the tube until you can pull it out of the open end, which will turn it the inside out.
13. Once it’s the right way IRON IT. OMG ironing is so important. Seriously, just as a general sewing rule, before you sew any hem, iron it, after you’ve sewn any seam, iron it. It makes everything so much easier. So iron your waistband.
14. You don’t necessarily have to do this, but it just makes the waist of the skirt more secure if you hem it. So do that if you want, then pin your waist band on.
15. Find the point opposite your zip, fold your waistband in half and start pinning from there, so you get an equal amount either side of the zip. If you need to make any adjustments to make the waistband smaller, do it now. I put in a little pleat at the front because mine was too big.
16. Once you’ve done that, look through you button box and find a sufficiently awesome button. I found this baby lurking around in mine. Sweet.
17. Mark out a line slightly bigger that the button and make a button hole, then sew the button onto the other end of the waistband and you are done. Bam. Go forth and show the world your new creation!