I haven't done a tutorial in awhile and as you can see I've been on a sewing kick lately so here is a quick and easy little project.
I have been oogling adorable baby bubble skirts online lately so I thought I would give it a go. The skirt is intended to fit about a 3 month old but I don't have a tester yet (I made the skirt based on measurements I found online - if someone out there will test the tutorial and leave a comment so I know the sizing is right I would appreciate it!).
The best part is that it is reversible!
Note: Use a 3/8 inch seam unless otherwise noted.
Step 1: Cut your fabric
- 13 to 14 inches of 3/8th wide elastic (this can easily be adjusted up or down to accommodate different ages / waist sizes - some things online said as small as 10 inches for a new born and up to 15 or 16 inches for a 6 month old)
- Cut a lining piece of fabric 24 inches wide by 7 inches tall (in the above picture the lining is the solid purple / pink fabric)
- Cut the skirt piece of fabric 41 inches wide (basically the entire width of a standard piece of cotton fabric with the edges cut off) by 9 inches tall (adjusting the 9 inches will make the skirt longer or shorter)
Step 2: Prepare your lining
- Sew the short side of the lining right sides together to create a tube and press the seam open
- Iron one of raw edges down 1/2 inch
- Fold the same edge down again another 3/4 inch (this will create a casing that will hold the elastic later)
- Turn the tube right side out when you are done
Step 3: Prepare the "bubble" or skirt fabric
- Sew the short side of the skirt fabric together to create a tube and press the seam open
- Gather the top and bottom of the tube using either a basting stitch or a zig zag stitch gathering method (make sure the stitching is close to the edge so that the gather stitches will be hidden later)
- Pull the gathers on both the top and bottom edges so that the tube is 11.5 inches across at each opening which is the same size as the lining tube (tie the gathering threads to hold the gathers in place at the desired width)
Step 4: Attach the lining to the skirt
- Tuck the lining inside the skirt (right sides facing each other) and line up the raw edges (make sure the back seams line up)
- Pin (making sure the gathers are evenly distributed) and stitch around the entire tube
- Turn the tube right side out and top stitch around the edge on the lining fabric where the two fabrics meet
Step 5: Create the elastic casing
- Turn the skirt inside out and fold skirt in half (wrong sides are now together) so that the raw edge meets the iron fold of the lining piece (place the raw edge of the skirt tube right against the iron fold and fold the casing down over the raw edge) - you are basically tucking the raw edge under the elastic casing edge
- Make sure the line up the back seams
- Pin in place and repeat around the entire top of the skirt making sure the gathers are evenly distributed
- This is what it will look like when the waist band (elastic casting) is pinned down over the raw gathered edge of the skirt fabric.
- Top stitch near the bottom edge of the waist band around the entire skirt (make sure to leave a 1 inch gap to thread the elastic through)
Step 6: Thread the elastic
- Use a safety pin to thread the elastic through the waist band casing
- Zig Zag stitch the end of the elastic together to create a loop and pull all the elastic into the casing
- Top stitch closed the 1 inch gap
That's it! You are now the proud owner of an infant bubble skirt! Enjoy!
Feel free to leave comments if you have any questions!
No comments:
Post a Comment