How to Make a Gathered Skirt © F&W Media International Ltd, 2014

Video Workshop

How to Make a Gathered Skirt

How to Make a Gathered Skirt © F&W Media International Ltd, 2014

How to Make a Gathered Skirt

Materials

• 1.25m quilt-weight cotton fabric • 0.25cm quilt-weight cotton fabric in a contrasting print/colour for the waistband • 1m medium iron-on interfacing • 7 cover buttons, 15mm diameter • 1 spool sewing thread

Equipment

• Tape measure • Sewing machine • Ruler • Rotary cutter • Cutting mat • Iron & ironing board • Pins • Fabric marker (e.g. tailors’ chalk) • Scissors • Cover button tool • Useful – Point turner, seam guide

Waistband

1. Measure your waist where you want the skirt to sit, in inches, comfortably around with the tape not held too tight. Add 1in seam allowance to the waist measurement then add 2in for the button placket. This will give you the length measurement of the waistband fabric.

2. From the waistband fabric cut a rectangle 4in x length measurement. 3. From the iron-on interfacing cut a rectangle 1½in x length measurement minus the 1in seam allowance. 4. Fuse the interfacing to the wrong side of the waistband fabric, ½in from the bottom long edge and ½in in

from each short side. Set waistband aside.

(TIP: If your piece of interfacing is not wide enough for your waist measurement, cut another 1½in wide strip with the additional length needed, plus an extra ¼in and overlap by ¼in when fusing onto the waistband fabric.)

How to Make a Gathered Skirt © F&W Media International Ltd, 2014

Skirt

1. Take the 1.25m length of fabric and cut in half along the length, you should have two identical pieces now measuring 44 x 25in approx.

2. Using a ¾in seam allowance, with right sides together join the two skirt sections along the selvedge edges – this removes the need to finish the seam allowance and makes a cute detail on the inside of your skirt with the designers details on!

3. Press the seam open. You should now have a large rectangle 86½ x 25in. 4. On the right-hand edge of the skirt, turn the raw edge under by ½in and press down the length of the

skirt. Turn under again by 2in and press. Take care to keep this even and straight. A seam guide can help.

5. From the remaining iron-on interfacing, cut two rectangles 2 x 23½in. Fuse one onto the wrong side of the skirt fabric, 1½in up from the bottom edge, slotting into the 2in crease you just pressed in the previous step.

6. Topstitch the placket 1/8in from the edge and 1 7/8in from the edge. I like to use a 2.5 stitch length when topstitching.

7. Repeat steps 4–6 with the left-hand edge of the skirt. (TIP: Using washi/masking tape on your machine’s needle plate to mark the position can really help with accurate topstitching)

8. Using your machine’s longest stitch length, sew a line of gathering stitches at 1/8in, 1/4in and 3/8in from the top edge of the skirt. Start at the centre and work your way out to the side stopping when you reach the button placket, then repeat for the other side. Make sure to leave long tails.

9. Pick up your waistband piece and use a fabric marker to mark the ½in seam allowance on both short sides. Fold the waistband in half and mark the centre point with a pin or fabric marker.

How to Make a Gathered Skirt © F&W Media International Ltd, 2014

10. Gather the skirt section by gently pulling on the bottom threads from the three rows of gathering stitches, making sure you distribute the gathers evenly. Gather until the skirt piece matches the distance between the two seam lines you marked on your waistband. You can gently steam your gathers if you wish to help set them a little.

11. Matching the centre back seam on the skirt piece to the mark in the centre of the waistband piece, pin the skirt to the waistband with the right sides together along the edge with the interfacing applied, making sure to leave the ½in marked seam allowance on the waistband clear. Pin only one half of the gathered skirt to one half of the waistband, we will sew the second half separately.

12. Turn your stitch length back down. Sew the skirt and the waistband together with a ½in seam allowance, the edge of the interfacing will act as a guide. Sew slowly, ensuring the two edges are aligned, the gathers can distort the skirt piece so adjust as necessary as you go along.

13. Repeat with remaining half of waistband/skirt section. 14. Press the waistband up and away from the skirt and then press the waistband in by ½in along the long

unsewn edge. Then press the waistband in half along the length with the right sides facing. 15. Sew up the short sides of the waistband using a ½in seam allowance, ensuring that you do not catch the

skirt pieces in the seam whilst doing so, and check that the ½in seam allowance on the long edge is kept folded over.

16. Clip the corners and turn the right way out, using a point turner, or blunt knitting needle, to neaten the corners.

17. To finish the waistband slipstitch the back of the waistband to the seam allowance on the inside of the skirt for an invisible finish.

Buttons and Buttonholes

1. First make seven covered buttons with the remaining waistband fabric, following the manufacturer’s instructions and the guidance in the video.

2. If your machine has an automatic buttonhole function you can simply pop a prepared button into the buttonhole foot. If not you will need to sew a buttonhole with a ¾in opening.

3. Mark the position of the buttonholes on the right-hand placket. Working from the top, mark the first buttonhole ¾in from the top edge of the skirt and then every 3½in down the button placket. The buttons should be placed 5/8in from the edge of the fabric (which is the diameter of the button).

4. Sew the buttonholes and then hand-sew the buttons to left-hand placket to correspond with the button holes, as shown in the video.

5. Hem the skirt by turning the bottom edge up by ½in and pressing, turn up a further 1in and press. Topstitch 7/8in from the bottom edge to finish. Make sure you have plenty of bobbin and top thread before sewing the hem, it’s a long way around!