Even though time hasn’t been on my team lately, I decided to hurry and make a little something for the kiddos for Easter Sunday.
One of my most favorite memories as a child is going to the fabric store with my mom every spring, picking out a pattern, deciding on fabric and notions, and then watching as she constructed a new Easter dress for me. And as I got older, she started letting me cut out the pattern pieces and sewing simple lines. I always thought it was so cool that a wearable item would evolve from that stack of random fabrics.
And because that memory is such a sweet one, I just couldn’t skip out on that for my kiddos this year. Hectic or not. :)
So……I made both Elli and Chloe some fluffy skirts with a bit of trimmed tulle poking out.
And not just a little bit of trim……..LOTS of it!
They are different prints……but I used the exact same method for each one. And both of these little girlies were happy to try them on……but not so happy to take them off and save them for Sunday. Only a few more days little ladies…
And in case you’re worried about itchy tulle……..there’s some lining underneath to keep the tulle away from their skin.
Now the kiddos are ready for Easter. New skirts for the girls and a NEW TIE for Connor. Yeah, he gets the same thing every year, pretty much. But this kid LOVES new ties……so it works out. (I made the tie using the Lil’ Guy Tie Pattern)
Ahhhhhh, spring is here! I love LOVE this time of year. And even though the outdoor colors haven’t quite turned vibrant, the girls skirts have certainly made up for it.
Oh, these kids… I thoroughly enjoy sewing for them. (And I LOVE even more, watching their nutty little personalities bloom.)
Whew, completed just in time. I’m glad the tradition of homemade Easter clothes lives on. :)
***And yes, I whacked Elli’s hair off. Once the weather starts getting warmer, she always complains about anything on her neck…..and begs me to cut her hair. Well, this time it’s an A-line…..so it’s even shorter in the back. Success. :)
Would you like to give these Trimmed Tulle Skirts a try??
Let’s get started.
SUPPLIES:
First of all, it’s time to determine the measurements to cut your fabric pieces. So measure your subject’s waist. Then decide how long you’d like the skirt to be.
For the outer fabric piece, you’ll double the waist size for the width measurement and then add 2 inches to the length measurement.
For the lining piece, you’ll want it to be the same width as the outer fabric…….but just don’t add on those 2 extra inches to the height.
For the Tulle piece, you’ll multiply the waist measurement by 4 for the width measurement and divide the desired skirt length by 2 for the height measurement. (If you have to sew pieces together to get a piece that’s long enough, that’s okay. You won’t be able to really tell once it’s all gathered up. ALSO, it’s okay to round your numbers if you end up with 6.25 or something. You don’t have to keep the tulle piece exact…..these measurements are just a guideline.)
For example: Elli’s waist is 21 inches and I wanted the skirt to be 13.5 inches long. So, I doubled the waist size to 42 and then added 2 inches to the length, making it 15.5 inches. So I needed a piece of outer fabric cut at 42 in. wide x 15.5 in. For the lining fabric, I cut a piece that was 42 in. x 13.5 in. And for the Tulle piece, I cut a piece that was 84 in. x 6.75 in. Well, as I mentioned above….you don’t have to be super exact with the tulle, so I cut it 84 x 7 inches. (Also, if this helps……Elli wears a size 6 in girls. And Chloe wears a size 2T and I cut her outer fabric at 40 in. x 11.5 in., her lining fabric at 40 in. x 9.5 in., and her tulle fabric at 80 x 5 inches.)
Then, I sewed the outer strip of fabric into a tube by folding it in half, width-wise (with right sides together) and matched up the two shorter ends. I sewed them together using a 1/2 inch seam allowance and then serged (or you can zig-zag) the raw edges. I did the same thing with the lining piece.
Then, grab the outer fabric and lets finish off the hem. To do so, turn the bottom edge under a half inch (iron flat), then fold up another 1 inch (iron flat). Then sew in place.
Then, zig-zag (or serge) all the way around the bottom edge of the lining piece. (No need to fold it up and hem it……but if you’d rather, you’ll need to add more length to your lining dimension.
If you place the lining fabric on top of your outer fabric, your lining should be about a 1/2 inch shorter.
Now, set those aside and grab your tulle strip (remember, if you need to sew pieces together to have a strip long enough, that’s okay). Sew the tulle into a tube, the same way as your fabric pieces above. And to sew tulle together, I always sew two lines of a straight stitches, then trim the edges.
Then, sandwich your bias tape around the bottom edge of your tulle and sew the bias tape closed (just be sure the tulle edge is in between those two folds of bias tape).
Once you sew all the way around your circle piece of tulle, cut off the extra bias tape, about an inch and a half past where you started sewing. Open up the bias tape and fold the end towards the inside.
Then sandwich it back around the tulle and sew all the way past the end of the bias tape.
Now you have a nice circle piece of tulle with bias tape trimming all the way around the bottom.
Now, you need to gather in your tulle. To do so, make 2 basting stitches along the top edge of the tulle, a 1/2 inch from the upper edge. Make one of the basting stitches along the front half of the the tulle and the other basting stitch along the back side. Just be sure to leave long tails at both ends of each basting stitch, so that you can pull them in to create gather. (More info on gathering fabric here.) Pin the tulle all the way around the RIGHT SIDE of the lining……..measuring the bottom edge (where the bias tape is) about 1.5 inches past the lining. And because tulle is kinda finicky, you may have to measure every few inches or so. Your top edge (where the pins are) may not be exactly even……but don’t worry about that. Just measure so that the bottom bias tape edge is evenly spaced below the lining…….and then it will hang evenly below the hem of the skirt after it’s on your subject.
Then, stitch those gathers in place, sewing right on top of the basting stitch…..all the way around the bottom of the lining.
Now, turn the outer skirt fabric inside OUT and the lining inside OUT as well.
Then, slide the lining inside of the outer fabric…..
…..until the top edge of both fabrics are lined up. Also, line up the side seam of both fabrics. This will go in the back.
Then, pin the outer fabric to the lining fabric, all the way around the top edge. Then, sew all the way around this top edge, using a 1/2 inch seam allowance.
Now, turn the skirt right side out, with the lining on the inside of the skirt. Then iron the top edge flat. Sew all the way around the top edge, 1.25 inches from the top edge.
But be sure and leave about a 2 inch opening at the back of the skirt.
Then, lift up the outer fabric and find that little opening that you left open.
And then measure a piece of 1 inch wide elastic that is exactly the measurement of your subject’s waist…….and then attach a safety pin and feed it through this casing that you just created.
Overlap the ends by 1 inch and then sew in place.
Even out the waist band and allow the elastic to evenly space itself all the way around the casing. Then, stitch the opening closed….making sure to back-stitch at both ends.
*****HELPFUL TIP: To get the skirt to lay flat and look more polished…….lift up the skirt and gently steam the tulle a bit with a hot iron (don’t press down……just slide it along it). Also, don’t hold it there for too long or you could melt the tulle. Do this all the way around the tulle section…..and it will really help it look a lot nicer. Also, do the same thing to the waistband of the skirt. Press the waistband flat and then lift the iron as you slide it down some of the gathers. It just helps it look a little less homemade. Try it!
And that’s it. Our little Easter skirts are complete.
Let me know how it turns out for you!
-Ashley
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Hi, I’m Ashley—the DIY-enthusiast behind this crazy blog!
