How to sew a pleated skirt

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Content

Part 2 of 3: Creating the folds
Part 3 of 3: Finishing the skirt
What do you need

1 Prepare materials. Sewing a pleated skirt requires regular sewing tools and a lot of fabric. Due to its folds, such a skirt requires more fabric than a regular skirt. For sewing you will need:

Fabric (color and type of your choice). Cotton and wool fold well, but thinner fabrics like silk and satin don't. Remember that it will take a fairly long piece of fabric to wrap around your waist three times. Therefore, it would be good to change the edge of the fabric when you are in the store. This amount should be enough to make the folds.
A piece of chalk.
Scissors.
Tape measure.
Sewing machine.
Threads.
Zipper (length 18 cm).

2 Measure your waist and skirt length. Measure your waist and skirt length with a tape measure. Measure around your natural waistline or around where you want the waist of your skirt to be. Then mark from the natural waistline (or the waist of the skirt) down to the point where the skirt should end.

Be sure to write down the results.

3 Cut the fabric to your measurements. Having made the necessary measurements, cut a piece of fabric with a length equal to three times the size of the waist, and add 5 cm to the chosen length.For example, the waist circumference is 76 cm, and you want a skirt 89 cm long.Then you will need a piece of fabric 229 cm wide and 94 cm in length.

Be careful to cut the fabric in a straight line.

4 Determine the size of the folds. Next, you need to choose how wide the pleats on the skirt will be. You can choose any width: 1.9 cm, 3.8 cm or 5.7 cm. It is important that all the folds are the same width, so determine their size before starting to fold the fabric.

Keep in mind that the wider the folds, the fewer the folds.If you want to sew a skirt with a lot of folds, then make them narrower.

5 Mark out the fabric. When you decide on the width of the pleats, start marking twice the pleat width on the wrong side of the fabric. This will precisely form folds of the same selected width.

For example, if you want the folds to be 5.7 cm wide, mark the fabric every 11.4 cm.

Part 2 of 3: Creating the folds

1 Fold over the fold and pin up. After marking the fabric, you can start creating folds. For a pleat, match two adjacent marks and fold the fabric to one side. Make sure to fold all the folds to one side, otherwise they will look sloppy. Pin the folds as you go.
2 Place a basting stitch along the top. Once all the folds are pinned down, you can begin securing them with a sturdy seam. Start with a simple basting stitch that you can loosen easily if you don't like how the folds look after sewing.
3 Check the measurements of the top of the skirt. After securing the folds with a tape measure, check the length of the top edge. This size should be the same size as your waist. However, if it is 3–6 cm wider, then you need to cut off the excess fabric to make it fit.
- If you are using a triple waist for a skirt, it is unlikely that the length will be too short. However, if this size is still too small, then you need to start all over again or sew additional fabric to the edge of the skirt to compensate for the missing length.
4 Make a belt. Next, you need to cut a piece of fabric for the belt. Measure along the folds, and then cut a piece of fabric that is the same length and about 10 cm wide. This piece should be folded in half lengthways, wrong side inward.
5 Sew the belt to the top of the skirt. Then line up the raw edges of the top of the skirt and the folded waistband. Lay the belt blank on the front of the skirt. Next, sew a straight stitch about 1.3 cm from the raw edges of the waistband and skirt. The seam will secure the waistband to the skirt and lock in the folds at the same time.
- Cut off any loose threads after you sew the belt into place.
- Don't worry about the raw edges of the short side of the belt. When you sew on the zipper, they will not be visible.

Part 3 of 3: Finishing the skirt

1 Fold up the hem of the skirt. Before finishing the back of the skirt, trim the hem. Fold the fabric under 1/4-inch and pin together. Then sew a straight stitch along the raw edge of the fabric to secure the hem. Pull the pins out as you sew.
- Make sure to stretch the fabric slightly while sewing to keep it flat. Do not sew folds!
- Cut the ends of the threads after you finish sewing.
2 Use pins to secure the zipper in place. When you're ready to sew in the zipper, turn the back of the skirt towards you. Then use pins to pin the zipper to the front of the back of the skirt. Start pinning straight from the top of the waistband and work your way down.
3 Sew in the zipper. Once you've found a spot for the zipper and pinned it in, start sewing along the pinned edges. Place a seam approximately 0.6 cm from the edge of the fabric and the zipper. Pull the pins out as you sew.
- Cut the ends of the threads after you finish sewing.
4 Finish the back seam of the skirt. To finish the skirt, you need to finish the back seam on the skirt. To do this, align the remaining loose edges of the fabric so that they lie flat and are facing each other. This will make the back seam invisible. Then sew with a straight seam approximately 0.6 cm from the edge of the fabric. Run a seam from the bottom of the zipper to the bottom of the skirt.
- Cut the ends of the threads after you finish sewing.
- When you finish sewing in the zipper, your pleated skirt is ready.
5 Iron the folds. If you want clear and noticeable pleats on the skirt, iron them after you finish sewing. Press each fold separately, starting at the top of the skirt and working downward. Note that ironing is optional.