Hey everyone! I’m Alida from I Make Stuff and I’m so glad to be here sewing for this great cause. I have been wanting to make a child’s peplum skirt for a while, and I love this one so much I might just make one for me!
A word about fabric choice. Make sure the fabric you choose bounces back after being stretched. Take a 4″ by 4″ swatch and stretch it out side to side. If it doesn’t bounce back to 4″ by 4″ this technique won’t work!
First cut out the waist band. You’ll want to measure the waist of the wearer and subtract 1. That will be the width. The height will be 10″. Make sure the stretch is going side to side and not up and down!
The skirt portion will be the width of the waistband +12″. The length will be whatever length you desire plus 1 inch for a hem. Sew up the side seams on the waistband and the skirt.
Now it’s time to cut the circle skirt part, the peplum, which means unfortunately it’s time for some math. You want the circumference of the circle to be the same width as the skirt piece once it’s sewn together. Mine, for example is 34. To calculate the radius you must take your measurement and divide by 6.28. 34/6.28=5.41. With your fabric folded length wise and width wise measure 5.41 (or whatever your radius measurement is) from the point and mark with your fabric marker. Keep going all the way from one side to the other and you’ll have a quarter of a circle. I wanted the peplum to be 6 inches long so I measured 5.41+6=11.41. I measured 11.41 from the point and marked it with the marker. Then I cut it out.
Now it’s time to sew all the pieces together! The skirt pieces are much larger than the waist band, so to get them pinned together evenly you’ll have to do more measuring. Mark the sides on the waistband, then the two points between them, then the points between those. Do the same for the skirt pieces. Then line up the marks and pin. It’ll look like this:
Now you’re going to sew them together using a zig zag stitch.
Stretch the fabric taut as you go so that it’s all even and there are no wrinkles.
Use a long, narrow zig zag stitch.
Sew the trim onto the circle peplum. Then hem the skirt using either a double needle or a zig zag stitch and you’re done!
I like to press my hems afterwards to give them a nice finish.
Now find an adorable model and watch her smile!
Stop by my blog and check out this easy skirt refashion:
So cute Alida!!! That ric rac is fabulous! Obviously, a NEEDED addition to any little girl’s skirt :). Very cute!
too cute!
http://sanja-tosamja.blogspot.com/
So cute- the possibilities are endless! The trimming just adds that special detail, nice idea!
That is so cute! Where did you get such cute jersey knit?!