CIRCLE SKIRT SEW EASY



Mylee modeling her new outfit -
"Grandma I LOVE LOVE LOVE IT!"
She is 13 today!



Really when I say it is a very easy fast project, it is TRUE!  This striped double knit has been in my stash for decades.  The stripes work well with the circle skirt because you don't have to decide if you want the stipes to go "up"  "down" or "sideways" in the skirt.  It just flows into a pattern that is pleasing to the eye. 
You can use any kind of material for the skirt part. 
BUT the waistband HAS to be DOUBLE KNIT.

MAKE A PATTERN
This circle is 24 inches from the center, or 48" diameter.  This is to fit Mylee who is 13, and about 5'5" tall. 
For your pattern, measure from waist to knee and subtract a few inches which will be added in the waistband. 

(Remember how you learned to make a circle in 5th grade with a string tied to your pencil? 
Yes it was really something worth learning after all!)

But you will only cut out HALF the circle because you will place it on a fold.
Then, you cut out a circle (or half a circle) in the middle with a 12" diameter for the waistband.  (for this size)

I used a roll of wrapping paper for my pattern, or you can use tissue....I don't run to the store to buy anything for my projects because I have collected junk piles over the years.

LAY OUT YOUR MATERIAL the wide way, or long way, (not selvage to selvage). 

Place the pattern on the fold so when it is cut out it is all one piece

Unfold and it's all one piece









WAISTBAND
Take the waist measurement and subtract 5 inches. 
Cut the waistband about 15 inches long. 
(Mylee's waist is 27" so I cut it out at 22")
Make sure the "Stretchy-ist" direction of the fabric is the part that will go around the waist. 
(Double knit will pull easier one direction than the other.)



Fold the waistband in half lengthwise

 

Make sure it pulls this way, not the long way.

sew seam along the long way
I use a "stretch stitch" the whole time. 
It is like a small zig zag and gives the fabric room to pull without breaking the stithes out when you pull on the fabric

Fold it in half lengthwise so the raw edges are lined up flush at the bottom





Mark four equal parts of the waistband and the skirt with pins. 
The waistband is going to be much smaller than the skirt

Stretch the waistband and pin the four places to the four places on the skirt

Don't worry that it doesn't have more pins, you really just pull as you sew.  The pins are your guidelines

Sew with a stretch stitch and pull the waistband as you sew it into place.  I use my hand to pull at the top too

Don't be afraid to do some tugging! 
Just make sure all your tugging is on the material and not on your needle!

It looks like this when you are done. 
The tugging and stretching makes the skirt gather up.

Yes it is really that easy!

You can wear it turned down at the waist or up. 

This is how I hemmed it because this fabric is never going to fray. 
Don't fuss about the hem, just turn it under and sew a straight stitch. 
Sewing around a circle is kind of tricky, but don't be a perfectionist, the twirl factor hides bunches of mistakes!

Nothing girls like more than to TWIRL