Pleated skirts have been in fashion for decades and regularly appear in the collections of famous fashion houses such as Hermes, Valentino, Dior, Armani, Stella McCartney and MaxMara. Many cannot afford to buy a fashionable pleated skirt from a couturier, but even a novice needlewoman with the most basic sewing skills can sew it with her own hands.
DIY pleated fabric
In fabric stores, you can now buy ready-made pleating, but often the quality of this material leaves much to be desired, so make your own pleated pleats according to the old recipe. Such fabric holds its shape better.
Calculate the amount of fabric you need to sew a pleated skirt. Measure the girth of the thighs and multiply this number by 3. For example, owners of hips with a girth of 90 cm need a width of 2.70 m. Since the usual width of the material is 1 m 50 cm, therefore, you need to buy a cut equal to two lengths of the future product plus 10 cm seam allowances and belt. So to make a 60 cm long pleated skirt, you need 1 m 30 cm of fabric.
In addition to the material, you will need:
- 2 sheets of Whatman paper;
- ruler;
- pencil;
- threads;
- needles;
- scissors;
- wide elastic band;
- sewing machine;
- iron;
- gauze;
- soap;
- water;
- vinegar.
Pleating manufacturing technology
Make a template. Fold 2 sheets of Whatman paper and mark the width of the folds along the entire length of the paper on both sides. In the marked places, pierce both Whatman paper.
Apply a ruler to the markings and draw a line with the blunt side of the scissors so that clear lines remain. Fold both sheets over them with an accordion. Stretch the sheets slightly and lay them on top of each other, matching the folds. Press down everything with some weight and iron it with an iron through cheesecloth.
Place a piece of fabric between the resulting shapes. To prevent the canvas from sliding off, pin the edges with pins. Iron through damp gauze and let it dry for a couple of hours. Remove the paper templates carefully. Baste pleats on the pleats.
Make a fixing solution. Dissolve the soap in warm water and add a spoonful of vinegar. Soak cheesecloth in the solution and iron the fabric through it. Repeat the process several times to make the folds more defined.
Sewing a pleated skirt
Stitch the pleated pieces into one piece so that the seams are in the inner folds of the folds. Overlock the seams.
Cut out a piece for the belt with a length equal to the waist circumference and a width equal to the size of the elastic tape, multiplied by 2 plus 2 cm by the seams. Fold the belt part in half and iron it. Insert elastic tape into it and sew the edges of the belt.
Attach the upper side of the skirt to the edge of the belt and baste, carefully distributing the folds. Sew on the belt with a sewing machine.
Remove the basting that holds the folds together. Overlap the bottom edge of the skirt. Fold to the wrong side 1 time and stitch 2 mm from the edge.
Once again, sweep away the folds of the skirt and iron through the gauze soaked in the solution. Remove the outline.
