Self Drafting a Jersey Skirt

 I had some Ponte Roma stretch fabric left over from a tunic dress, it had to go. There was not enough to make a top but I felt sure there was enough to make a stretchy jersey skirt.

The fabric is 20% stretch. To check, I measured 10cm and then stretched the fabric to its limit. The blue pin reached 12cm so it has 20% stretch.

Next I measured my front hip measurement using the side seam of my jeans as a guide. It was 19". I did the same across the back and it was 23". I measured the finished length required then added 1.5" for elastic turnover and 1" for the hem.

Next I cut two pieces using these measurements halved for the width, because I was cutting on the fold. I did not add seam allowances as this will give the negative ease required for a stretch skirt. I kept the waist the same width as the hips because the elastic will draw it in. I did taper the sides in a little towards the hem to give a figure hugging skirt. It looked like this:

As you can see, the bespoke nature of this skirt means if you need more at the front for a bigger tum you could do that or in my case I need more fabric round the back! Either way the side seams will be at my sides.This is a super speedy over locker make but you could do it on a regular machine too. Sew the sides, try it on to make any adjustments then serge or zig zag the top and bottom. 

Next measure a piece of 1" wide elastic around your waist comfortably and add 1/2" for a join. Ensure that when stretched it goes over your hips. (so you can get your skirt on and off)
Join the elastic into a hoop using the 1/2 inch you allowed yourself. 

Mark the elastic in quarters with pins. Line up opposing pins with the side seams and pin in place on the wrong side of the fabric. Now line up the remaining opposing pins with the centre points of the skirt front and back. See picture below:

Now zig zag or overlock your elastic in place by stretching the elastic to fit the fabric. Do not stretch the fabric.

To finish fold over the elastic and use a straight stretch stitch to run a line of stitching through the skirt and elastic fold over. You will need to stretch it a little to allow the waistband to stretch over your hips when you put it on and to avoid puckers. 

This is thick ponte roma jersey so I turned the overlocked edge once and top stitched it in place to avoid a bulky seam.

Hooray! New skirt. This is a great way to practise with Jersey knit fabrics without wasting too much fabric.If it all goes wrong, put it in the bin and try again - you will get better in no time at all. Mine however was worn to work on Monday to invigilate exams - super comfy for sitting down for 2 hours.

Jo xxx

PS. I will put a link to this tutorial on my sidebar which I have updated a little with some previous useful blog posts which were lost in the midst of time.