I have put together a simple tutorial for adding a band of fabric to the bottom of a girl's skirt. This will probably be the most simplistic little how-to you will find, and I almost considered not posting it for that reason, but I decided to go ahead and just do it! Who knows, maybe someone can get some mileage out of this!
I discovered that photographs for tutorials should NOT be taken at night because the lighting available is terrible. I apologize for the dark, yellowish pictures beforehand!
I started with an easy (super-easy, actually) skirt pattern (Simplicity 9854)and I simply added some co-ordinating fabric on the bottom. I did it to add color, but you could also do it to add length like the Diva did here with some ribbon. You may be able to get another season of wear out of your little girl's too-small clothes by doing this!
If you going to try this, be sure to let me know if you have any questions!
Step 1: After cutting out my pattern, I simply cut two pieces of fabric equal to the bottom pieces of the skirt. I cut the pieces 5 inches wide.
If you are doing this on an already-sewn skirt, cut out your pieces equal to the bottom edge of the skirt, but add 5/8 inch of length for each seam that you will sew on the sides. (If you cut one long piece, just add 1X5/8, but if you cut two pieces, add 2X5/8 inch).
Step 2: Next I sewed my seams on the band equal to the seams on the skirt (5/8 inch) so that two pieces ended up to be equal in length.
Step 3: Easy step! Simply iron your seams open on both pieces.
Step 4: Now you will pin the band to the bottom of the skirt with right sides together. The pieces should fit nicely, but if you end up uneven, just add a little tuck or a small gather to make it fit. Sew all the way around the edge with a 1/4 inch seam.
---As usual when it comes to sewing clothes, I had to rip out this whole seam when I discovered that I sewed one right side to one wrong side! Practice makes perfect!?!
Step 5: Another easy step! Iron your seam open with the seam pointing down towards the bottom of the skirt.
Step 6: Turn up a small edge of the band (1/4 inch) and iron it in place.
Step 7: Fold the band up and pin it in place to just cover the seam. Iron before you sew to make sure that it fits well. Again, if you need to, just add a small tuck or gather to make this fit.
Step 8: Sew the band in place as close to the edge as possible.
You should end up with something like this:
Happy sewing!
