This post was originally on FleeceFun and I’m finally reposting it here.
Do you have a doll loving kid? Maybe this kid is also the kind of kid that likes to unclothe the dolls, loses the clothing and then poor thing has to go around naked? Not anymore, this doll skirt tutorial is pretty quick so you can get your dolly covered up.
Today I have a tutorial for a tiered doll skirt for 18″ dolls. The skirt has a flat front waistband with elastic in the back and two ruffled tiers. It’s super cute and takes up barely any fabric.
Recommended fabric: Quilting weight or lightweight cotton
No pattern pieces required for this project!
Supplies:
- 1 fat quarter of fabric (there will be some scraps left over)
- 4.5″ of 1/8″ or 1/4″ elastic
- Sewing machine
- Iron
- Optional: Serger for finishing edges
1/4″ seam allowance is used. Pieces are cut width x length
Tiered Doll Skirt Instructions:
1. Cut out your pieces:
Front waistband: cut 1 piece 5.5″ x 2″
Back waistband: cut 1 piece 8″ x 2″
First tier: cut 2 pieces 11.75″ x 3.5″
Second tier: cut 2 pieces 17.5″ x 3.5″
2. Prepare waistband:
- Fold front waistband in half wrong sides together (WST) aligning the raw edges along the long edge.
- Press.
- Open up and press the long edges 1/4″ in towards the wrong side. Repeat with back piece.
- Right sides together (RST) pin the front waistband to the back along one short edge and stitch in place, repeat with other short edge creating a loop.
- Press open the seam allowances.
3. Prepare the tiers:
- Place the two bottom tier pieces RST and pin along one short edge and stitch.
- Repeat with other short edge. You’ve created another loop!
- Finish your seams using a zigzag stitch or serger. Press your seams to the back.
- Repeat with the top tier. You now have two loops.
4. Hem the bottom tier
- Take the bottom tier from step 3 (the bigger loop). Press the bottom edge of the second tier 1/4″ towards the wrong side.
- Then press again 1/2″ towards the wrong side enclosing the raw edge.
- Topstitch close to the folded edge.
5. Attach the bottom tier to the first tier:
- Run two rows of gathering stitches along the top raw edge (unhemmed edge) of the bottom tier. The first row will be 1/8″ from the edge and the second row will be 3/8″ from the end. Lightly pull the top threads to gather the tier until it matches the width of first tier. Pin together RST aligning the raw edges, making sure to match up the side seams.stitch in place with the 1/4″ seam allowance.
- Remove any visible gathering stitches.
- Press the seam allowance up towards the top tier and topstitch in place.
6. Attach the top tier to the waistband
- Gather the top tier to match the width of the waistband like in step 5. The front of the skirt will need to be gathered more since the front waistband is less wide, the back will have elastic inserted.
- Unfold the waistband and pin to the skirt rst lining up one raw edge. Place the skirt inside the waistband. Make sure you match up your side seams! Stitch in place and remove any visible gathering threads.
7. Finish the waistband:
- Insert your elastic. Line up the elastic against the fold of the back waistband and stitch the elastic down in the side seam. Stretch the elastic and stitch in the other side seam.
- Refold the waistband along the lines you pressed earlier, enclosing the raw edges of the skirt. Pin in place and topstitch, stretching the back waistband so it stays flat.
The post on FleeceFun was shared on CraftGossip! Fun! See it here!
