Gathered Maxi Skirt Tutorial

I have been pinning away at all the drool-worthy Pinterest pins of maxi skirts for months.  I thought that once I got my sewing machine (back in January) that I’d pick it up so quickly and be able to sew anything I wanted.  Well, that was not the case.    
Sewing is a lot more complicated than I thought it would be, so I took time to build up the guts to tackle this project.  A few months ago I found this pin and knew I wanted a skirt in that gorgeous mustard yellow color.

In my opinion, I am horrible at giving instructions for sewing tutorials.  It’s also very hard for me to take pictures while trying to thread fabric, so I don’t have any skirt-in-progress pictures.  I find that if I’m trying to take pictures, I make more mistakes along the way so I end up skipping the pictures altogether.

Instead of confusing you with all of my instructions, I urge you to visit Think Liz and her awesome (and helpful) maxi skirt tutorial.

I will leave you with a few tidbits I learned along the way though:

• I really wanted a skirt that laid on my natural waist instead of on my hips.  However, I had a really difficult time getting the fit of the waistband to go over my hips.  It might have been because I only used a one inch wide piece of knit elastic and I will test this theory when I made another skirt.

• All of the tutorials I read said to use a ball point needle when sewing this skirt.  I just used what came with my sewing machine and had absolutely no problems!

• I used 1/2 inch to 1 inch seam allowances the entire time.  Don’t beat yourself up if the seams aren’t perfect though, jersey knit is very forgiving.

• I decided not to hem my skirt because jersey knit does not fray so there is really no need for a hem.  You could definitely hem it if you want that finished look, but it’s not necessary.

• I liked the idea of gathered fabric for this skirt, but it caused me a lot of problems.  If you go the gathered/ruffled route make sure the tops of the ruffles are tucked neatly underneath your waistband BEFORE sewing.  I thought I did, but upon further inspection after I was done I noticed a few spots where the ruffles weren’t tucked in properly.  Not a huge deal, but definitely not the look I was going for.

• I had to use my seam ripper more times than I can count for this project.  I would sew the waistband on the wrong side or I’d pull the thread to gather the fabric too hard and break it and have to start over.  The best advice I can give is to go slow and (if you’re a first time skirt sewer….) read and re-read the instructions from this blog post.  I referenced it many, many times (and still, I messed up).

My skirt is far from perfect, but I still love it.  It looks great with a white t-shirt and a jean jacket!  And I have to admit that I now understand all the hoopla about these skirts.  It’s also nice to know how to make my own because I can’t wear any maxi skirts or dresses that are store-bought.  That’s the price I pay for being no taller than 5’1.     

I am now a huge fan of the maxi skirt trend!  Are you?  Or are you moving on to bigger and better things?