Sew a quick and easy skirt

Have you ever seen a men’s shirt, and you just fell wholeheartedly in love with the fabric? I did, last week when I walked into my local charity shop and saw the most gorgeous green fabric. But as a shirt, it wasn’t really what I wanted, so I turned my shirt into a skirt. It’s really not that difficult, and since most of the seams have already been sewn, it hardly takes any time at all.

What do you need:

Large button-up shirt
Sewing machine (although you can sew the skirt by hand)
Measuring tape
Scissors
Thread in matching colour
Tailor’s chalk or vanishing marker

If you want to change the buttons on the shirt, you will need some buttons too.

How to sew the skirt:

Step 1 measure:

Measure your waist or where you want your skirt to fall. So if you want it to sit on your hips as opposed to the middle of your waist, you measure there. Then the second thing you will want to measure is the length of your skirt. Do you want it to come down to your knees, or do you prefer a mini skirt?

For me, these measurements came down to 75 cm on my waist and a skirt length of 55 cm.

Step 2 mark and cut up the skirt:

Mark up the fabric:
Take your length measurement and along the button front measure and mark at the top. Now that you know where your waist measurement is going to be, you can mark up your waist.

Simply halve the waist measurement. Mine was 75 cm, so after halving that, I end up with a measurement of 37,5 cm. Just mark a straight line across the shirt. Make sure that your measurement is the same length on both sides of the button front. (so in my case about 9 cm on each side)

Then draw a diagonal line from the end of your waist mark up to the bottom of your skirt.

Cut up the fabric:
Your markings should have made a slight A-frame type skirt.
Cut about 1 cm away from your markings, this is for seam allowance. Once you’ve cut out the entire skirt, put the right sides facing and pin together.

Step 3 sew the skirt:

Setting up the machine:
If you have a sewing machine then thread your machine with a matching colour of thread. If you’re going to sew by hand then thread your needle with a matching colour. With regards to thread colours, it tends to be better to use a slightly darker shade then a lighter one if you don’t have an exact match.

Make sure you have the correct needle type for your fabric, for your typical woven cotton that would be a universal needle. But if for any chance you use a knit fabric you would want to use a ballpoint or stretch needle. This will help for a sleeker finish.

Test a scrap piece of fabric to see if your machine’s tension is set correctly, adjust tension if necessary.

Sewing the skirt:
Sew the sides of the skirt together and finish off the raw edges to prevent fraying. If your fabric is particularly prone to fraying, I would also recommend using a zigzag stitch on the top of the skirt to prevent any fraying around your waistband.

If you wish to add your own buttons and/or make a new button band. I would recommend you do so now. I used the button side to put in buttonholes and sewed buttons onto the buttonhole side. This way, you can’t see the original buttonholes. Of course, if your buttons are the same size as the original buttons, you wouldn’t have to do that. Then you could just use the original buttonholes. Or you could just keep the original buttons and not mess with it, which would make for a much quicker sew.

Step 4 mark and cut waistband:

If you still have enough length on your shirt to cut out the waistband from here, then by all means do so. But if you don’t have enough room there, then use a sleeve. I like to have a waistband that is about 3 cm wide, and to make a waistband you need at least double the width, and of course, don’t forget to add about 1 cm on both sides for the seam allowance.

I recommend cutting the sleeve open on the seam to make marking up and cutting easier. Measure, mark and cut the fabric according to your waist measurement and add about 5 cm so you can have an overlap for your button. Since sleeves tend to not be 80 cm long, I cut out two straps and sewed them together on one of the short sides. This way, I ended up with a nice long waistband

Step 5 sew the waistband:

If you haven’t sewn the short sides that meet at the back together then do so now. Once you’ve done this, you have a waistband that should fit all around your waist and still have a bit extra for the front closure.

Folding the waistband:
I like to iron my waistband into shape before I start sewing because this will give a nice sleek edge. To do this, fold your waistband in half width-wise so that you have a thin strip doubled up, with the good side facing out. Then on both of the bottom sides of the waistband fold the fabric inwards and iron this as you go along. This way both sides of the waistband bottom are equal. You should now be left with a clean looking waistband that doesn’t show raw edges on the bottom.

Attach waistband to skirt:
Find the center back and align with the center of the waistband, then pin together. Once everything is pinned together and you are sure that the waistband sits horizontally on the skirt. You can sew them together with a stitch of your choice.

At the front closure, you should have roughly equal pieces of excess fabric. Fold these inwards, so that they are tucked into the waistband itself. Straighten out the edge and iron if necessary for a sleeker finish, then sew shut.

Closure button:
If you have a matching button that is just one or two sizes larger then the rest of the buttons, you can sew it on the waistband and sew a corresponding buttonhole on the opposite side. If you don’t have a matching one or you prefer a buttonless waistband, you can use snaps.

Finishing up

Check your skirt for any loose threads or any mistakes you may not have noticed before. If it passes your inspection, try it on and take it for a spin. And most importantly, feel good about making your own skirt that no one else has. Let me know in the comments how you fared with your skirt creation.