christmas skirts - day 9 of the 12 crafty days of christmas

ok, this is for all of my sewing friends. 

and really, even if you think you can only sew a straight line, you can totally do this project!

because that's basically all it is. 

four straight lines of stitches with your sewing machine or serger.

This is what you will need:
about 1 to 1 1/2 yards of fabric
sewing machine or serger
coordinating thread
one package of 3/4 inch elastic
safety pin
iron and ironing board

first, decide about how long you would like your skirt to be.
i wanted my 7 year old's skirt to be around 15 inches long. so i took that number and added 4 inches to account for the hem and the amount to be turned over at the top to hold the elastic.
 then i cut two strips of fabric the entire width of the fabric (44 inches) that were 19 inches long.
i also trimmed off the selvage on each edge.
(that's the part of the fabric that has the manufacturers information printed on it)
one strip will be the front of the skirt; the other will be the back of the skirt.

can you tell i love this fabric!!!

next, place the right sides of the fabric together and match up the pattern if needed.

i used my serger for this project, but you can just as easily use your sewing machine.

the only reason i opted for the serger is that it leaves a finished edge on the inside of the skirt. 

believe me, i have made plenty of these skirts with a sewing machine and they turn out great!

so, once you have your two pieces matched up, you are going to sew two straight lines on each short side. you can really use any seam allowance. I usually go with 1/2 inch if i'm using my sewing machine.

so that's two straight stitches down...two more to go.

now, if you have a serger, go ahead and finish off the top and the bottom of the skirt like the picture below.
if you are using a sewing machine, you can just skip this step
or you can iron down about 1/4 inch of the fabric all the way around the top and the bottom of the skirt if you would like to have a finished edge inside the skirt.

next, you are going to iron your fabric down about 1 1/4 inch at the top
to make the pocket for the elastic to go in
and iron about 1 to 1 1/2 inch of fabric up from the bottom to make the hem of the skirt.

after you're done ironing, you will stitch the top and bottom of your skirt to secure your elastic pocket and your hem.

VERY IMPORTANT: remember to not go all the way around the top. leave yourself a little space to pull your elastic through. 

(see the picture below.)

ok, we're almost done!

measure your little girl's waist and cut a piece of elastic about 1- 1/2 inch larger. 

then, attach a large safety pin to one end.

thread your elastic through the pocket at the top of your skirt.

now we need to sew the elastic together. change your stitch type from straight to zig zag.

then sew your elastic together. 

i like to go back and forth a couple of times in an "n" shape just to make sure it doesn't come undone.

it doesn't have to be pretty! it will be hidden by your fabric!

once that's done, just place your elastic in the pocket and close up the opening for the elastic with your sewing machine.

when that is finished, even out your fabric around the elastic and you're done!!!

here are the ones i made for my girls. 

and here are my models!

and i couldn't leave my boy out so tomorrow i'll sew up a  little something for him!