Layered Handkerchief Skirt Tutorial

I have made quite a few of these and every time I have I think it would be so cute to use handkerchiefs and make one for my littlest girl ..... so I finally did.

So so simple and so so cute. I had two moms ask where I got it at school today and a few other compliments about it.  The only down side, my little model didn't want her picture taken.

So I let her jump on my bed so I could snag a picture.

To start measure your little one or if you are making it as a gift you can look up and size or ask the kiddos parents, 12 months should be about 18 inches. Then find a circular item a few inches longer then the waist measurement. Now place the bowl in the center of one of  your handkerchiefs.

 

Keep in mind that from your circle to the corner of the handkerchief will be the longest part of the skirt. Check that measurement so the little one wont be tripping.  All so the bigger the circle is the more the skirt will be gathered once sewn.

Once you check your measurements you can either take a fabric marker and trace around the bowl or just use a rotary cutter, hold the bowl in place and cut.

Using the same bowl cut the circle out of your other  handkerchief. Then stack your handkerchiefs by matching up the circles and off setting the points. With this skirt I just pinned the handkerchiefs together but in the past I have used a basting stitch to hold the layers together just go with your comfort level.  

Then fold your handkerchiefs in half to make a triangle

Then put a pin in each side. I have found that leaving them sticking out makes them easier to work with later.

Fold the skirt into a triangle again so that the pins meet in the middle and pin the corners again.

For this size of skirt I found 4 pins to be enough however in the past, with larger skirts I have done 8 pins again go with your comfort level.

Set the handkerchief aside for now and beak out some elastic. I decided to use black because I had a very cute black onesie that I wanted her to wear her skirt with . Remember your waist measurement and cut your elastic one inch longer. Then fold it into a circle overlapping about 3/4 of an inch 

Now sew a zig-zag stitch over each end of the elastic to hold it down. I go over each side twice you don't have to but my little one is hard on clothing so I like to make sure it will last

Fold your elastic in half, put a pin in the corners match the pins..

pin the corners (sound familiar?)

Now go grab those handkerchiefs, we have more pin matching to do. Match the outside of the skirt to the inside of the elastic by lining up the pins

I line up the pins put a new one into the elastic and fabric and take the pin that is just in the fabric out. I leave the one in the elastic because I find it easier to see when sewing them together

All matched up

Now comes the tricky part sewing.  You have to stretch out the elastic so that the fabric and the elastic are the same length.  You will use a zig-zag stich.   This was not easy to take pictures of but I tried.

You need one hand stretching on each side of the sewing machine 

Front

Back

 Also if your machine has the option for the needle to stop in the down position it is helpful to use it, the fabric really likes to move.

See how puckered it is, you really have to stretch it.  I go around twice because well little girl is so hard on clothing and she doesn't grow very fast so she is in clothing for a LONG time.

All done

She is tooo cute!

and just in case you wanted to know what it would look like in other colors, I got bored with photo shop 

and it is cute in any color.

So i said it was simple but did I mention it is also fast???

It took me about an hour with stopping to take pictures and checking big sisters workbook. So if you can sit down and just work on it it should only take about 30 minutes or so.

I am also working on a headband from the circles you cut out so keep them handy and a handkerchief skirt for bigger kids so stay tuned :)