Sunday 4 February 2007

Circle Skirt: Pattern Layout and Cutting Guide

Fabric Layout Options for the Circle Skirt:

Here are a few examples of how to potentially layout and cut the pattern for a gored circle skirt. The wider the fabric is the longer your skirt can potentially be. All these options are for plain fabric or patterns without obvious direction.
I always cut the waistband longer than I need and cut it down after fitting it to the skirt.
I always cut the front panel on the fold so I eliminated the centre front seam, this is entirely optional, just do it the way you like best. My skirts have an uneven number of panels.

This is a layout for a basic circle skirt with waist band and no pockets.

This was the layout I used, not quite as economical fabric wise but I fit the pocket pieces into the extra fabric at either end. The fabric I used was 112cm (44 inches) wide.

This is another option where you can utilise the full width of the fabric, I used a similar layout when I made my circle petticoat. I cut the 2 pieces on the fold, so there were only 2 side seams. I was able to get a good length out of fabric only 90cm (35 inches) wide. With this option you can make a 2, 4 or 8 piece skirt.


I always tried to have the side and centre back seams running parallel to the straight grain. This gives strength to the seams to support the side pockets and the back zipper.

Always try moving the pattern pieces around to find the way that is best for your particular project.

Try using a very cheap cotton first just to see how it all works.

I hope this has been helpful.

2 comments:

Mariah said...

This is great! Fantastic! I can't wait to try it out. I love long full skirts, and this is just what I've been looking for. I also like your blouse on crafster. I plan to try that one too. I'll see if I can find the Simplicity pattern. Nice fitting blouses that go over the boobie-doos are very hard for me to come by! (I'm working on losing some weight, but the booby-doo issue is always an issue for me...)Looking forward to more as you are able to get to it! :-) Have a great day! ~Mariah~

Unknown said...

I would just like to say, thank you for all of this information! I am preparing to make my own wedding gown, to save costs, and these were exactly the instructions I needed.
Thank you again.