DIY - School Uniform Skirt

We can't seem to keep up with school clothes in this house.  I do think we are lucky, though, because my kids wear uniforms.  Navy blue, light blue and khaki - that's it.  Shorts, pants, jumpers, skirts - easy enough.  I bought enough fabric to make jumpers and skirts, but didn't get to it early enough.  I needed to get something made QUICK.

I had previously purchased 1 3/4" wide black elastic, thinking I could make some cute skirts (something else I haven't done yet).

  I thought it might be easy to make a simple skirt with two panels and an elastic waistband.  I used a Butterick pattern that was "very easy".  I took the single piece that served as the front and back panel and sewed them together at the sides.

Then I measured the elastic on my daughter's waist and made it a bit snug.  I created a casing for the elastic about 5" wide and approximately the same length as the elastic, then folded it in half lengthwise and sewed a seam.  Then I measured the length of the casing and the circumference of the top of the skirt.  The skirt was about 13" larger than the length of the casing.

Now for the tricky part - I had to gather the skirt in some orderly way to make up those 13".  I marked the center of the front of the skirt, then gathered about 5" on each side of the center.  I then put three gathers in the back, each one 1".

 I basted the gathers and then sewed the casing to the skirt (right sides together, casing is upside down and a single seam that goes through the gathers). 

Make sure the end of the casing is matching up with a side seam.  Put the elastic through the casing, sew the elastic closed and close up the casing.  Put a hem in and Voila!  An easy (and comfortable) school skirt!

I'm feeling very proud of myself, mostly because I haven't been sewing that long.  Hopefully I will be able to replicate this non-pattern again!

cindy