Tuesday, April 01, 2014

Resizing a skirt without losing the pockets

I recently thrifted a few floral items to add to my spring wardrobe. I found this lovely skirt, originally from The Loft, complete with side pockets. The only problem was that it was a couple sizes too big.


I started by unpicking the waistband all the way around except for the couple of inches on either side of the zipper. I wanted to avoid having to reset that zipper at all costs. I took in the waistband on the side opposite the zipper so that it would fit snugly. Here's how it looked with the smaller waistband.


I thought I could just add a few small pleats on either side of the existing ones, but the skirt ended up very full in the hips. It was not a good look. So I took out all the small pleats and put it five big box pleats instead. It was tricky to figure out the math on that, but I finally worked it out so that the skirt was the same width as the waistband.


I reattached the waistband the way it was originally sewn on, with the raw edges of the skirt and inner waistband facing matching up and stitched together.


I folded over the outer facing of the waistband and top-stitched it down to finish the skirt.


Now it is nicely fitted and still has that twirly feel. And two pockets! I can't wait until it is warm enough to wear it!


Here's the before-and-after shot. Thanks for reading!   -Amy



5 comments:

Andrea said...

Such a lovely after!!! So cute and I love it with the denim shirt :) Great save!

Sandy said...

Sometimes I find box pleats easier to do by trial and error rather than maths...which for me would be mostly error.
Sandy in the UK

cfort82 said...

Your refashion looks great.

Cindy - EOD
Upcycled Design Lab

jennifer elliott said...

I agree with Sandy pleating by trial and error instead of math. But I love the alterations and I love the skirt even more.

Unknown said...

What an adorable print!