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The Best, Easy Knit Maxi Skirt Tutorial

June 26, 2013 by Andrea 19 Comments

Last month I whipped up a quick maxi skirt for Fabric Weekend and Skirt Week. I never ended up entering Skirt Week and then never shared the skirt here. Mostly I’m not thrilled posting my own picture but I got over that so here you go! The best way to make a maxi skirt.

OK, there may be other great ways to make a maxi skirt but I think this is the most flattering and easiest. It doesn’t gather too much fabric at your waist or hips and gives you a nice flowy look without weighing you down. I wrote out a quick tutorial to show you how to draft if for your own measurements. I think even a beginner could do this. Knit fabric can be a bit tricky to work with so if you’re a beginner look for something that doesn’t roll on the edges when cut. Other than that, I think you can do this!

DIY-summer-maxi-skirt-tutorial

Tank Top: Target
Maxi Skirt Fabric: found at the Michael Levine Loft last year

Tools & Supplies:

  1. Knit fabric – You will create your pattern to determine how much you need. (see this great list of where to buy knit online)
  2. 1 inch knit elastic – Do not buy No-Roll elastic for this skirt because you will be sewing on the elastic.
  3. A measuring tape to take your own measurements
  4. Fabric scissors or a rotary cutter and cutting mat
  5. Coodinating thread
  6. Sewing machine or serger
  7. Ballpoint needle for your sewing machine or serger
  8. Pins
  9. Optional: large pattern paper (or use measurements to create the pattern directly on the fabric. read all the steps first so you don’t cut the fabric before the pattern is complete!)

Choosing your knit fabric:

  • Find a knit that you can’t see light through, unless you want to wear a slip!
  • The fabric should have at least 25-40% stretch. That means if you have a 10″ cut and pull it the way it stretches most, it will grow to be at least 12.5″.
  • Avoid fabrics with a lot of 4 way stretch. Your skirt will grow as you wear it.

Tips:

  • Wash and dry your fabric and elastic before using
  • Optional: Hang your fabric before cutting. (notice in the photo that the striped fabric was not hung before cutting and it stretched some while being worn)
  • Matching your stripes isn’t that hard. I’ve written some helpful tips here.

Draft your own maxi skirt! Great tutorial from thetraintocrazy.com


DIY-skirt-tutorial-2
DIY Maxi skirt tutorial

DIY maxi skirt tutorial
That’s it! You’ve sewn a flattering maxi skirt! I don’t hem mine but feel free to make yours an inch longer to allow for a hem.

UPDATE: How much you spread the pattern is up to you! I would spread so that your hip measurement is met at the hip area, as shown in the diagram.

 

Filed Under: Fashion, Sewing, Sewing for Girls, Sewing for women, Tutorials Tagged With: a-line, beginner, best, best maxi skirt tutorial, easy, easy maxi skirt tutorial, how to, how to sew maxi skirt, knit, knit maxi skirt tutorial, maxi skirt tutorial, sew, sew maxi skirt, sewing, tutorial

About Andrea

Andrea is a mom to four and the creator of both Andrea's Notebook and Sewtorial. In her spare time she designs sewing patterns for Go To Patterns and surfs the web for interesting articles to post on The Train To Crazy.

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Comments

  1. Stephanie says

    June 26, 2013 at 1:04 pm

    How much to you recommend to spread apart the panels? Or, how wide should your bottom hem be?

    Reply
    • NUALA says

      February 7, 2015 at 8:55 pm

      i would like to know how many inches must be left for the splits, at the bottom of the sskirt. THE NORMAL AMOUNT OF INCHES THAT WOULD BE KEPT FOR A MAXI SKIRT AT THE BOTTOM.

      THERE ARE TWO SLITS IN FRONT, AND TWO AT THE BACK.

      PLEASE REPLY.

      NUALA

      Reply
  2. Andrea @ The Train To Crazy says

    June 26, 2013 at 1:12 pm

    I would spread the panels until the hip area matches your hip measurement. And I don't hem! But you could add an inch for a hem if you prefer.

    Reply
  3. Olga Becker says

    June 26, 2013 at 4:57 pm

    The skirt looks great! Very flattering

    Reply
  4. Lakshmi says

    June 26, 2013 at 8:09 pm

    A is not being used , so why was it mentioned …just curious as I get excited about self drafted patterns

    Reply
  5. Andrea @ The Train To Crazy says

    June 26, 2013 at 8:14 pm

    Lakshmi,
    It is used to loosely measure how much to spread the skirt. (see the diagram on the right below Slash & Spread)

    Reply
  6. farrah says

    June 27, 2013 at 12:43 pm

    Great Tutorial. I appreciate a good stripe match up.

    Reply
  7. TheSewingLoft says

    June 28, 2013 at 8:12 am

    Great visuals Andrea! This is a perfect project for every skill level!

    Reply
  8. Abbeydabbles says

    July 1, 2013 at 1:13 pm

    Awesome tutorial, Andrea!

    Reply
  9. justine says

    July 19, 2013 at 9:43 pm

    Great tutorial Andrea! I love the graphics!

    Reply
  10. Kim says

    February 18, 2014 at 4:24 pm

    Thanks for posting this great tutorial! I have been looking for a good pattern for Maxi skirts and I think this one is just the one.

    Reply
  11. Kelly says

    February 18, 2014 at 6:51 pm

    Hi I LOVE this pattern and Maxi skirts in general, but I want to work with something a bit firmer than most knits. For example suede, light denim, and Corduroy. What kind of adjustments would you need to make to have this tutorial work for those? Thank you!!

    Reply
  12. Mary Jo says

    February 8, 2015 at 8:56 am

    Great pattern. I am going to do this one today.

    Reply
  13. Heather Feather says

    April 7, 2015 at 2:47 pm

    Thank you for this awesome tutorial! This was the only accurate and easy one I could find. I’m teaching a bunch of teenage girls how to make maxi skirts and you made it so simple and easy to teach! Thank you for your work!

    Reply
  14. Barbara says

    November 19, 2016 at 2:15 pm

    I am looking for a DIY maxi skirt that can be made out of wool or blend for winter. I am overweight and do not want a gathered waist. I have some knit jersey maxis for summer and am wondering, with my limited sewing knowledge, if you could put a knit section attached above the woven to end up with a waist section like on a knit maxi?

    Reply
  15. hayley says

    May 27, 2017 at 4:01 pm

    if you’re adding 1 (for seam allowance presumably) and dividing by two (because there are two panels) for C, shouldn’t you do the same with A when you’re measuring where you spread it to? Otherwise the difference is huge and you’ll have a ton of gathering. Is that what you’re going for? Thanks.

    Reply
  16. Buy Cheap Instagram Followers says

    March 16, 2018 at 1:37 pm

    Awesome article thanks for sharing.

    Reply
  17. Karen Blackburn says

    April 17, 2018 at 3:21 pm

    Great pattern, I need to make a fast skirt to wear to a confirmation tomorrow and this will be great. I have some lace with a 2 way stretch that will be ideal, I’ll add a cotton lining. I was thinking of using a wide stretch lace (used for making underwear etc.)instead of elastic as it will be more comfortable around the waist. This pattern will be ideal so many thanks.

    Reply
  18. Lisa Miller-Mecham says

    August 22, 2018 at 9:33 am

    This skirt is super flattering! Thanks for creating this tutorial! The graphics you made really make it easy to understand.

    Reply

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