How Much Fabric Do I Need to Make a Tutu

Back in December, I had the brilliant idea to make a green tulle skirt for the Green Party at Alt Summit.

Of course, then I did nothing about that great idea and finally ended up buying fabric for the skirt in Las Vegas (when I mentioned this to Merrick, she said, "Are you going to make Mom sew it?" to which I replied, "NO! . . . maybe.").

It's a really simple skirt, but the tulle skirt tutorial I used was so unbelievably convoluted that both of my parents and I stood around the laptop reading instructions over and over, trying to figure out WHAT in the world was going on. It was kind of like working on those tedious high school projects all over again.

No need for all that baloney. It's totally easy enough to make without the aid of your parents (although, to be honest, I did let my mom do a lot of the sewing (meaning – she sewed two of the four seams – this tulle skirt really is that easy)).

The other good thing is that tulle is super-forgiving. I'm considering making one for Ella, because what's the point of having little girls if you can't make them little tulle skirts?

To make your own tulle skirt, you'll need:

• To do some math first. But easy math! You basically need two numbers here:
  • Length. First, how long you want your skirt to be (measure from your waist to your knee (or wherever you want your skirt to fall to) and add 1 inch).
  • Waist Radius. Second, the radius of your waist. Measure your waist and then divide that number by 3.14. Divide it again by 2. Done.
  • Add the first number (length) to your second number (waist radius).

• Soft Tulle. If your final number (length+waist radius) is 27 or less, you'll need about 6 yards (54″ inches wide – if you can't find 54″ inch wide fabric, you'll need to buy 12 yards). If your final number is more than 27, you'll need about 12 yards.
• Lining in a color that matches your tulle (A knit is better because it won't be as staticky, but I ignored this advice because I could only find something silky that matched my tulle color). You'll want your waist measurement (the full circumference of your waist (25 or more inches) multiplied by 1.5. (So if your waist is 28 inches, you'll want 42 inches of fabric).
• Elastic (I used black). Enough to fit snugly around your waist, plus 1 inch for overlap.
• Yard stick
• Scissors
• Pins
• Sewing Machine
• Thread
• A big piece of butcher paper (optional)

Wash, dry and iron your tulle (or make your mom iron it) so it's as soft as possible. If your tulle is already pretty soft, you can skip this step.

On your butcher paper, if you're using it, make a pattern piece for your skirt with the yardstick. You want a half circle as shown below:

Cut out your pattern piece out and set aside.

Fold your tulle in half lengthwise (if your final number is 27 or less – otherwise you'll skip the folding).

Fold it in half like a book, then in half again, so you have eight layers total.

Pin your pattern piece on top and cut it all out at once.

If your fabric was too small to cut full circles, sew sets of two half-circles together to make 4 whole circles.

Baste two of the full circles together at the top to hold them together, then repeat with the remaining two full circles.

Stack the four circles on top of each other and mark with pins at each of the four quarters of the waist opening.

Pin the edges of your elastic together with a 1/2″ of overlap and zig-zag securely. Mark with pins the four quarters so you can match it with the tulle.

Pin the tulle to the inside of the elastic, matching your pins at the quarters and then zig-zag all the way around.

Take your lining and sew the cut edges together to make a tube.

Baste around the top edge and gather it until it will fit around your waist.

Pin in place under the tulle and zig-zag it securely to the elastic.

Trim excess fabric from the bottom so it doesn't show below your tulle.

Ta-da! You have your very own tulle skirt!

if you liked this post on how to make a tulle skirt, you might also like these posts:

• My 11 Go-To (Easy!) Little Girl Hairstyles
• My Hunt for the Best Slippers for Women
• My Favorite Places to Buy Dresses for Girls

How Much Fabric Do I Need to Make a Tutu

Source: https://everyday-reading.com/an-easy-tulle-skirt-tutoria/

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