DIY Rectangle Ruffle Skirt Tutorial
I’ve made a bunch of these skirts in the last couple of years because they are super quick and easy. They also produce little to no zero waste and make a great project for a beginner sewist. You can use this concept to make skirts of all different lengths with one ruffle or even two. Before trying this DIY out, watch my Tiktok video about how to make it here.
So let me tell you how this skirt came into my life. When I worked at a fabric company in NZ, I was surrounded by beautiful fabric and a seriously talented and creative bunch of people. It was only a matter of time before their creativity rubbed off on me and I was asking them for tips. One of those people was Sonya who was always rocking awesome ruffly creations like this skirt. Being the ruffle lover I am, I asked her how she made it and she shared how simple it was to achieve with just a little bit of fabric. That night my first ever Rectangle Ruffle skirt was born! This DIY is easily one of my favorites so, I just had to share it here with you.
You will need:
1.38m of a woven fabric with a minimum width of 120cm. I used a 135cm wide Liberty Tana Lawn from The Fabric Store called Saxby. If you would like a longer skirt you will need more and if you want it shorter you will need less.
Elastic to fit around your waist comfortably. I used about 80cm.
Matching thread
Shears
Iron & Ironing board
How to:
1. Working with the width of the fabric, cut 1 large rectangle 58cm high. this is the main part of the skirt. Then cut 2 smaller rectangles both 40cm high. These 2 pieces will become will be the ruffle.
2. Fold the large rectangle right sides together so that the selvages are lined up and then sew up the side to make a tube.
3. Lay the ruffle pieces on top of each other right sides together and sew up both sides to make a big loop. Gather one edge and attach it to one end of the tube.
4. Make a casing for elastic by doing a double fold at the top of the skirt slightly higher than the elastic. Then thread through the elastic, secure and close up the casing.
5. Hem up the bottom of the skirt and that’s it! Don’t want a ruffle? Just make the length of the skirt longer and add a split to allow for walking. Not enough ruffle? Add an extra ruffle about 10-15cm higher than the bottom one. Rectangles are so versatile! Here are a couple of skirts I made using the same steps.
