Pleated skirt or dress pants patterns for SD13?

A pleated skirt is really easy. Make it up out of practice fabric first like an old sheet, or even scot towels.

Figure out what you need for a waist band... you can snag that from other patterns. If you don't know how to attach a waist band, buy a doll or person pattern with a waist band for instructions.

Figure out how long you want the skirt to be... remember it has to go over the hips. Add your hem amount and at least 1/4 for the waist seam allowance. (On your practive version, you can skip the hem, but remember to add it.

(when you make your final... have it hemmed before you pleat)

So... at this point, you have all your pattern except the width... that's where it varies and you need to make a decision about what kind of pleaste you want.

A good thing to do is cut strips of notebook paper and play with the pleating before moving to any kind of fabric. (paper pleats easy.)

You want to pleat the paper so it's as long finished as the waist band.

Draw lines on the paper at 1/2 inch, 1/4 inch alternating. (When you do this with fabric, you chalk the lines in). Fold the paper forward, backwards, forward, backwards... and you have pleats. You now have pleats!!!!

On the paper, tape the top where you've pleated... on fabric, you can pin or use masking tape for as long as it takes you to baste stitch it down at the waist.

On the paper, try it on the doll and see if you need to add another pleat. (It will loosen at the hip.)

Intermediate technique (not always needed). At this stage with the pleats, check to see if you need to curve the pattern up on the side of the hips to even out the lay of the pattern a bit. An alternative. If you have a straight skirt, trace over how the hip goes up on the edge and match it.

The pleat mentioned above isn't the only one and you can reverse half of them or what ever. Just like your look in paper first... then make up your paper pattern. Remember, to add seam alowances.

Make sure when you make your final that you make it up in a fabric that can take a hot iron... and use a pressing cloth (or at least a piece of sheet) to press in your pleats.

So... once you have a hemmed and pleated piece of fabric the right length, just attach it to the waist band.

Yes, the pleating seems to need 8 thumbs and 12 fingers... but if you're patience and pin/tape whatever as you work... you can do it.

Hope that makes sense.

-Cat-

 

I spent 8 hours trying to get pleats perfect once. The easiest kind of pleat to make is a 'box pleat', where you pleat one way, and then pleat another. It gives it a 'gored' look without having to sew the panels in.

Here's a pleating guide: http://costume.dm.net/pleats/ It's actually pretty helpful.

As for the dress pants, if you're wanting a uniform-style look, you can probably just make the legs into two rectangular shapes, with a concave curve at the top right side of the pattern for the crotch.