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| DIY Tulle Maxi Skirt with a Zipper Closure |
Okay guys here is the written(with pics) tutorial for my tulle maxi skirt with a zipper closure. If you are more of a visual person and want to see it in action click here for the video. I made a black tulle maxi skirt a few weeks ago for a formal event. While I was making it I got a request sent to my email for a tulle maxi skirt tutorial with a zipper. This is what I came up with, so here it is! :-)
For this tut I'm going to show you how I made this skirt in toddler size for my baby girl using the same methods. There are only a couple of changes for an adult size skirt. Prepare for this post to be picture heavy. :-)
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| Maryam in her Toddler Tulle Maxi Skirt |
To get started you will need a few supplies/materials
*measurement listed are for my skirt
Lining Fabric(King size bed sheet)*
Tulle based on your measurements(18 yards for 3 layers)*
check out this link for a great price on tulle fabric
Zipper
Thread
Interfacing
Fabric Softener(optional)
straight pins
sewing machine
iron
ironing board
measuring tape
marking chalk/pen/marker
The very first thing I do, which is optional, is soak my tulle in a mixture of water and fabric softener. I don't have an exact measurement for the mixture I just eyeball it. I usually just put water in my sink, add the softener and then my tulle. I let it soak for at least an hour, rinse it and then put it in the dryer on air dry(no heat). This softens your tulle, gives it a nice flow when your finished and makes it a little easier to work with.
While my tulle is soaking I get started on my lining which is a full circle skirt. I have tutorials on circle skirts here and here if you want to see the videos.
Starting of with my lining fabric cut in 2 pieces for a full circle skirt. You can also use a bed sheet like I did for my skirt and you will have one piece for the entire maxi skirt lining. Of course if your skirt is much shorter most fabric will be wide enough. For a circle skirt pattern & measurements blog post tutorial click here.
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| tulle Maxi Skirt Lining |
Fold the lining in half once and then again. This makes it's easier to work with and cut. Particularly when your working with a lot of fabric. Set your lining aside.
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| folding the lining |
By now your tulle should be dry and ready to work with. For a full circle skirt I need 6 yards of fabric based my measurements. I used 18 yards of tulle resulting in 3 full circle skirt layers of tulle. You can add more layers to make your skirt even fuller but I wouldn't do less than 3. I had my fabric cut into 3 yard long pieces(half of 1 circle skirt measurement for me) when I purchased it to make it easier. If your ordering on line just do the cutting yourself. :-)
Fold each layer in half and place them on top of each other. Then fold the fabric over. This makes it easier to work with and cut.
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| folding the tulle |
Now place the lining on top of the tulle and cut around the lining. Leaving about and extra 1.5" of space on each side and 1" on the bottom. Do this because you will be gathering the tulle later on in this tutorial and you don't want your tulle to be shorter than your lining.
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| place folded lining on top of folded tulle layers and cut |
Once you have your tulle cut out you can attach the 2 sides of each layer to make a full circle skirt. I did this by sewing a basting stitch first and then serging down each side. The basting stitch helps stabilize your fabric since tulle can be difficult to serge. You can also use any other stabilizer you prefer. If you don't have a serger just sew down and trim off any access fabric.
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| serged sides of my tulle maxi skirt |
Place your layers of tulle inside of each of other. If you are using different color tulle like I did for both skirt's layer them so it gives your skirt more dimension. Next sew a basting stitch all the way around the top of the waistline and set your tulle aside to finish your lining. For my skirt I sewed 2 basting stitches one on each top half of the waistline.
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| sew basting stitch along the waist line of your tulle layers |
Attach your zipper to your lining and hem the bottom. You want to hem the skirt before you attach the tulle. When sewing the zipper into the the lining I left a 5/8 of inch seam allowance where you do not attach the top of the zipper to the lining. This is important because you will use the seam allowance later on to attach your waistband.
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| attach zipper to lining leaving a unattached at the top bases on your seam allowance |
For the waistband use your waist measurement plus and extra inch on each side. You don't have to add and entire inch but I would add at least add half and inch on each side. Decide how wide you want your waist band and multiply that number by 2 and add 1 inch. For example, if you want your waist band to be 2" wide you would make it a total width of 5".
Now your ready to attach your interfacing. I use a piece of interfacing that is the exact length of my waist measurement and just short of the width of half my waistband. Place your interfacing on your fabric bumpy side down and press with steam.
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| iron interfacing down to waistband |
Fold your waist band in half, press and set aside.
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| fold waistband over and press |
Working with your tulle again pull on your basting stitch to gather your tulle. This will help make your skirt fuller. Once you're satisfied with your gathers tie a knot in your basting stitch to keep in from coming out.
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| gather your basting stitch |
Place your lining right sides facing out into your tulle.
Pin your tulle down and sew around from one side to other. Don't sew over the zipper and don't sew the top of zipper down to the rest of the skirt yet.
Pin your tulle down and sew around from one side to other. Don't sew over the zipper and don't sew the top of zipper down to the rest of the skirt yet.
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| pin tulle to your lining and sew around |
With your tulle lined up nice and neat cut a slit through all of the tulle layers down to the bottom of your zipper. This way you can unzip your skirt. Don't worry the slit won't be noticeable.
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| cut slit in your tulle layers the length of your zipper |
Now your ready to attach your waistband. Pin you waistband down with the skirt facing right side out, the waistband facing wrong side out and the interfacing side on the top. Sew all the way around from one end to other and you still don't attach the top of the zipper yet.
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| pin and sew waistband to the your skirt |
Now your'e ready to attach to the top of zipper. :-) Your going to fold the bottom piece of the waistband up and then fold the remaining fabric over. Lay the top of the zipper down nice and neat, pin it down and then attach it by sewing up to the middle of the waistband.
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| fold , pin and sew sides of waistband |
Cut off the top of the zipper, fold the waistband over and pin it down. Flip the waistband over and top stitch where you just sewed the zipper down.
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| trim off top of zipper, fold over waistband and sew it down |
Your final step is to tuck in any fabric under the waistband and fold it over. This is why you added and extra inch to the width. Pin the fabric down and top stitch right in the seam so you don't see it. Take your time and do this part slow. I like to attach my zipper this way so it's hidden and gives a clean finished. If you would like to see a video tutorial for this last part click here.
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| tuck in fabric, pin down waistband and top stitch on the right side |
Here's a look at my finished zipper.
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| finished zipper on my tulle maxi skirt |
That's it! You're all done and now you have a fabulous tulle maxi skirt with a zipper closure. Well done & give yourself a round of applause! You can do this with any length tulle skirt. Feel free to make any changes and do what works best for you. That is the whole point of a DIY project, right? This skirt is perfect for everyday wear or you can add more layers and gathers to make it perfect for Prom, Eid or any other special occasion. Have fun making and wearing your new super fab tulle maxi skirt.
Thanx for reading all the way to end. I hope you have enjoyed this tutorial. Feel free to share and leave any questions are comments below. As always remember if I can do it SEW can you! :-)
