Jersey Maternity Maxi skirt

I’ve been seeing a lot of maxi skirts around at the moment – and it suddenly struck me that a jersey maxi skirt would make incredibly comfy and flattering maternity wear!

I think this skirt was a huge success, and it took me under half an hour to make. How awesome is that??

What you’ll need:

- 1.5 yards of 58/60″ wide jersey fabric (You could just as easily make this with a non stretchy fabric, I just think it’s more comfy and drapey in jersey)

- 1 yard of 2″ wide elastic

What do to:

1)  Figure out how long you want your skirt to be, then add on 3 inches. For me I wanted my skirt to be 43″ long so my magic number was 46″ (43 + 3) – now cut your fabric to be as long as the measurement you just calculated. So you will end up with a rectangle – mine was 58/60″ wide and 46″ long.

2)  Now fold your fabric in half width ways with the right sides together. Sew down the side 1/2″ from the raw edge using either a serger/overlocker or a zig zag stitch on a regular machine.

3)  Now it’s time to hem the skirt, if you like you can neaten the raw edge by using either  a serger/overlocker or a zig zag stitch – but it’s not really necessary as jersey doesn’t fray. Fold under 1/2″ and top stitch the hem. (I used a double needle but you can just as easily use a zig zag stitch)

4)  Now we’re going to create the waistband. Like before you can neaten the raw edge if you like, but it’s not necessary. Fold under 2.5″ of fabric and stitch close to the raw edge – making sure you leave a 2-3″ opening so we can thread the elastic. Once again i used a double needle, but you can also use a zig zag stitch.

5)  Now we’re going to cut our elastic. Measure just above your belly, at your empire waist, where you want the skirt to sit. Now cut the elastic to be that long. For me my measurement was 30″. Attach a safety pin or bodkin to the end of your elastic and thread it through the waistband casing. When you reach the opening overlap the elastic by 1/2″ and stitch. Then sew the opening closed.

6)  This last step is totally optional – but i find it really irritating when the elastic in waistbands starts to get twisted through longer wear, so i like to top stitch down the middle of the waistband, attaching the skirt to the elastic. It’s a really easy technique, you just stretch the elastic and then sew using a regular straight stitch all the way round.

And now you’re done! I hope you enjoy your skirt!!

** If you need some extra tips on sewing with stretchy fabric, then check out this post, or if you’re looking for somewhere to buy jersey fabric check this one out.