Vintage Pillow Case Skirt Tutorial

Call me crazy, but I just LOVE this fabric! I found this pillowcase at a garage sale for a quarter (gotta love that price tag too). I just couldn't decide what to do with it. The possibilities are endless, because really, even though it's a pillowcase, if you cut open the seams, you end up with about a yard of fabric. So it sat folded up neatly on our counter for a good 3 or so weeks before I finally settled on this skirt idea. My daughter is 2, so this is really long on her, but I love the print so much that I wanted her to be able to at least a couple years out of it. The nice thing about little kids this age is that they keep getting taller, but their waist lines don't grow quite to fast. Soooo this is down to her ankles now, but next year it will be mid-calf, and hopefully (I know I'm stretching it!) the following year it will be just below the knee.... We'll see I guess.

But anyway, here we go!

What you need:

1 pillow case
Coordinating thread

Coordinating ribbon (optional)

3/4" Elastic cut to 1 inch less than your child's waist

Pair of pants or skirt to measure height if doing it my way

First, I went on a hunt for a pair of her size 2T jeans (she was napping and I wasn't about to go start wrapping measuring tape around her, lol). I figured if I cut it the exact height of the pants, that would allow enough space for the elastic waist band to shorten it up so that it wouldn't touch the ground - Lucky me! I was right :) Make sure when you line this up that the hemmed edge of the pillow case is on the same side as the hemmed edge of the pants you are using as a guide. This way you don't have to go and hem it again.
Fold the pillow case in half length-wise and decide where you want to cut.

Using a ruler so that your lines are straight and even, mark where you will cut off the top.



Then cut. Remember, you are cutting off the end that is sewn shut to save yourself from having to hem the bottom of the skirt.

I wanted to add a little more oomph to the skirt, so I attached coordinating ribbon and a bow along the stitch line of the bottom of the skirt. This is completely optional. If you choose not to add the ribbon, scroll down to the photo with the waistband being pinned down. If you do choose to add ribbon, measure and cut a piece long enough to go completely around the bottom of your skirt, and singe the edges with a lighter so that they won't fray.

Pin and then sew the ribbon on to the skirt. I was out of white thread at this point, so I just used invisible thread along the edges of the ribbon, and it worked pretty well.

Now we have to form the bow. Cut a piece of ribbon to the desired length, hold flat in the middle, and bring up each side to form the loops like the picture above.

Pin and then sew the ends down to securely hold in place.

Cut a smaller piece of ribbon long enough to wrap around the center of the looped bow.

Fold the edges down, pin in place and sew along the sides to secure.

Now place the finished bow on top of your ribbon trim at the meeting point to conceal it, and sew in place.

We just have to do the waistband and it will be done! Fold over and press about 1/4 of an inch, and then fold that over again about an inch (just make sure whatever width elastic you are using will fit easily inside the casing you are making), and press and pin down.

Sew along the bottom of the edge, leaving about a 1.5" opening to thread the elastic threw. Now you need to know your child's waist circumference. Cut a piece of elastic about one inch smaller than their waist, attach a safety pin to one end and thread it threw the casing.

Over-lap both ends of the elastic once threaded completely.

Sew the ends together.

Top stitch that elastic opening closed, and........

You're Done!!

I love this skirt! I plan on knitting a bell sleeve cardigan to go with it. Start to finish this took me about an hour. It should have taken much less, but I was having sewing machine issues the day I made it. And, if you decide to leave the ribbon off, I bet it wouldn't take more than 15-20 minutes tops. And... I have enough of this case leftover to make a matching headband (I'll post that another day)! Plus another pillow case exactly like it to use on an entirely different project! Yes, I am aware just how dorky I can be, I'm ok with it :)

Let me know if you make one of your own and how it turns out.

If you have any questions, just leave a comment below and I'll answer it as soon as I can.

Take Care!