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Cartridge Pleated Skirt
=======================
.. figure:: full_skirt_front.jpg
:align: center
These are quite generic instructions for a skirt made of a long
rectangle cartridge pleated into a waistband (or into a bodice).
As a general style, it can be useful for a variety of periods, including
the mid 19th century and I believe Elizabethan period, but also many
styles of European folk dress.
These instructions add a waistband and attach the cartridge pleats to
it: for many historical styles you will have to skip the waistband and
attach the pleats directly to a finished bodice.
These instructions assume handsewing: attaching the cartridge pleating
needs to be done by hand, but as usual all (running) backstitches can be
sewn by machine with a straight stitch without showing, and prick
stitching and hem/applique stitching can be visibly substituted by a
straight (or decorative) topstitch.
Materials
---------
Fabric
^^^^^^
* At least 2 to 3 m of skirt fabric : mid-weight cotton, linen, silk or wool;
* 70+ cm sturdy fabric for the hem facing.
Notions
^^^^^^^
* sewing thread to match the fabric;
* stronger thread for the gathering seam, e.g. linen buttonhole;
* optional stiffening for the hem facing (tarlatan or sturdy linen);
* at least 3 m wool braid or hem protector for the bottom edge.
Pattern
-------
You need the following measurements, taken over the underpinnings and
skirt supports you plan to use:
* length from your waist to the hem of the skirt, over the skirt
supports;
* circumference of the skirt support at the hem;
* circumference of the waist.
The skirt will be made of panels that are as wide as the full width of
the fabric and as high as the length of the skirt plus 5 (heavier
fabric) - 10 (lighter fabric) cm at the top and 2 cm at the hem (total 7
- 12 cm).
You need enough panels to make a skirt that is wider than the
circumference of the skirt supports: with modern 150 cm wide fabric two
panels may be just enough for a relatively narrow skirt, worn over
petticoats, but a crinoline cage will almost always require at least
three panels.
Similarly for the hem facing you need to piece together enough
rectangles 20 cm tall to cover the full circumference of the skirt.
Finally, if you're not attaching the skirt directly to a bodice, you'll
need a waistband: a rectangle as wide as your waist measurement plus 2
cm allowance plus the width of an optional placket, and twice as tall as
the desired waistband height (e.g. a total of 8 cm), plus another
rectangle in facing fabric that is half a cm smaller in both directions.
.. note:: you can also make the waistband from just a rectangle of the
main fabric that is as wide as described above and four times as tall
as the desired height, e.g. a total of 16 cm.
Instructions
------------
Panels
^^^^^^
.. figure:: 0101-sewing_panels.jpg
:align: center
Put two panels on each other, right sides together, sew one of the side
seams with a running backstitch, starting from the hem and stopping at
30 - 35 cm from the top.
Press open; if you don't have a selvedge also press the raw edge under
towards the seam.
.. figure:: 0102-prick_stitch_finish_front.jpg
:align: center
.. figure:: 0103-prick_stitch_finish_back.jpg
:align: center
If you have a selvedge on both sides pressing the seam open may be
enough, otherwise press the seam open, then fold the raw edges under and
press them; working from the right side, sew the raw edges down
with a prick stitch, i.e. a backstitch where the stitch in the front is
much shorter than the stitch on the back, catching just a couple of
threads of the fabric; stop this seam at some point before the top, as
you will finish it after folding down the top edge.
.. tip:: if your edges are raw rather than selvedges, you can also sew
the side seams with a mantua maker's stitch, which already encloses
the raw edges.
Repeat the same for the other seams between panels: if you want to add
pockets stop again at 30 - 35 cm from the top and resume sewing for the
top 10 - 15 cm, otherwise continue until the top edge.
On these seams also sew the prick stitch up to the top edge of the
fabric, or at least until past the place where it will be folded down.
Hem
^^^
.. figure:: 0201-sewing_facing_strips.jpg
:align: center
Right sides together, sew the facing strips together with a running
backstitch.
Press open. There is no need to finish any raw edge as they will be
encased under the facing.
Fold and press under the raw edge on one short side of the facing.
Also press one of the long sides of the facing by 1 cm towards the wrong
side.
.. figure:: 0202-attaching_facing.jpg
:align: center
Right sides together, put the non-folded side of the facing on the hem
of the petticoat, starting from the folded edge at the center back of
the skirt, sew with a running backstitch.
Press flat and then press up.
.. tip:: if the facing is in a “ugly” fabric you should press the facing
up in such a way that about 1 mm of the main fabric shows on the
back, to make sure that none of the facing shows on the front.
If, on the other hand, the facing is in the same fabric as the skirt,
or a nicely contrasting one, you can press it in such a way that
about 1 mm of the facing shows on the front, giving a sort of piping
effect.
In the latter case, if the skirt doesn't touch the ground you may
also skip the skirt protector, and change the whole facing when the
hem gets ruined.
.. figure:: 0203-stiffening_the_hem_facing.jpg
:align: center
Optionally, sew the additional stiffening to the facing with multiple
lines of running stitch.
.. figure:: 0204-hemstitching_facing.jpg
:align: center
Hemstitch the top of the facing to the skirt.
.. figure:: 0205-applique_sewing_hem_protector.jpg
:align: center
Applique stitch the skirt to the hem protector, letting about 1 mm of
the protector show in the front;
.. figure:: 0206-hemstitcching_hem_protector.jpg
:align: center
and hem stitch the other side of the hem protector to the skirt,
catching only the facing.
Top edge
--------
If your fabric is heavier, fold it down the top edge 5 cm, finish the
raw edge e.g. with whipstitches or by covering it with tape.
If using a lighter weight fabric, fold down the top edge 5 cm twice, to
add a bit more body to the pleats.
Finish the prick stitch around the slit, sewing down the folded edge of
the fabric.
Waistband
---------
.. figure:: 0401-pressed_waistband_pieces.jpg
:align: center
Fold the allowances at the short ends of the waistband towards the wrong
side, press. Fold the long edges also to the wrong side so that they
touch in the middle, press.
Repeat with the waistband facing, folding the edge so that it's slightly
smaller than the waistband front.
.. figure:: 0402-sewing_waistband.jpg
:align: center
Put the facing on top of the waistband, applique stitch the facing to
the waistband, only catching the allowances of the latter.
.. figure:: 0403-marked_waistband.jpg
:align: center
Divide the waistband in as many parts as there are panels (and
optionally half that measure), mark these points.
Cartridge Pleating
------------------
Draw three lines horizontal on the top of the skirt, on the wrong side,
starting at 1 cm from the folded edge and with 1 cm between the lines.
Mark the vertical positions for the cartridge pleated stitches at a
distance of 0.5 - 2 cm from each other, depending on the weight of the
fabric, and starting at half such distance from the slit edge.
Mark also the position of the center of each panel.
.. tip:: if the fabric doesn't mark easily you can pin a sheet of paper
with the markings to the skirt, follow those markings and tear the
paper out before pulling the fabric to gather it.
.. figure:: 0502-run_gathering_stitches.jpg
:align: center
Cut three pieces of strong thread a bit longer than the waistband; fix
them in place at one end of the skirt with 2-3 backstitches in place,
then start running each one at the positions you have marked before,
starting from the wrong side of the skirt.
After you're out of thread, start running the second row, and then the
third.
.. figure:: 0504-more_gathering_stitches.jpg
:align: center
Then pull on the threads to start gathering the fabric and freeing more
thread, and resume running, starting with the first thread.
.. tip:: if one of the threads break, you can leave as long a tail as
you can, tie a new one to it and keep and continue working with it.
If more than one thread breaks, or a thread breaks in multiple
places, I'd recommend starting from scratch with a stronger thread.
Right sides together, pin the waistband to the skirt in the places you
have marked before, arranging the pleats so that they are distributed
evenly, but don't fasten off the threads at the ends yet.
.. figure:: 0505-attaching_pleats_to_waistband.jpg
:align: center
Using again the strong thread, sew the waistband to the skirt with a
whipstitch, catching each pleat twice for additional strength.
Finishing
---------
Add hook an eyes or another closure of your choice to the waistband.
Put the skirt on, arrange the pleats on the gathering threads so that
they are balanced and allow the shirt to close, and fasten the threads
with a few backstitches in place.
Gallery
-------
.. .. figure:: full_skirt_back.jpg
:align: center
|
