“You are beautiful, in every single way.”

Howdy ya’ll! I know its been a damn long time since I’ve been here and posted anything worthwhile, but mama’s back … and with a tutorial!

So a while back, a few years ago, maybe 2 or 3… I was perusing some tawdry gossip-y paparazzi website that probably buys photographs of celebrities doing everyday activities with the blood of orphaned Ukranian babies or something, and I happened upon a picture of Christina Aguilera (who I love, by the way… her voice is incredible) wearing a skirt that resembled a pair of sweatpants, or a sweatshirt; a fleecy gray fabric complete with drawstring waist.

I immediately loved it (as a matter of fact, so much I saved the picture as a reminder!) and made a mental note to get one if I ever saw one anywhere, but never did. Then, quite a  while later, on the same website, I saw another picture of her wearing a different one, but a similar style/concept.

Hey! Nevermind the titties… focus on the skirt!

At this point, I shook my fist at the screen and said “Curses!” She has two, and I can’t even find ONE?! Well, she is a multimillionaire 5-time Grammy winner who gets clothing and accessories thrown at her left and right for nothing, so I guess she has access to a lot more than I do, but still. Could such an item of clothing be so hard to find?

Apparently.

Four years or so later after finding that first image, I’ve yet to find such a skirt in any store, anywhere.

So I took it upon myself to make this article of elusivity (thats definitely not a word). It just seemed like such a comfy alternative to shorts or capris on a warm day, just to throw on with some flip-flops and t-shirt, I had to have one.

It was pretty easy to make, and so here I give you my tutorial for a “sweatpants skirt.” It probably would’ve been better if I had taken  photos of each step as I was making them, but I didn’t, so here are some poorly drawn (in Photoshop) step-by-step illustrations.

First, you’ll need a pair of sweatpants. The looser the leg the better, but any pair will work really. It doesn’t matter if they have elastic ankles or not, or if they’re cropped or not- mine were- because the bottoms are going to get cut off anyway. If you’re unsure about your sewing/cutting skill, use a cheapo pair to start with, don’t use a pair of $90 Juicy Couture sweats and eff them up so bad you feel like a dick. This is all about trial and error and seeing what works and what doesn’t. Don’t waste really “good” sweatpants on this unless you’re super confident you know what the hell you’re doing.

Second, you’ll need a sharp pair of scissors that will cut through fabric easily. Sweatshirt fabric and fleece are harder to cut “clean” than most fabrics, so this is really important. I’ve got a handy dandy pair of $35 dollar F.I.T. approved seamstress scissors that work excellently and are probably the one investment I made in the school store that was worth it (aside from Fabriano watercolor paper, which is drool-worthy).

Third, you need lots of safety pins or straight pins. Again, I have quite a stash of both thanks to my F.I.T. days. You’d be surprised how long a big ass box of straight pins lasts.

Fourth, you will need a ruler or measuring tape. This isn’t 100% necessary, as any straight edge (book, folder, etc) will do.. but they’re easier to maneuver.

Fifth, you need either a sewing machine you know how to use, or a needle and thread. There’s not an immense amount of sewing involved here, so doing it by hand is totally acceptable and not terribly time consuming. But if you’ve got a machine, then work it girlfriend.

Got all your materials? Good. Now we’re ready to rock & roll!

• So you take your sweats and put them on, and stand in front of a full-length mirror. Make a mark on each leg where you want the skirt hem to hit. Its not going to be sewn, its going to be a rough edge (see the first picture of Christina to see what I mean) so you can change it later if its too long. Just don’t go too short, unless you want it short, because obviously you can’t add length back.

• Take them off and cut along each mark on each  Then put them back on and make sure this is the length you want them. If not, re-mark, take them off, and re-cut. Repeat until you’re satisfied with the length. ANY length will work, I made mine just a smidge above knee length.
• Cut along the inside seam of each leg, going up towards the crotch. Then cut directly across the crotch, across the crotch seam (if your sweatpants don’t have a crotch seam, thats okay, that just means they were made using a pattern that had 2 pieces instead of 4). Now you should have a completely open pair of “pants”- the outside seams and waistband should be totally intact.

• Now here’s the tricky part. Turn them inside out, and using a ruler or measuring tape (or your straight edge), hold it against the waistband and run it down the pants, making a mark and then pinning along the straight edge. Then, do the same for the other side.

• Turn them right side out and put them back on. It should resemble a skirt, there shouldn’t be any inappropriate body parts showing and no open seams anywhere. If its really lumpy, or the seams are uneven, take it off and re-pin it more smoothly and try it on again. There shouldn’t be a big fabric bump in the back on your ass, or in the front either. This is also a good time to make sure the length is where you want it to be, if not, re-cut. You won’t have another chance to do so.
• Once you’re satisfied with it, take it off, turn it inside out and sew along the pins. DO NOT CUT OFF THE EXCESS FABRIC UNTIL YOU ARE 110% POSITIVE THE SEAM LOOKS OKAY AND IS IN THE RIGHT SPOT. You can always use a seam ripper and start over, but you can’t if you’ve cut off the rest of your “backup” fabric.

• Try it on again. At this point, it should be a totally finished skirt, you can cut off the excess fabric about a half inch away from your seam, and it will be ready to wear. If not, rip out the seam and go back to step 4 and try again.

Hopefully this made sense. If not, go have a few shots, come back and try it again. It probably will. If not, e-mail me and I’ll answer any questions you may have.

DO NOT BE BUMMED OR DISCOURAGED IF IT DOESN’T COME OUT LIKE MINE, OR AS GOOD AS YOU EXPECTED, ON THE FIRST TRY. Its all about trial and error with D.I.Y. projects- thats the beauty of them!

And if anyone reads this and knows where to get a skirt like that, I’d still consider buying one… if Christina’s got two, why can’t I?

This entry was posted on Monday, April 20th, 2009 at 8:23 pm and is filed under Crafts, Fashion, Fun projects, How-to's. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

Tags: Tutorial: Sweatpants skirt