How to Skirt a Table

Skirting tables can add glamour to any room. Most commonly seen during banquets and conventions, the table skirt removes the rustic feel of metal tables by covering up the legs as well as allowing for unseen storage space. Easy to make as well as removable, table skirts are ideal for that next holiday party or family gathering

Measure the height and length of your table. Buy fabric for the table skirt. Always ask for extra fabric not only lengthwise but height wise as well. Sew hems on all sides of fabric 1/4 inch to 1 inch in length. Wash the sides of the table, making sure all debris has been properly removed. Repeat if necessary. Adhere the cloth along the sides of the table. Sew or adhere the cloth strips to the top of fabric skirt. Velcro the skirt to the table

Table skirts fit around the edge of a table. They work with or without tablecloths. Pleated table skirts allow a lot of extra fabric so that human legs can fit under the table without being uncomfortable. Table skirts are perfect for tables with unsightly legs you want covered. It is often easier to make a table skirt rather than try to buy one that has the right measurements.

Instructions
Measure all around the table that you are making the table skirt for. Double that measurement to find out how much fabric you need to buy. Do not forget to measure the height from the tabletop to the floor to make sure that the standard 45-inch-width fabric will work. Wash and iron the fabric before measuring and cutting to prevent shrinkage. Trim off any excess width of fabric if necessary. Make sure to leave a few extra inches to allow for hemming. Fold under all the raw edges a inch and pin in place. Sew a hem all the way around the edges of the fabric. Remove all the pins as you sew. Lay the fabric out on a large, flat surface. Use the floor if necessary. Start in the middle of the top edge of the fabric and fold the fabric to make a pleat. Make sure the pleat is facing the right. Put a pin through the pleat to hold in place.

Continue working your way to the right folding in pleats and pinning in place. Measure the length of the table skirt once you have completed pinning all the pleats on the right side of the skirt. Make sure that it measures just over half of the total table measurement. Leave an inch or two extra for overlap. Make adjustments by increasing or decreasing the sizes of the pleats if necessary. Work the pleats on the left side of the table skirt. Make sure the pleats point to the left. Pin all the pleats in place. Sew all the way across the table skirt two inches down from the top. Sew all the way across the table skirt again, this time sewing a inch from the top, removing the pins as you sew. Iron the pleats for a crisp look. Add Velcro to the overlapping ends of the table skirt. Attach the hook side of the Velcro to the topside of the table skirt and the loop side of the Velcro to the underside of the table skirt

There are several types of tablecloths and table skirts. The two most common are those used for small, round occasional tables and those used for banquet tables. The tablecloth or skirt used for a small, round table uses the same pattern for either. By adjusting the length of the fabric, you can create either a tablecloth or a skirt that reaches the floor. For a banquet table, the skirt is separate and the tablecloth covers the top edge of the skirt. In this case, the skirt is used to hide the table legs for a banquet or buffet function. Banquet skirts are often designed so they can skirt many table sizes. Measure the height of your table. Add three inches for the hem and overhang. Measure the perimeter of the table or tables you will be skirting. Often skirting is run in lengths that will surround a common table size. For this example, we will use 44 feet of skirting, which is enough to surround a 3-by 8-foot table with a little extra left over. This is 30 yards of fabric. Select a fabric that will hang and drape well, such as linen, cotton, poplin, poly silk, poly linen, and satin. Cut your fabric and sew a 1/2-inch hem on all sides. Turn your fabric face side down. Cut cording 30 yards long. Place the cording in your sewing machine so that your widest zig zag stitch will cross over the cording. Sew the cording zig zag stitch 2-inches from the top edge of the fabric. Secure the beginning edge of the cording with a safety pin. Pull your fabric on your cord to gather your fabric. Wrap the skirt around your table and secure your cord with a safety pin. Do not knot your cord. Do not cut your excess cord. Coil your excess into a loop and attach the cord to the back of the skirt. This allows you to adjust the length of your skirt based on the table or arrangement you are skirting. Attach your skirting to the table using table skirting clips. If you don't have clips, you can duct tape the top edge to the table keeping the hem even. The top edge will be covered by the tablecloth.