How To Make a No-Pattern Skirt for Delilah Noir - In Two Lengths You don't need a pattern to make this

skirt, because it is made from two simple rectangles. I'll give you the dimensions to make both a knee-length skirt and a shorter skirt that falls to the mid-thigh. Some sewing skills are required for this project. Materials: 1/4 yard fabric 1 snap for the back fastening

Waistband: Cut one rectangle 7" wide x 2.5" tall (18cm x 6.5cm) -or-

Mid-Thigh Length Skirt: Cut one rectangle 22" wide x 4.5" tall (56cm x 11.5cm) -or-

Knee-Length Skirt: Cut one rectangle 22" wide x 6" tall (56cm x 15cm)

Tips: Wash your fabric before cutting out the pieces. This step is very important, because the washing gets rid of excess fabric dyes that can stain your doll. For very dark and heavily dyed fabrics like navy blue, black and red, I'd wash the fabric in the washing machine with soap *twice*. When cutting out the rectangle for the skirt, cut it so that one of the longer edges is on the non-fraying edge of the fabric (the selvage). This will mean you won't have to hem the bottom of the skirt, because it will already be finished. Another, more practical reason for doing this is to reduce bulk on the hem to make the skirt flow more naturally and hang better. When choosing fabrics for doll clothes, choose only very lightweight fabrics. Heavier fabrics will not hang right on a doll and will be too stiff; they won't look natural. Choose a fabric with a small print that will be in scale with the doll. The smaller the doll, the smaller the print should be. I don't recommend Velcro as a back fastening. Velcro tends to snag in doll hair and ruins the hair. Sewing on snaps is much better and almost as quick to do (and you won't tear your own hair out when the Velcro ruins a $20 doll wig).

Instructions: Use a 1/4" seam allowance when doing this pattern. On a sewing machine, that's usually about the width between the needle and the outside of the presser foot.

First, cut out your pieces out of fabric and iron them if necessary. You should have two fabric rectangles: one for the waistband and one for the skirt. 1. Skirt: Finish the bottom and two side edges of the skirt by folding the fabric over one time at the edges about 1/4" (1cm). I suggest only folding the fabric once, because if you fold the edge over twice like you would for human-size clothing, the edge might end up being too bulky for a doll and can end up looking stiff. If you cut the skirt so that one of its longer sides is on the selvage (the non-fraying edge of the fabric), then you won't have to hem the bottom.

2. Waistband: Fold the waistband in half lengthwise, keeping the printed side of the fabric together and the unprinted side out. Sew a seam on each end, on each of the short edges (see Picture 2). The entire bottom length of the waistband should be left open. Turn right side out.

3. Gather the skirt: Gather or pleat the top edge of the skirt so that it is the exact same length as the waistband. I recommend basting with a large stitch first when sewing gathers, because you want the gathers to end up being tiny, neat and even. If you make a mistake and the gathers don't look right the first time around, you can tear out the large basting stitches more easily than you could if you'd sewn the seam with small stitches the first time. Alternately, you can pleat the skirt for a cute schoolgirl-type look.

4. Sew the skirt to the waistband: Match the gathered/pleated top edge of the skirt with the open, raw lower edge of the waistband, and pin together as seen in Picture 4. Sew the waistband to the skirt and finish the seam with a zigzag stitch.

5. Back seam: Fold the entire skirt in half, unprinted side out, so the back edges match up. Sew the two back edges together from the bottom of the skirt up to about an inch under the seam that connects the waistband to the skirt (about 4.5"/11.5cm for the kneelength skirt, and 3"/7.5cm for the midthigh length skirt). This will be your back seam. Leave the back of the waistband open so you can get the skirt on and off your doll.

6. Finish the back: Try the skirt on your doll so you can see exactly where the snap should go in back for the best fit. Sew the snap on and your doll will have a brand-new skirt!