How to Alter a Pleated Skirt that is too Big

How to Alter a Pleated Skirt that is too Big

How to alter a pleated skirt that is too big

A solid pleated skirt is a fashion mainstay in the closet of every women. A good pleated skirt can never really go out of fashion because of its sheer versatility. A single skirt can be used in multiple ways to create many looks whether you need to team it up with formal wear or a setting out for a breezy Sunday brunch with your friends.

But what happens when you have lost a few inches around the waist and your favourite pleated skirt does not quite fit the way it used to?

You don’t want your favourite skirt to be relegated to a forgettable corner of the closet! What you need then is solutions on how to alter your skirt!

But before we get into the details and tell you how to alter a pleated skirt, let us tell you why we are talking about pleated skirts now in 2019.

The Pleated Skirt in 2019

Well, the reason is, 2019 itself! If there is a fashion trend you do not want to miss this season, it is definitely the pleated skirt! Let us tell you about a few ways to style and pair up your pleated skirt this year to look hip and trendy. That way, you will also find inspiration to learn about how to alter it!

Let’s begin with the easiest and sassiest way to fashion your pleated skirt. Yes. You guesses it right! You cannot go wrong with a white shirt if you are going for the formal look, with any solid coloured pleated skirt.

Heading out for a casual outing after work? Just throw on a denim jacket over the white shirt and you are set for the evening.

Monochrome or Colorful – The Choice is Yours

The other trend that is in 2019, is monochrome. So if you have a pleated skirt of a solid color or even grey or beige, all you need to do is find a big sweater or a V-neck top of the same color.

Depending on where you are headed, you can either sass it up with a chunky piece of neckwear or even a scarf or simply accessorise with a satchel bag if you are headed for a formal meeting.

A simple white shirt with a white pleated skirt is also a great combination to consider. You can add a bit of funk to your outfit with ankle length boots preferably of the same colour.

If your skirt is bright and colourful, the way to style it either with a neutral or a tonal hue to add some balance. Accessorise with a contrasting clutch with your skirt and your look is complete.

If you are a fan of the fur and your skirt is a bright blue or a red, you can simply dazzle by paring your skirt with a black long sleeve top with a fur vest thrown over it. Complete the look with a chunky pair of earrings and black or white ankle high boots. A simple long sleeve black top with a bright coloured skirt just as well.

A Skirt for all Occasions

Headed out for a semi-formal do? Just pair your skirt with a light coloured shirt and chunky neckwear and a belt and you are sure to stand out in a crowd! If you are a fan of the classic styles, you can simply choose a foral top and throw a blazer over your top. Choose pumps or embellished sandals to complete your look.

A long pleated skirt does not feel flattering for your long legs? Why not shorten the hem of the skirt by a few inches and pairing it with a turtle neck, blazer and stockings?

If you are headed out on a summer day, swap the turtleneck with a cute crop top or short shirt and you are good to go! Whatever style you choose, a pleated skirt is sure to work wonders this  year.

So why leave that beautiful pleated skirt hidden under a pile of unused clothes in your closet. Bring it out and let us learn all about how to alter a pleated skirt that is too big. To begin with an alteration of a skirt that is too big, you need to get the exact measurement.

Put the skirt on and with the thumb and forefinger take out enough of the waistband so that the skirt feels comfortable. Make sure you sit down, while holding out the waistband to ensure that the skirt does not become too tight around the waist.

Begin with the Math

Make a note of this number. Now it is time for a bit of math. Consider the number you have noted down as the total amount. What you have to do now is divide the total amount by the number of pleats you want to take in.

For example you want to take in your skirt by 2 inches and you want to take in 4 pleats. So 2 divided by 4 is ½. Thus each pleat gets taken in by ½ an inch. Now each pleat has 2 sides, so we divide ½ by 2 again and get in 1/4inches.

Now that the math is sorted, we go about with the alteration. First we begin with the waistband. As you will notice with a pleated skirt, the waistband is a separate piece of fabric, so the first step is to remove it.

You may have to remove the whole waistband or just the ends. This depends on where your pleats are positioned. Make note of the fact that the underneath side of the waistband is a bit wider than the front side for you to be able to catch both sides of the band.

With a grip on the band pull the waist up back in place with the right side up. Note that the waist of the skirt is on the left and the hem is on the right. Leave the stitching there and ease the adjusted waist into the pleat. Now, we will use the math calculation as we had enunciated above to adjust the pleats and make new one from the right leg.

Neatness is Key

Use your fingers to make even pleats and pin them up. Make sure that the mark of the original pleats go underneath. If your skirt has lines or squares try and match it to the lines as closely as possible.

To get it done in the best possible manner, it is highly recommended that you use an ironing board or any other hard surface such as a sleeve board underneath. The new pleats should be laid out in a smooth manner and ensure that that there is no puckering or bunching underneath.

Now it is time to set the pleats. You can use an iron or a steamer to set the pleats. Along with the pleats, steam or iron the waistband as well. This will give your skirt a new shape and make reattaching much easier. Now maintain the new curve and stitch the waistband back in. Now top stich the pleats by stitching about 1/8” on one side of each pleat.

The trick to do it is as follows. When your needle touches the existing topstitching, you make two stitches horizontally and come on to the other side towards the waist. Now zip the skirt up and mark where the button should be located.

Now move it in 2 inches and keep the rest of the waistband intact in case you need to make adjustments to your favourite skirt later. Now attached the button to your new marked spot and your favourite pleated skirt is as good as new!

Altering a Skirt at the Middle

While the process described above may seem a little too elaborate at least for those who are not too proficient with stitching, there is no need to despair. There are other ways to alter a pleated skirt that is too big as well.

For instance, you can turn the skirt inside out and slide it around your waist, sit down and ensure that it sits comfortably around the contours of your body. Now grasp and pull out the extra material and bring it to the center of your skirt.

With the bulging material out in the center of the skirt all you have to do is to use three safety pin to adjust the extra material neatly.

The next thing you do is stitch neatly with a measurement of about 1 to 1 and a half inch alongside the safety pins, removing them as you go. Next you top stitch the sides of the pleat about a half inch down.

What happens as a result is that you now have a pleat at the center that falls neatly at the back, adjusting the waistline without having to take it out fully as described in the earlier instance.

Hemming it in

Of course you can hem in the skirt if it is too long. For instance you can trim about quarter or half an inch of the amount of fabric and create an overcast edge which is single fold edge that folds from the outside to the inside of the skirt. Next you re-stich the side seams stopping when you are above the overcast edge of the newly folded hemline.

Once you create a hem in front of the skirt and the back of the skirt sew them back in place separately rather than doing it all at once. The hem should match the seams to achieve the look that you are going for.

A Timely Tip

A useful tip at this stage will come in handy when you are learning how to alter a pleated skirt that is too big. A major problem that you can face during alteration is with the seam lines. Seam lines can make pleated skirts seem a bit tricky as they tend to split open at the hemline.

To prevent this problem, sew the pleat together about a quarter of an inch from the edge of the skirt and overcast the seam edges so they cover the hem comfortably.

It is also important to wear the skirt to ensure that you get the proper measure. Make sure that the marking of the safety pins or the baste pins that you use are accurate before you make the final stitches.

Although there is nothing worse than an ill fitted skirt that does not flatter your curves, you do want to get  it right so that it does not come down to discarding the garment altogether.

When you know how to alter a skirt that is too big, you can continue to wear your favorite pleated skirt just like you used to earlier with the brand new styles that we suggested right up front.

What’s more you are sure to feel incredibly proud and confident that you achieved alteration all by yourself.It will also have saved you the trips to the tailor, not to mention the money you would have spent on the alteration of your skirt.

Now that you know how to alter a pleated skirt that is too big, it is time to get out that favourite skirt of yours from your closet and get going on the job of the alteration. Though it is not rocket science, do not be too hard on yourself if you are taking on a project like this for the very first time.

To reduce the scope of error, it is advisable to make ample use of pins especially to get the new pleats right before you put in the final stitches. Wear the skirt as many times as you think you need to reduce room for error.

We however promise you that if you read through our answers on how to alter a pleated skirt and implement it accordingly, you will find yourself patting yourself on the back on a job well done!