Cowgirl Skirt

I remember having a skirt similar to this one my grandma made when I was little so I'm excited to have an upcoming party as an excuse to make one for Amelia. Made from an old pair of jeans and a bandanna, this is a very simple and inexpensive project. (And a great way to up-cycle a pair of old jeans that are worn in the knees or a little too short!) The party we will be going to is a cowboy theme so the bandanna is especially appropriate, however, I think that this would also be cute with a bright, floral print fabric too!



Supplies

pair of old jeans (size 2T)
bandanna (larger sizes will take more than one)
scissors
needle
thread

How it's made

Step one: Cut Jeans
Cut the legs off the jeans 1/2" below the back pockets. (Be careful not to cut through the front pockets!) If this does not cut the crotch of the pants off, cut through to open into a skirt. You may need to cut along the seam and tack down the seam to one side to make it lay flat.

Step two: Cut bandanna
Bandannas are very irregular so don't break out the measuring tape, instead use the pattern as a guide. Cut the top from end to end below the paisley print then do the same along the bottom. Once the top and bottom are removed, cut the sides off in the same manner. Take one of the side pieces and cut into three 1" strips along the length.
Note: One bandanna gave me a little more than double the circumference of the bottom of the jean skirt.

Step three: Sew the ruffle
Take the top, bottom, and side piece and sew together along the short ends. Make sure to line up the pattern and overlap and part with writing. Depending on your desired length, you may hem the bottom edge or leave it. Since this is going on a little bitty I hemmed it about 1/2".
Sew together the three 1" pieces along the short side. Fold in half and press. (The fabric was light weight enough running my finger along the seam 2-3 times was sufficient to create a fold.) Then fold each side in again to make the raw edges meet in the middle, creating a bias tape of sorts.
Next use a needle and tread to begin the ruffle. Accordion fold the fabric and run the needle and thread through to allow the fabric to bunch. The size of the fold depends on the size of ruffles you desire. I used about 1/2" folds. (Keep in mind, the fuller the ruffle the more fabric you will need.)
Sew the ruffle to the bias tape by opening the bias tape and lining up the raw edge of the ruffle to the raw edge of the inside of the tape. (See pictures 4 & 5) Pinning the ruffle if necessary, sew with a machine with 1/4" allowance. Then turn the tape over the raw edges and sew again. This will enclose all raw edges inside the tape and leave a smooth edge that won't irritate the wearer.

Step four: Attach the ruffle

Starting at the side hem of your jeans, line up the ruffle so the bias tape is inside the skirt and sew (using a machine) approximately 1/8" from the edge of the denim. This will keep the denim from fraying much in the wash. Move up 1/8"-1/4" from that seam and sew a second seam along the skirt to hold the top edge of the bias tape into place inside the skirt. Lastly, sew the ends of the bandanna closed to complete the ruffle of the skirt. 

Now if only I had a more cooperative model who would wear a shirt and not stick her rear in the air...