Monday 13 January 2014

DIY Circle Skirt Dress (Video Tutorial)

I actually did it! I sat myself down for an entire day and forced myself to make this video - but I actually enjoyed making it in the end, and I am also very happy with how it turned out. If you want to learn how to make a dress like my teacup skater dress and candy cupcake dress, then watch this video. You should give making a circle skirt/simple top a go before you tackle this project, if you're not at all experienced at sewing, but once you're able to do those you'll be more than ready to give making your own dress a go. Enjoy! And please do let me know if you liked the video or found it useful, or a least subscribe to my new youtube channel - I am planning on making many more if it seems like the interest is there.
p.s. If you're not a fan of the 8-bit soundtrack I've used then feel free to mute the video - all the instructions are in text, so you won't miss anything except the bleep-bloopy adventure time-style toons ;)







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63 comments:

  1. Your last two DIY dresses have been so adorable and your tutorial video here looks great! :) I have a little question for you, since you seem to know a bit about fabrics. How do you decide whether a fabric is good for a dress or not? Whenever I'm out shopping for fabric I see lots of cute prints but I'm always unsure whether they'll be good or if they'll be too bulky/too stiff/too wrong in general. How do you decide or is it sort of an instinctual thing by now? :p

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    1. Thank you so much Kara :D
      I'm pretty much a novice when it comes to fabrics, and because most of my fabrics are second-hand/inherited, I pretty much just go with whatever feels right, haha.
      I guess it's mostly an instinctual/guessing thing ;) If I told this to any experienced tailor, though, they'd probably have a heart attack because I'm probably doing it all wrong.

      HOWEVER, generally what I look for in a fabric is the following:
      1. It doesn't look heaps crinkly. If the fabric looks like it has heaps of wrinkles, it's going to be so annoying to wear because you'll have to iron it constantly, and when you sit down etc it'll crinkle itself up. If you can fold it up with your fingers, and the crease doesn't stay there, it's good to use :D
      2. It's pretty lightweight
      3. It's got a decent amount of "stretch" when you pull it diagonally on the bias grain (something useful to learn about fabrics - here's a link explaining). Even if it's not a stretchy material, it will usually have a stretch on the diagonal.
      4. It's not satin or super stretchy - these are super annoying to sew.

      I hope that's a little bit helpful, even if it is totally unprofessional ;)

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    2. Hi, so is a good dress fabric cotton? What specific types of fabric are good, just so I know exactly where to look

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    3. I'm really not a fabric expert, but yes! cotton is good. I think that polyester/cotton blends are also pretty good for dresses :) but... you know, anything that feels good in your hands and doesn't crinkle up heaps, you can basically use. I mean, I used old cotton bedsheets for this tutorial ;)

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  2. Thank you for this! So excited to start making a dress. Do you know how to sew sleeves as well? I can't pull off the straps that well.
    x

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    1. Ah, sleeves is the next thing I have to learn ;) I am going to try very soon. I will keep you updated!

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    2. Oooh! There is a way of making sleeves in this tutorial, near the end (it starts at about 11:15), it went through it verrrry quickly but it might help! (I'm going to try and learn from it, and then post a more in-detail way of doing them if it works!)

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    3. Forgot the link haha http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2I2MqGdcvgo

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    4. haha really couldn't get that, no sense to me at all!
      After much perusing I found the post I was looking for. Can't make much sense of it either though...
      http://www.wearingitonmysleeves.com/search?updated-max=2012-11-07T07:42:00-08:00&max-results=7&start=126&by-date=false

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    5. Hmm I wonder if that would work! It seems so simple... too simple... I'm a bit suspicious about it haha. I'm definitely going to try out sleeves in the next couple of days :D

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    6. I made a skirt and I'm in the process of the dress! The skirt was soooo easy but the dress is a whole other story :/ Darting the front of the top proved difficult as I have a larger bust. And then the lining didn't work either, when I flipped it the right way round it was all bulgy and twisted. That's ok though, I love the skirt so I'm going to make a million more! Thanks

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    7. Ooohh, bugger :\ As I really have no bust to speak of, I guess I wasn't able to test how well this pattern would work for people with bigger busts! Maybe if you do darts like this: http://www.pineneedlecollective.com/2013/12/diy-cropped-top.html it'd work better for your body type?
      Hmm, so with the lining, did you iron everything super flat? How far in did you sew the two together (seam allowance?) Also, you can avoid some bulgy-ness if, after sewing the top to the lining, you cut around the edges really close to the line you just sewed. But fair enough if you don't want to bother again - it can be such a fiddly process!

      I'm really, really glad that the skirt worked out at least :)

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  3. I need to try this! Maybe over the summer while I'm job hunting. You can never have too many dresses with this shape. I love the material you chose for this one. It's adorable on you! Thanks for the tutorial!

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    1. I agree so much! I am planning on making about 1 bajillion of these dresses, in every cute material I can get my hands on.

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  4. I love it! And thanks for showing me the easy way to draw a nice circle. I tried to make a circle skirt following your previous tutoial and used a pen with a rope tied to it in order to draw the actual circle. But I completely messed up that one... Luckily it doen't show too much thanks to all the pleads in the skirt ;) Next time I'll just use the measuring tape like you did :)

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  5. Loooooooove this! So clear and I am crazy-admiring of your pattern drafting skills. I go all crazy with calculators and set squares rather than just doing things by eye; yours looks a lot less hassle!

    One thing I did want to ask was about lining. I never normally line my dresses but I think I should probably start. When you cut out your lining do you put darts in them or do you trace around the bodice piece with the darts already in?
    Thaaaaanks and well done you crazy genius you!

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    1. Thank you so much! Means a lot coming from the queen of DIY herself! :D

      What do you normally do with your dresses - interfacing or bias tape? I find that lining them is a way neater/easier method than these (plus I ALWAYS stuffed up interfacing, it's the most frustrating thing in the world), so I definitely recommend doing it!

      Yep, so, I don't put darts into the lining - I just trace around the bodice after I've put the darts into it. :)

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  6. Ahhhh this is so fab! Thanks so much for this post.... you're making my to do list massive though!

    La Dulcie Vita
    or follow via bloglovin'

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  7. You give a very complete tutorial! so for amateurs who are just learning to make her own clothes like me no trouble keeping up! thanks, annika! I have subcribe your account.

    http://petitecovered.blogspot.com/

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  8. This is so good! I absolutely love this dress, definitely going to make myself a circle dress when I can!
    Charlotte xx

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  9. Oh I've been looking for something like it for ages! So far i've only ever used patterns I've bought. I'm hoping to get new sewing machine too. Are there any you would recommend?

    www.prettynostalgia.blogspot.co.uk

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    1. I've found that basic brother machines are AWESOME (both me and my mum have them). They're really simple to use and have all the stitches you need, are lightweight and relatively portable, it's very rare for them to stuff up (mostly because they're not fiddly), and I think they are great first-machines.

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  10. What do you do with all these amazing clothes!!

    www.thepaperswallow.blogspot.com

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    1. Wear them, usually ;)
      And enjoy having people go "OMG I love your dress" and then going "Yeah, I made it, it's like, no big deal" and then having people think I'm a genius or something, haha.
      It's pretty good.

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  11. Thank you so much for this tutorial... I cannot wait to get started! How much fabric would you recommend buying (for a size small/ medium or so)?

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    1. Wouldn't it depend on how wide your fabric is? Would 1.3m x 2m be alright or should it be 2m x 2m?

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    2. It depends on how long you want your skirt to be... if you wanted your skirt to be about 1m long, you'd need 2m x 2m, but if it's a shorter skirt 1.3 x 2 is fine.

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  12. Hi, I have just been learning and spending all my time sewing. I have seen another YouTube channel that does sewing videos, but I just stumbled across yours and I LOVE IT! Do you think you could make a tutorial on a dress with an elasticated waistband? I haven't tried this yet because honestly, I'm kinda scared of making something that has to fit perfectly to turn out good.... But I still love this and am tempted to give it a go anyway! But yeah I would love an elasticated waist dress tutorial, that would help me bunches!!!

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    1. Oooh, yep :) this is something I want to try soon!! :)
      Thanks so much for your lovely comment as well ^___^

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  13. I made a dress using you tutorial!! I want to thank you for making this tutorial, because if even I can use it anyone can! I am so proud of it, and I'm definitely using your tutorial again!
    Thank you so much!!!!


    p.s. pictures are on my blog: http://the-0ther-blog.blogspot.nl/2014/04/my-dress.html

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  14. Hello! Thanks so much for this tutorial. I plan on making a dress (or five) using it tomorrow. I've always had issues with how to make the waist band/put in the zipper, but this seems so easy-squeezy!

    I do have a question, however: WHERE DID YOU GET THAT MUSIC?! It's awesome!

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    1. Awww yay! Thank you!! :) If you wanna take photos of your FIVE dresses, heheh, and upload them to instagram, make sure you tag them with #diyannika :)
      The music is by this awesome person called 8BitbEtty - How great are they!?! It reminds me of adventure time music, haha ;)

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  15. I am just speechless with awe from how awesome this video (and you) are!!!! Love the fabric you used!!! And that was probably the most straightforward sewing video I've ever seen. You made it look so easy. I'm so pumped to try this at my next sewing day!!!! Thank you!!!!!!!!! :D

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  16. Hi Annika! Thanks for making this tutorial! It's definitely going to be a go to video for me. I used it to make a peplum shirt and kinda followed it to make a dress too, and now I wanna make l about 50 more. I tried it with a knit instead and it came out quite nice!
    http://laughlovelivedance.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-little-red-skater-dress-sewing-diy.html

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  17. We are totally in love with this tutorial-and you of course! We like, debated between making this dress or your DIY frock dress... It took a while to decide :D. We began this tutorial and finished it in basically a day because of your easy-to-follow instructions. We just wanted to stop by to say thanks for all your tutorials because people don't realize DESIGNING a pattern is harder than it looks! Didn't really serve your tutorial justice but if you want, take a look at www.pinsandpaperbacks.blogspot.ca. Thanks again Annika!

    Love, Pins & Paperbacks

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  18. Hi, I know it will vary in each person and their ability but roughly how long do you think it would take to make a dress like this? I love you're tutorial it makes it seem easy enough for me to try, lets see how i get on!

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    1. It takes me about 5-6 hours if I'm taking it easy! And I'm not particularly fast at sewing :)

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    2. ooh okies that's not as long as i thought it would take me! Cant wait to give it a go :)

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  19. I love this video! Ive been looking for a simple skater dress tutorial and this is perfect so thanks :) i was just wondering, do the pleats on the skirt naturally fall like that or did you do something to it? x

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    1. Thank you! No, because of the make of the dress, they just fall naturally like that! :)

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  20. This video was sooooo helpful :) would you be able to do a tutorial on how to make an elasticated waist dress?

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    1. Yeah! That's something I have in mind for the future :)

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  21. hi! i really love your DIYs, esp this..! i was looking for vintage dresses to wear for our Christmas party and I remembered liking your FB page a while back. i am a typically lazy person but somehow, seeing you do these stuffs inspires me.. (i hope the passion burning deep inside me keeps on burning esp on my free time..!)

    hopefully i'll find the right fabric, like cats, and crash course my way to sewing on my mother's sewing machine, if i can find it, hehe!

    thanks! hoping to see more of your DIY vids! :D

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  22. Currently making a skater dress following this tutorial. I'm up to adding a invisible zipper but it is going weird and bunchy at the end of the zip.

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  23. Great and easy !!! Love it

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  24. I love your blog so much!!! you dont know how many things i learned from here! thank you! <3 <3 <3

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  25. All your circle skirt tutorials have been really useful, I've made three skirts now (with varying levels of success!) and one dress (but I cheated and used jersey as despite your easy instructions I'm still scared of zips!) - thank you!

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  26. Hey awesome tutorial definitely trying this one out, I was wondering if lining the skirt would be easy?

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  27. Hi! This tutorial is super helpful and I just made the cutest dress. My only problem is my top gets a little lumpy around the armpit areas, as if there's too much room. I see in the video you have a little bit of room, but mine is really bad looking. I messed up the sleeves and made them a little bit too far apart, but I don't think that's what's causing it because I made a different top and it's doing the same thing. Do you have any tips of how I can prevent this from happening (and also fix my already made dress?

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    1. What you'll need to do is to add more darts, it sounds like! Try pinching areas of the fabric until you find an area where pinching it makes the top less lumpy - that's the area where you need to add another dart (on both sides!)
      Unfortunately if your top is already lined this will be a bit difficult, but not impossible! Then, take note of where this dart is for your next dress, and make sure to add it to your pattern. I hope this helps! <3

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  28. Question~! I've attempted to draft my own pattern (the top, mainly) and I basically have it down now, but how much space do I put between the bust and waist? I don't know how much space to put between the neckline, bust, and waist. How do I calculate these?

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    1. Get your measuring tape and measure your body! Measure where you want the neckline to sit to your waist, and from your nipples to your belly button. Then translate these onto your pattern. These should give you a good idea of how long to make the measurement :)

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  29. I used this tutorial for Barbie dresses for my little sisters and they loved it! Now that I have Barbie size mastered, I think maybe I'll make one for me :)

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  30. Hi Annika, thanks a lot for all what you give to your readers. I think i'm ready to make this dress, I already chose my fabric but can I know how long should be the zipper please?
    NB: I'm a French reader!

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    1. Hey Sophie, the zipper needs to be longer than your top/bodice pattern (from the middle of the neckline, to the bottom of your top) by about 10 cm, although longer is okay too. A "dress length" zip - 50cm or so - should work fine!

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  31. Hello Annika!
    I have a question: in the waist equation what does the "r" stand for? I believe it means radius... but I don't want to mess up the dress if it isn't. Thanks Mate!

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    1. Ummm I'm not sure about what section you are referring to! What time point in the video is there the r?

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  32. Hey Annika, what does the 'r' in the waist equation stand for? I believe it means radius.... but I'm just making sure!
    Thanks!

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  33. or is the r a + sign??? I just don't want to mess up the dress... ps I don't know if I put this on my first comment, but it's for the waist measurement

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  34. How much fabric do you need to buy to make this dress??

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  35. Love the tutorial! You are amazing and inspiring. I made mine a little higher in the neck and a bit longer because I am a preschool teacher and wanted to make sure I could still sit cross-legged on the floor :)

    https://www.instagram.com/p/BGwJGuoof9A/

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Thank you so much for taking the time to leave me a message! I read every single one. Don't forget to check back for a reply if you leave a question! ♥

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