Elastic Waist Skirt Refashion

My aunt had been asking me for the past couple of weeks to help her go through my grandma's closet to get rid of things that she doesn't want or that don't fit anymore. So finally, last weekend I decided to go help her and clean out the closet. We filled about four trash bags worth of clothes (to donate, not throw away) and we didn't even finish going through everything. The good part was is that I was able to keep pieces of clothing that I liked. I kept five of my grandma's long skirts. However, they are way too small for me because back in her day, my grandma had a really small waist and well, let's just say my waist is nowhere near her old size. The good thing is that they are gathered at the waist, meaning that if I cut off the waistband, I'll have a bunch of extra fabric and then I can use them to make myself a dress or skirt that actually fits. 

These are skirts I got, minus a brown one I had already cut up for another project.

Anyway...I'm so excited to share my first complete tutorial with pictures with you guys! For this skirt I made I used:

First, cut the top of the skirt to remove the waistband so that the fabric can lay flat on your table or cutting area. Now, you'll have a big rectangle of fabric. Cut from the top (that way you won't have to hem the skirt since it'll already be done for you!) to your desired length + 2 1/2 inches (for the elastic casing).

Now turn your skirt inside out and lay flat. Fold and iron 1/2 inch. This is to enclose the raw edge of the fabric in the elastic casing. Then, put the elastic near that 1/2 inch fold and fold the fabric over to cover the elastic. This is just to determine the width of the casing for the elastic. Now remove the elastic and pin the casing down. You might want to iron the casing before you start pinning so it creates a crease exactly at the width you want it, just in case it unfolds. Do this for both sides of the skirt.

Sew close to the bottom almost all the way around but leave a 2 inch opening to insert the elastic through.

Measure a piece of elastic around your waist or hips, depending on where you want to wear your skirt and cut the elastic. Don't worry about adding seam allowance because you actually want your elastic to be a bit smaller than your waist/hips. Attach a safety pin to the edge of the elastic and thread it through the casing.

Overlap the edges of the elastic 1 inch and sew them together. Then, sew the 2 inch opening of the casing shut. This is how I sewed the elastic. I had to draw a diagram because I forgot to take a picture. Ooops!

And you're done! 

I chose to accessorize my skirt with a cute brown belt!

Thanks for reading and have a great day!

<3, Martha