Skirt with Sash

My favorite item of clothing to sew for any girl is a skirt.
There are just so many ways to mix it up!
And with cooler weather coming, this version is a fun (and easy) way to dress-up for a holiday party, a Fall wedding, or just a day out shopping with mom.

It’s a Skirt with a Sash.
….a sash that can be tied in a bow, tied in a knot, tied in the front or in the back.

It gives the skirt that perfect bit of character and charm. And, it will impress your friends as they admire your sewing skills. Because although it might look tricky, it’s actually quite easy to make.

And like most of my favorite skirt projects, it’s a fairly quick-sew for such a fancy looking skirt.  Then pair it with a store-bought shirt and you’re ready for the party.

Here are some versions we’ve tried so far (click a button below for the full tutorial):

https://www.madeeveryday.com/2014/05/tutorial-sparkle-skirts-with-a-simple-satin-lining.html https://www.madeeveryday.com/2014/05/tutorial-sparkle-skirts-with-a-simple-satin-lining.html

Let’s get started!

The Skirt with a Sash takes either the Simple Skirt or a Lined Skirt and adds a sash on each side of the waistband.  Of course this sash can be added to any basic skirt.  So if you’ve sewn a skirt before just keep on reading.  And if you’ve never made a skirt, I recommend reading through the Simple and Lined tutorials first.


In the Satin-Lined Skirt tutorial, we learned how to add a satin lining and separate waistband for your skirt. Which is what we’ll be making here.



Here’s what you need:

Fabric Types:
You can use a variety of fabrics  – cotton, satin, lace, chiffon, knits.
For my particular skirt, I used lace for the outer, satin for the lining, and satin for the waistband and sash.

Elastic Type:
I prefer Braid elastic because it tends to not roll-up inside the waistband the way other elastics might.  You can use 1-inch or 2-inch wide elastic.  For this skirt I used 2-inch wide to give the waistband a chunky look.

The Concept:
We’re going to create two sash pieces, sew them into a separate waistband at the side seams, sew the waistband on to the skirt, and string elastic through the waistband.  So, we need to cut two separate waistband pieces and two sash pieces.

Cutting and Sizing
Refer to the Simple or Lined skirt tutorials for details on measuring and cutting basic skirt pieces, then cut the following….

• Waistband
First you need to decide if you’re using 1-inch or 2-inch wide elastic.

If you’re using 2-inch elastic, the width of your waistband pieces should be cut 5.5 inches wide (2 inches for one side of the elastic + 2 inches for the other side + 3/4 inches of fabric edge to iron under + 3/4 inches at the other edge).

If you’re using 1-inch wide elastic, cut your pieces 3.5 inches wide (1 + 1 + 3/4 + 3/4 inches)

The length of each waistband piece should be the same as your basic skirt pieces.  In a nutshell: measure your waist, multiply it by 2 or 2.5 or 3 (depending on how full you want your skirt to be) then divide that in half.  This is the length for each waistband piece.

So for my daughter, I’m going to make a skirt 2.5 times her waist size.  She has a 20 inch waist so I need to cut TWO waistband pieces that are 5.5 x 25 inches.

• Sash pieces
For 2-inch wide elastic in the waistband, cut the Sash pieces 2 + 2 + 1/2 + 1/2 inches, or 5 inches wide.
For 1-inch wide elastic in the waistband, cut the Sash pieces 1 + 1 + 1/2 + 1/2 inches, or 3 inches wide.

For the length of each sash piece, take 1/4 of your waist measurement and then add approximately 25 inches (there’s some wiggle room with that measurement so you have extra length to tie the bow on the skirt.  We’ll cut off the excess in later steps).

So for my daughter with a 20 inch waist I need to cut TWO sash pieces that are 5 x 30 inches.
Okay, we’re ready to SEW!











Have a wonderful weekend!

  1. 1) Julie H.

    This is so beautiful with the lace overlay, I love it!

  2. 2) Julie

    Love the colors together !! This type of skirt will be cute for the Christmas holiday .

  3. 3) Rachel

    Love this skirt! So versatile and trendy! One quick question: did I miss the step when reading for adding the elastic to the waistband? I’ve read back through a few times and can’t find that step. Thanks! Your tutorials are always so helpful!

    • 4) Dana

      hahaha. Oh my gosh! YES! I completely forgot one of the photos!
      Whoops :). Thanks for letting me know! It’s in there now….

  4. 5) Amber Wheeler

    Love, love, love it! Now if only I could make some time to sew it up! Thank you, Dana!

  5. 6) craftygramma

    Hi Dana-
    Love your stuff. you’re the reason my grandgirl is so trendy!
    One problem: I got two emails together in this message. One was this adorable skirt and one was from yesterday about patterns, a giveaway, and the first day dress…
    however, when I ckick to the one from 9/11, I get a 404 error message.
    Help?!

    • 7) Dana

      Thanks!
      And yes, sorry about that. I did have a small post up yesterday just talking about a Giveaway I was having on Instagram….but it was a little confusing since you could only enter on Instagram and not on the blog, so I just took it down. But don’t worry, I’ll have a pattern giveaway here on the blog soon!
      Thanks for asking 🙂

  6. 8) Abby

    Absolutely love this! One question, when you sew the lace and satin together RST at the bottom did you finish that edge? Or is the lace enough protection that it doesn’t fray when washed? Just trying to avoid being able to see the frayed edges through the lace! Thanks!!

  7. Did you do something similar to this in the Stylo magazine? The sash is looking vaguely familiar.

    • 11) Dana

      Yep! This was a project from the magazine. I’m now sharing it here on the blog.

  8. 12) Betha

    thank you so much Dana..i LOVEEEEEEEE this skirt.

  9. 13) Donna

    So darling..I’m thinking Christmas skirts with red and/or green satin!!

  10. I love this fancy take on the simple skirt! Too cute! Lace is one of my favorite fabrics 🙂

  11. just gorgeous!! I love the satin lining too!! I have a sewing for kids Pinterest board that I’m pinning this too. I would LOVE for you to contribute to the board too. If you’d be interested in joining let me know! Emily

  12. Hi, Dana! the skirt just fabulous, and I love it too bad. Oh well Dana, I wonder if I can make that one for me. Do you think it is possible to make adult-size maxi skirt using this tutorial? If so, is there any adjustment needed? Thank you so much.

  13. 19) Kim mikyung

    ????너무 예뻐요!!! Love it!!!!

  14. 20) rosie

    i wish you can make a youtube on this beautiful skirt!
    it would be super helpful!

  15. 21) Rhonda

    So stinkin cute! Don’t know why I’ve never bothered to look a this tute before. I find tor tutes and videos exceptional, thank you ???? I’m super motivated to sew some school clothes now.. Just need to find someone to print patterns for me, as my printer isn’t working any more.. But I’m excited to purchase some of your fabulous fabric from AGF yippee!! Thanks again Dana..ps. How about some Scandinavian clothing and fabric designs ????.. Hugs Rhonda

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