I have been wanting to design some skirts for my Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes but had no idea what sizes to make them. I went searching the web and after checking dozens of sources, from blogs to pattern companies, I compiled what I think is an average sizing chart for making girl's skirts. I am sharing it in
hopes it will help some of you in your shoebox sewing.
I will make size 4 for the 2 to 4 year old shoeboxes, size 8 for the 5 to 9 and between size 12 and 14 for the 10 to 14 year olds. I will be making them somewhere between "below the knee" and "mid-calf." I may make the older ones mid-calf. Some cultures longer skirts are necessary for modesty and they can always shorten them or grow into them, but lengthening them would be difficult.Notes:
WAIST MEASUREMENT is the girl's actual measurement.
LENGTH is the finished length -- be sure to leave extra for the hem and extra at the top for the elastic casing.
WIDTH means the total width of the skirt, or the circumference of the hem. Be sure to leave extra for seam allowances when cutting the fabric.
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I have no way to test these patterns on girls. As I design my skirts I will share the tutorials here. I want to make some A-line skirts so there is less bulk at the waist. I also want to make some wrap skirts -- they look like fun for the girls.
Threading My Way has an ongoing linky for bloggers to share skirts they have made and tutorials. You may like to check it out for ideas and patterns.
I have shared a few of the skirts made for Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes in earlier posts.
Do you make skirts to include in your Operation Christmas Child shoebox gifts?
Lovely!! I more ship them fabrics in hopes they'll sew/hand-stitch cool things. My mom sews & you've encouraged me to make more stuff for my boxes. I hope this yrs boxes have me & Mom spending quality time sewing/serging together. I have a fabric stash & luv fabric bargains. I want to learn more about what to include in my sewing kits...ribbon, buttons, thimble, trims. I got camo tree skirtsto alter.
ReplyDeleteDenise Marie, I encourage you to spend the time with your mom. My mom just said yesterday how she can't believe she can't sew any more. But I am having her choose the fabrics often and match the shirt. that way we are still working together. Life is short! Doing things together while you have each other is priceless-- and to do it for others adds to the richness of the time spent.
ReplyDeleteI've sewn a bunch of skirts, and always struggled with the proper length for the cultures our boxes go to. I agree with you - below the knee and calf length is great. Thank you so much for the great guide.
ReplyDeleteI've also struggled with the waist measurements and tried to do my "best guess" since these girls might be small for their size or undernourished. Although I have tons of donated elastic - a friend just suggested putting a long cord tie in the waist - so they could cinch it in as they need.
Mary, I, too, have thought of the drawstring. The reason I decided to go with elastic is I fear the drawstring untying and then the skirt falling off. I was trying to look into elastic with a drawstring thru it so the elastic is still cinching the waist but it can be pulled up with the drawstring. I suppose you could just draw both thru -- hmmmm, going to have to think on that!
ReplyDeleteThanks for this wonderful chart with all the skirt sizes on it. I have tons of fabric to use up and this will be a wonderful way. God has blessed you with wonderful ideas to pass on to those us who need them.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Edna, for the encouraging words. I hope what I share is a blessing to others wanting to pack special boxes for little ones in need. Happy Sewing!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for the skirt sizing chart! I did bunches of pillowcase dresses in 2014 for the shoeboxes & am always looking for something new to try. Over the holidays, I stopped by a thrift shop to grab clothing for neat buttons to embellish crocheted Christmas gifts. Some of the vests & jackets were made of beautiful fabrics that I hated to just toss. So I have been cutting them apart & just began making drawstring pouches to add to my boxes this year! They will be perfect for marbles, legos or even a cute purse for the girls. Love, love, love the ideas that you share! Your posts always inspire my creative juices to start flowing!
ReplyDeleteHi, Carla! LOVE your idea of upcycling the lovely fabric! I have only done two upcycle skirts so far -- look forward to doing more in the future. Thanks for your words of encouragement -- they are what keep me posting. Knowing I can help someone else on their shoe box journey by sharing mine is priceless.
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for the size chart. Since I don't have children, I've been trying to guess what sizes for what ages. Denise Marie, you've got great ideas but remember not to send camoflague - it's associated with military. Cheryl, great advice about treasuring mom and spending time with her as long as you can.
ReplyDeleteYou are welcome, Karen. I struggled with what sizes to make, too.
ReplyDeleteMy gathered waistbands combine elastic and drawstrings. Here's how: Cut elastic for the back of the gathered skirt only (1/2 the child's waist size). Sew drawstrings to each end of that elastic. Fold top edge of skirt down for the casing but don't sew yet. At center front, place a pin on OUTSIDE of skirt casing. Now unfold the casing at front & mark 1" to each side of center pin (for buttonholes). Add a scrap of interfacing underneath & then sew 2 buttonholes (up/down direction). Refold casing & sew. (Buttonholes are on front side of casing only). Clip open buttonholes. Thread 1 end of drawstring/elastic through a buttonhole, through casing & out the through other buttonhole. Pull drawstrings evenly and adjust skirt gathers so elastic ends are at each skirt side. Stitch through elastic & casing at each side (up/down direction) to keep in place. Now the drawstrings are pulled and gathered from sides to front & tied into a bow. That's it!
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for sharing....I did one combo drawstring/elastic skirt, just inventing it as I went along.
ReplyDeleteOne thing to consider here is that in many countries the girls do not have underwear so the longer skirts are absolutely a blessing to them. My friend who grew up in Zimbabwe said that most girls miss one week of school per month as they mature because they have no underwear to help hold hygiene items in place. This was a real AH-HA to me and I have decided to sew skirts myself for the older girl boxes since the skirts for that age group in the USA are so darn short. If you look at pictures of girls in Africa the skirts are always at least mid calf long and now I know why. If you are out working in the field w no underwear and bending over the skirt is a BIG deal. It has been years since I have sewn but I am going to figure this out. Thanks for such a good and helpful skirt post.
ReplyDelete'Hopping over from Threading My Way... Thank you for the sizing chart! -Marci @ Stone Cottage Adventures
ReplyDeleteThank you thank you for this blog, for all these wonderful ideas for shoeboxes, and for this sizing chart for skirts. I'm thrilled to have found it. ~ Abby
ReplyDeleteAbby, we are glad you found us, too. We love to share our passion for helping children thru shoeboxes.
ReplyDeleteThanks to everyone who shares on here. I have learned so much. Keep it up
ReplyDeleteAs a missionary to Haiti, I love your ideas! The longer skirts are better and I love the idea that Laura had about using both draw strings and elastic. They have such small waists! Many times elastic waist clothing was too big on them. They also like the "pretty" dresses-the ones that were embellished. They really didn't like the pillowcase dresses because they didn't have a waist. Plus they knew they were made from a pillowcase. If it was embellished, they were more likely to wear it.
ReplyDeleteI also make items for the older girls. I am thinking of making skirts with attached shorts for period time. I make re-useable pads to go with the skirts. Has anyone else done this?
ReplyDeleteFor those concerned about waist size, rather than drawstrings consider sending 2 diaper pins to adjust waist smaller if needed. I use these for my own skirts and pants as I have a small waist. They have the safety catch so they don't come unpinned while wearing the garment! This would work for the younger girls as they "grow into" the skirt, or anyone with a small waist. You can find 50-packs on Amazon, they don't seem to have them in stores anymore.
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