Ensure that the measuring tape lays flat around your waist. If it’s twisted, your waist measurement will be off. The waist is where the top of your 6-piece skirt will sit.

Keep your feet together when you measure your hips or they’ll be spread too far apart.

For example, if the waist was 24 inches (61 cm), it’s now 6 inches (15 cm). If your hips measured 34 inches (86 cm), the new measurement will be 8 1⁄2 inches (22 cm).

For example, if your original measurement was 19 inches (48 cm), subtract 3 inches (7. 6 cm) to get 16 inches (41 cm).

If you don’t have pattern paper, use lightweight butcher paper. You’ll use the yardstick to mark your measurements on the side of the pattern paper.

If it helps you keep track of the lines, you can write Waistline at the top of the paper.

Remember to write Knee Line next to the mark so you don’t forget which measurement the mark is for.

You can label this mark Length.

To make this easier, you could use an L-ruler.

For example, if the adjusted waist measurement was 6 inches (15 cm), make a mark on the horizontal line at this point. Your adjusted hipline measurement might be 8 1⁄2 inches (22 cm).

For example, you might add 3 inches (7. 6 cm) if you’d like the skirt to have a noticeable flare.

You can buy the curved pattern master from most craft supply stores. You should now see a curve from the waist to the knee and a diagonal line flaring to the length line.

Small: a 3 inches (7. 6 cm) dart Medium: a 4 inches (10 cm) dart Large: a 5 inches (13 cm) dart Extra-large: a 6 inches (15 cm) dart

Since you’ll be cutting the fabric on the fold, these 2 panels will actually create 4 panels of your 6-piece skirt.

If your pattern paper was longer than the length you want your skirt to be, trim off the excess paper at the bottom.

Center back Side back Side front Center front

You can now trim off the excess paper from the side of each flare.

You can readjust the fabric’s width once you’ve laid the pattern piece on it. You’ll be doing this for each of the pattern pieces you made.

If the fabric shifts around a lot, you can pin the sides in place so your pattern won’t move as you trace.

If you’d like to hem the bottom of the skirt, add a 1 inch (2. 5 cm) seam allowance. [26] X Research source

Since this is a big sewing project, you should use a sewing machine to sew the skirt panels together.