How to Alter a Bedskirt
Bedskirts lend a finished look to your linen ensemble. Not every set has a matching bedskirt, so you may use a skirt from a different set of bedding. It may not be the correct size, so alteration is necessary. Making a skirt smaller is simple, but making it wider and longer takes extra material. It is relatively simple and will make the bed set stand out.
Things You'll Need
- Measuring tape
- Enough cotton fabric to cover the box spring top, plus 1 inch of ease on all sides
- Marking chalk
- Seam ripper
- Matching or contrasting fabric to the existing skirt ruffle
- Matching thread
- Scissors
Instructions
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1
Measure the top of the old bedskirt and the top of the new box spring. The difference between the two determines whether the skirt needs to be enlarged or made smaller.
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2
Make the old bedskirt smaller by removing material from the center length of the bed skirt. Fold the bedskirt, right sides together. Determine how many inches need to be taken away. The material is already folded in half, so mark a line in from the center fold, from top to bottom, to equal half the number of inches to be removed from the width. Sew a seam and cut away the extra material. The bed skirt will now fit a smaller box spring.
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3
Measure the box spring to determine how much extra material you must add in the center of the bedskirt to accommodate a wider box spring. Measure a ruffled yard of skirting material on the old bedskirt at both the edge sewn at the top and the width of the same yard of skirt material at the hem. Use the unruffled yardage measurement to determine how long the contrasting skirt material must be per yard. When it is ruffled, it will match the measure at the top seam edge. Purchase the measure of the unruffled yardage for the additional width, including 1/2 inch for seam allowance, by the number of inches in length from bedskirt seam to hem, plus 1 inch for seam and hem.
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4
Sew a double long running stitch in the bedskirt ruffling material. Pull the material into a gather to fit the width of the additional top yardage. Place right sides together and pin in place before sewing a seam. Trim the excess material close to the seam and put in a turned hem at the raw bottom edge of the ruffle and on the top of the box spring material.
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5
Mark the center of the existing bedskirt and cut it apart from top through ruffle. Place the extension piece right sides together on one side piece and seam from top to bottom. Repeat with the other side. Adjust the hem so that it is even. The contrasting material will be centered and no one will notice that this was a makeover.
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