It’s that time of year again…time to pull out those decorations and deck the halls! A few years ago, I shared this tree skirt tutorial. This quick and easy project can be made in any fabric of your choosing.
Last year I shared my Pleated Tree Skirt Tutorial with readers @ Mommy by Day, Crafter by Night blog. There aren’t a lot of tree skirt tutorials on the web, so here’s a re-post that I hope you will enjoy. My husband and I trekked up to the mountains on Sunday and cut ourselves a real live Christmas tree. Then, with great satisfaction, I pulled out my ornaments and this tree skirt (and other decor) and decked the halls! I hope you are enjoying the start of the Christmas season!
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My husband and I are newlyweds and
we don’t have a lot of Christmas decor. I wanted my tree skirt to be
inexpensive, stylish and fun, but still give the main emphasis to the
tree.
we don’t have a lot of Christmas decor. I wanted my tree skirt to be
inexpensive, stylish and fun, but still give the main emphasis to the
tree.
Supplies Needed:
3 7/8 yards muslin fabric
1/6 yard red fabric or 2- 2″x20″ strips
4 yards red trim
1 yard red 1/2″ double fold bias tape
Drafting Supplies:
Scissors for Paper
Pencil or Pen
This
finished tree skirt radius is 23″. If you want your skirt to be bigger
or smaller, you will need to adjust your pattern accordingly.
finished tree skirt radius is 23″. If you want your skirt to be bigger
or smaller, you will need to adjust your pattern accordingly.
To
make the tree skirt piece, take your tracing paper and draw a right
angle 21.5″ tall and 21.5″ long. Now, connect the far edges of the two
lines together with a curve. Each part of the curve needs to be 21.5″
distance from the corner. I did this by lining up my ruler at the
corner at 0″ and move it at different angles, marking the distance at
21.5″ on the paper.
make the tree skirt piece, take your tracing paper and draw a right
angle 21.5″ tall and 21.5″ long. Now, connect the far edges of the two
lines together with a curve. Each part of the curve needs to be 21.5″
distance from the corner. I did this by lining up my ruler at the
corner at 0″ and move it at different angles, marking the distance at
21.5″ on the paper.
Now,
mark another curve, this time 2.5″ away from the right angle. Cut out
your pattern. Discard the ‘donut hole’. Essentially, this is 1/4 of
the circle tree skirt.
mark another curve, this time 2.5″ away from the right angle. Cut out
your pattern. Discard the ‘donut hole’. Essentially, this is 1/4 of
the circle tree skirt.
To
cut out your pattern, first lay out the muslin, folded. Place your
pattern on the fold so the donut hole is facing the fold. Cut out the
outer and inner curved lines but DO NOT cut out the straight line
that is perpendicular to the fold line. Instead, flip the pattern over
like a mirror-image and cut on the curved lines again. Now, holding only the top layer of fabric, cut on the straight line.
cut out your pattern, first lay out the muslin, folded. Place your
pattern on the fold so the donut hole is facing the fold. Cut out the
outer and inner curved lines but DO NOT cut out the straight line
that is perpendicular to the fold line. Instead, flip the pattern over
like a mirror-image and cut on the curved lines again. Now, holding only the top layer of fabric, cut on the straight line.
When you unfold your tree skirt, you should have an entire circle with a donut hole, and a slit on one side. Cut a second tree skirt piece the same way.
Next,
cut out your fabric strips. They will become your pleats. Place the
muslin on the cutting mat and cut strips 5″ tall from selvage to selvage
(on the crosswise grain). You will need 6 and 1/2 strips for 42″ wide
fabric.
cut out your fabric strips. They will become your pleats. Place the
muslin on the cutting mat and cut strips 5″ tall from selvage to selvage
(on the crosswise grain). You will need 6 and 1/2 strips for 42″ wide
fabric.
Sew the strips, right sides together, into a long chain and press open with iron.
Fold the strip in half, lengthwise, with wrong sides together. Press.
Mark
every 2″ along the folded strip. Pinch the fabric at the second line
from the right and match it up with the first line. Pin. Continue down
the line to the end.
Iron the pleats in place.
Baste the pleat strip together 3/8″ inch from raw edge.
Pin
your tree skirt pieces right sides together at the inner circle.
Stitch 1/2″ from edge, then clip up to seam allowance around the curve.
your tree skirt pieces right sides together at the inner circle.
Stitch 1/2″ from edge, then clip up to seam allowance around the curve.
Place
your pleats between the outer curved edge of the two layers of the tree
skirt (which are still right sides together) so that all of the raw
edges match up. As you can see, the pleats are pointing inward. Stitch
all the way around the edge 1/2″ from the edge.Turn
your tree skirt right sides out and iron the inner curve flat.
Topstitch the inner curve 1/8″ from the edge. At the outer curve, pull
the pleats away from the seam as you iron.
your pleats between the outer curved edge of the two layers of the tree
skirt (which are still right sides together) so that all of the raw
edges match up. As you can see, the pleats are pointing inward. Stitch
all the way around the edge 1/2″ from the edge.Turn
your tree skirt right sides out and iron the inner curve flat.
Topstitch the inner curve 1/8″ from the edge. At the outer curve, pull
the pleats away from the seam as you iron.
Sew the trim.
Using
your rotary cutter, cut 2- 2″x20″ strips of red fabric. I used red
twill, leftover from a skirt project. Using the iron, press the strips
in half, lengthwise. Open them up and fold the edges in 3/8″. This is
your binding.
your rotary cutter, cut 2- 2″x20″ strips of red fabric. I used red
twill, leftover from a skirt project. Using the iron, press the strips
in half, lengthwise. Open them up and fold the edges in 3/8″. This is
your binding.
Fit
your binding to each of the tree skirt slit edges. Make sure you fold
the edges of the binding in at each edge. Sew in a ‘U’, as shown below,
to finish all the edges of the binding.
your binding to each of the tree skirt slit edges. Make sure you fold
the edges of the binding in at each edge. Sew in a ‘U’, as shown below,
to finish all the edges of the binding.
Cut your red bias tape in half. Fold one edge of each piece inside, about 1/2″.
Stitch near the folded edge, then turn the corner and stitch all the way down to the end.
Secure the unfinished end to the top of the tree skirt opening: place the unfinished bias tape edge to the top of the bottom side of the tree skirt and sew a square on top.
Place your finished tree skirt around the tree and secure with ties at the base. Stand back and admire your hard work!
Merry Christmas everyone! Enjoy!
P.S. – The horticulturist in me cannot resist giving this last tip. If you end up cutting your own tree in the mountains like we did, try not to pick a pokey one. The Colorado Spruce, with its pretty form, may call to you but you will end up with scratches, red bumps and regrets. You may also wish you hadn’t let your Mister pick the tree. Instead, pick a softer, friendlier fir or spruce and your decorating will be filled with cheer!
Thanks Stephanie for your tuto. I found others tuto on the web but none of them was sober and elegant like yours. Sincerely
Beatrice from France
This tree skirt is adorable! Also, this is an excellent tutorial. I'll have to keep this in mind for next year when our house renovation will be done and I can decorate for Christmas.
Thanks for the tut! It's a very pretty tree skirt.