One of the main components of lolita is the petticoat. Lolita has a lot of rules, and one of them is the skirt (or petticoat) has to be bell-shaped. I didn't have the money to buy a petticoat, so I decided to make my own. After reading a couple threads on Craftster.org on how people made their own petticoats, I decided to start on my own.
I am posting this tutorial because I did not find many great tutorials on a lolita-petticoat. I thought it would be nice to share my technique.
I started out making a circle skirt pattern using this tutorial : http://www.geocities.com/roriitapage/FlaredSkirt_Process.html
Optional: You can use this tutorial for the basic skirt you will make first. You'll still want to draft a fuller skirt pattern to go over the gathered tulle on the petticoat.
http://community.livejournal.com/egl/1009565.html
I designed my costume's skirt to be an empire waist. So I took a piece of paper cut to be 1/2 my waist measurement wide. The length measurement was a little below my waist (Below here I would want the skirt band to sit) to a couple inches above my knees.
After the basic square is cut out the rest is pretty easy. Cut from the bottom up, leaving a little connection on the side that will be your waist.
After everything is cut out, spread out the strips of paper so it forms a semi-circle. You might have to cut the strips a bit more or use more tape, but try to get the shape. If you want to use the pattern again, use strips of paper to tape together the strips of paper and reenforce the waist to keep the semi-circle shape.
This is a lot easier than using math to draw out a semi-circle.
For the waistband you just cut out a strip 1 inch+ your waist measurement long by two inches wide. Iron it folded in half so the actual waistband will be 1 inch wide.
You can lay it out of the fabric however you want. If you have enough fabric you can lay it out and have a seamless circle. I did this for the first petticoat I made and it turned out nicely. However, it also gives you a lot of small scraps you can't use.
Two bedsheets made two petticoats. I did not buy any fabric yardage. I just bought two thick, nice bedsheets from a thrift store and cut those out. Never underestimate the power of thrift stores. I couldn't find a second white sheet so I brought it home and bleached it white.
For a basic petticoat you are going to need:
~4 Yards of basic white cotton or a lightweight fabric. You may need more or less. You want enough for two skirts made out of the semi-circle pattern.
.5 to 1.5 yards of band elastic-- For the waistband. You only need enough to fit snugly around your waistline
8 yards bridal netting. You'll want to get the white, slightly stiff one with larger holes. Anything soft and colored is NOT the right kind and will take a lot more to get poof out of.
(Optional) 5 yards lace OR twice the measurement of the hem (round part) of your skirt pattern. This is another thing you can get for cheap at a thrift store. I had a package of 1-inch wide lace that I added to the hem last minute. It added a nice finished touch.It looks a lot better than a normal hem if your petticoat happens to show.
White yarn
Yarn Needle
