Skirt pleats

[Melyna Yuki]

(Sorry if this is a repeat thread or anything! ._.; )

I'm still a bit new to making clothes, but I'm making a skirt for my friend right now, and I was wondering about pleating...
I know how to pleat and all, but last time I made a skirt like this I just winged it. (or maybe wung it? That doesn't sound right...xD) Needless to say it they came out a little more than uneven. So I was wondering what a good measurement would be for them, inch wise...? I was thinking maybe two inches, but that looks a little small to me.

xD; I'm not sure if I should make the pleats small or big, so if anyone has any advice AT ALL, I would LOVE to hear it, please! :toothy: If this is one of those things that depend on the pattern of the fabric, I can also put up a picture it...

Thanks to everyone in advance!

[Nina Star 9]

what exactly are you trying to make with this? certain things look better with certain pleat sizes. (and i can say that i have never seen a fully-pleated lolita skirt, unless you mean just a couple pleats in the front or back or something, but it really does sound like a good idea and unique. but that is beside the point. i only brought that up because i have no refrence to go by for pleated loli skirts. :P) such as, shorter "schoolgirl" type skirts are typically wider pleats (3" or so, i would say), and i notice that longer "schoolgirl" type skirts are thinner pleats (1-2"ish). hakama-type pleats are very wide. for what i imagine to be a pleated lolita skirt (think cupcake poof), i would say a wider 3" pleat or so. but if you want a more a-line type poof, then i am not sure.

try pinning it at a certain size and if you do not like it, you can always take it out and do it again, even if it is a lot of work to pin pleats. :P but i would say 3" or so.

also, what kind of pleats are you doing? i'm curious about the desgin of this skirt you are making. ^-^;

[Melyna Yuki]

Well, the skirt is acutally a smaller part of a Wa-lolita type dress of my own design. I think you're right about wider pleats, I tried the two inch ones all the way around and it looks too much like an apron. xD
At any rate, the skirt itself is a little bit below the knee in length and a rather dark color:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v149/Nezumi-chan/CIMG0294.jpg

This is a sample of the fabric I took; a bit of left over fabric from when I cut it. (I really really love this fabric...>.> It's so pretty~<3)

[Nina Star 9]

i think that thin pleats would look terrible on such a pattern. you would end up looking like a bad lampshade. :D go with wider pleats.

i cannot wait to see how it turns out! ^-^

[Melyna Yuki]

Haha, yeah It kinda did look like a lamp shade. I'll be sure to put up some pictures of the finished skirt~!
I jsut finished pinning three inch pleats and it looks fantastic. I actually put a three inch space between the pleats, too, so it's looking much better and not so lampshade-ish.Thank you so much for your advice!

[Nina Star 9]

no problem. ^-^ be sure to post the pics when you are done. ^.~

[Squall1882]

Hmmm... I'm interested to see it soo, I haven't seen pleats done well on such intricate patterns. Best of luck!!

[penny_dreadful]

That pattern looks like something that needs just a handful of kick pleats, not a full pleating. However, most shiny fabrics I've seen, when pleated, have the smaller pleats or that kind of accordion pleating. Unfortunately those would NOT do justice to the pattern. Wide pleats, indeed.

Make sure your fabric is ironed smooth, use a ruler to measure pleats evenly, and PLEASE use an iron to keep the pleats sharp. It's possible you could also use a bone folder, like you use on cardstock when you're doing paper crafts, but maybe for a slippery fabric it wouldn't work.

--Penny

[wordstoasong]

http://www.thimble.ca/?p=168
I'm not sure if you need any more help, but I found this site to use.