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The Stitching Scientist

    How to Add Ruffles to Leggings

    Baby· Children· Tips

    19 Jan

    This weekend we were going through my daughter’s clothes and we found a ton of plain leggings that she rarely wears because the are just really old, slightly stained or just plain ugly. I decided to do a few things to them to bring them back to life  instead of throwing them away. I added lace to the bottoms of a few, some tulle around the waist of others and for this one, we added some ruffles. This one is her favorite cause she can twirl around in it. Here is a super easy tutorial on how to add ruffles to any pair of leggings. It’s best to use knit fabric to add ruffles so that you dont have to do a lot of hemming . However, regular cotton will work just fine too. The fabric used here is from Girl Charlee called Feathers on Silver Peony. It’s a jersey blend which gives a nice stretch for play.

    IMG_2892

    I love the colors of this fabric on the white contrast. It really highlights the fabric. I am tempted to make a ruffle skirt for myself with this fabric.

    IMG_2907

    IMG_2893

    To add ruffles you need:

    An old pair of leggings or get free pattern HERE for 2T

    Measure how long you want the ruffle skirt to be + 2″ allowance. Take that number divide by 3. That would be the width of each of your 3 strips. To get the length, take the waist measurement from the legging and multiply it by 3.  So for mine, I wanted the overall length to be around 10″, so 10+2+12. Then 12 divide by 3 equals 4. 4 ” is the width of my strips. The waist of my legging was 20″. After I multiplied that by 3, my 3 ruffle strips measured 4″ x 80″ long. You dont have to do yours that long but the longer it is the fuller the skirt will look.

    Next, take the measurement of the waist of your leggings and cut 3 strips with that length x 2.5″. This will be for the bands. My band measurement was 2.5″ x20″ each.

    So, now you have 6 strips (3 for the ruffles and 3 for the bands)

    IMG_2859

    Now, take your long strips and do a gather stitch on the top (longest stitch length of your machine). After you sew your long length stitch, pull it to make a gather that matches the length of your small strips.

    IMG_2860

    Sew the two pieces right sides together, remembering to turn back your stitch length to its normal setting.

    IMG_2861 IMG_2862

    Follow the same process for the other two pieces until you have 3 ruffles.

    IMG_2863

    Now, we will sew them all together. Take the bottom ruffle and line it up with the seam of the second ruffle. Sew, right on top of that seam.  IMG_2864 IMG_2865

    For the top one, you will have to line it up with the seam on the second ruffle.

    IMG_2866 IMG_2867

    Now, fold the two ends together and sew right sides together. Make sure you line up your ruffles when you do, so it lines up perfectly at the back. You can pin to ensure accuracy.

    IMG_2868

    Now, take your legging and fit it under the skirt, aligning the backs together.

    IMG_2870

    Pull up the top part of the skirt and fold it all the way around the elastic of the legging, so that the legging is encased in the skirt fabric. Pin and sew down.

    IMG_2872 IMG_2873

    There you have it! Isn’t that adorable?

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    Thanks for visiting and Happy Sewing,

    Remona

    « Heart Tree Pillow with Free Pattern
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    Free Friday Pattern Roundup | The Stitching Scientist

    […] How to Add Ruffles to Leggings– I made this a while back and thought it would be a cute project to resurrect for Easter. […]

    Tutorial: Add a ruffle skirt to little girl leggings | Sewing | CraftGossip.com

    […] Remona from The Stitching Scientist shows how you can add a ruffle skirt to pair of little girl leggings.  It’s a great way to cover a stain or to restyle a pair of leggings lurking in the back of the drawer.  With the ruffled skirt sewn directly to the leggings, you’ve got the look of layered garments with the ease of one piece.  Go to The Stitching Scientist for the tute. […]
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    Comments (7)

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    0 Vote up Vote down
    Barb's avatar

    Barb · 585 weeks ago

    That is soooo stinking cute! My grands will luv this. They have a ton of leggings that will be enhanced with this tut. Ah Dor Able!
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    0 replies · active 585 weeks ago
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    Write4essay · 527 weeks ago

    They are so cute! I have only one question, how to wash them. White leggings cannot be washed with color skirt. If skirt and leggings are the same color it is not so beautiful :( I like when everything is easy and clear thats why I use https://write4essay.com/ to write essays.
    Reply
    1 reply · active 212 weeks ago
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    Sharon's avatar

    Sharon · 212 weeks ago

    I add 1cup vinegar to my rinse cycle to my washing machine and never have my fabrics, (clothing, sheets, etc) bleed. It's amazing!
    Reply
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    patiala leggings's avatar - Go to profile

    patiala leggings · 478 weeks ago

    I read your blog it is very nice to see that you have used high end product. It covers every information related with how to add ruffles to leggings. patiala leggings
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    0 replies · active 478 weeks ago
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    Lisa Hayman's avatar

    Lisa Hayman · 432 weeks ago

    My girl love ruffles. This gonna be her favorite! Thank you very much for sharing the tutorial!
    png down
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    0 replies · active 432 weeks ago
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    Rrave's avatar - Go to profile

    Rrave · 395 weeks ago

    its great.....
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    0 replies · active 395 weeks ago
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    rrave · 394 weeks ago

    nice to wear and graceful to see...
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    0 replies · active 394 weeks ago

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