Sewing Instructions – Model 123 Bubble Skirt

Model 123 – Bubble Skirt (D) ★★★ A gathered bubble (balloon) skirt: a full outer skirt is gathered at the top and bottom onto a straight inner skirt, which creates the bubble shape. It has side seam pockets, a waistband and an invisible zipper at the center back. Draft the pattern with the Lutterloh System from your hip measurement, then add seam allowances before cutting.

To avoid confusion, the outer skirt is always called the "bubble skirt" in these instructions.

What you need

Item Amount
Fabric for the skirt (D), Model 123 205 x 150 cm – 2¼ yd of 58/60″ wide fabric
Invisible zipper 7″ (18 cm)
Fusible interfacing for the waistband, plus stay tape for the pocket openings (e.g. Pellon SF101 Shape-Flex)
Invisible zipper foot for your sewing machine

Fabric recommendation: lightweight to medium-weight fabrics with some body.

  • Cotton poplin (3.2–4.1 oz/yd²)
  • Lightweight taffeta (2.4–3.8 oz/yd²)
  • Fine to medium-weight linen (4.1–5.3 oz/yd²)
  • Cotton sateen (3.5–4.7 oz/yd²)

Fabric suggestion: premium cotton poplin by the yard.

Seam allowances: ⅝″ (1.5 cm) on all seams.

Preparations: Mark the pocket openings on the front of the bubble skirt 2⅜″ (6 cm) below the top edge, and transfer the marks exactly to the back pieces. Mark the zipper slit on the bubble skirt, and mark it on the inner skirt exactly ¾″ (2 cm) higher. Fuse strips of interfacing (stay tape) onto the pocket openings and interface the entire waistband strip. Steam the zipper tapes with your iron so they don't shrink later.

Pattern pieces: AD = bubble skirt front (cut 1 on the fold), BD = bubble skirt back (cut 2, mirror images), AD ST = inner skirt front (cut 1 on the fold), BD ST = inner skirt back (cut 2, mirror images), AK = pocket bag (cut 4), H = waistband (cut 1).

Sewing steps

  1. Inner skirt side seams. Place the inner skirt front (AD ST) right sides together with the inner skirt backs (BD ST). Pin and stitch the side seams and press the seam allowances open.
  2. Pockets and side seams of the bubble skirt. Pin the pocket bags right sides together onto the marked pocket openings of the bubble skirt (AD and BD), with the bags pointing diagonally downward. Staystitch them in place within the seam allowance, close to the seam line. Press the pocket bags outward over the seam. Pin the front (AD) to the backs (BD) right sides together, matching the seam lines and pocket marks. Stitch the side seams above and below the pocket marks. Press the seam allowances and the pocket bags open. If you like, topstitch the pocket openings close to the edge from the right side. Finally, press both pocket bags toward the front, baste them together and stitch along the curved edge to close the pocket.
  3. Gather the bubble skirt. Sew two parallel rows of long gathering stitches within the seam allowance along the upper and lower edges of the bubble skirt. Pull up the threads to gather the lower edge to the width of the inner skirt's lower edge, then gather the upper edge to the width of the inner skirt's upper edge.
  4. Join the lower edges. Pin the gathered lower edge of the bubble skirt right sides together onto the lower edge of the inner skirt, matching the side seams exactly. Spread the gathers evenly, pin and stitch. Press the seam allowances toward the inner skirt.
  5. Prepare the waistband. Cut the waistband strip 4¾″ (12 cm) wide: that gives a finished, visible waistband of 1¾″ (4.5 cm) when folded, plus ⅝″ (1.5 cm) seam allowance on each long edge. The length depends on the upper skirt edge (waist); the approx. 32¼″ (82 cm) on the pattern overview is only a guide. Fuse interfacing (e.g. Pellon SF101 Shape-Flex in the US, Vlieseline H 180 in Germany) to the whole strip. Fold it in half lengthwise, wrong sides together, and press. Press the seam allowance of one long edge to the inside; this becomes the inner side. Mark the sections with a fabric pen: seam allowance, half the back waist, the full front waist, half the back waist, seam allowance.
  6. Sew the waistband to the bubble skirt. Pin the bubble skirt right sides together onto the waistband, matching the side seams and the center back marks exactly with the marks on the waistband. Spread the gathers evenly, pin and stitch. Press the seam allowances together into the waistband.
  7. Invisible zipper at the center back of the bubble skirt.
    1. Open the zipper. Place the first zipper tape face down on the right side of the fabric along the left slit edge, ¼″ (0.5 cm) from the raw edge, gently rolling the teeth open as you pin. At the top, the slider must line up exactly with the pressed fold of the waistband; at the bottom the tape extends about ¾″ (2 cm) past the slit mark.
    2. Set the invisible zipper foot on the tape so the teeth run through the right groove next to the needle. Stitch from the top down to the slit mark.
    3. Close the zipper. Place the second tape face down on the right side of the fabric along the right slit edge, pinning it at the top waist edge exactly level with the first side. Open the zipper again.
    4. Set the foot so the teeth run through the left groove next to the needle, and stitch from the top down to the slit mark. Close the zipper.
  8. Close the center back seam. Lay the bubble skirt and the inner skirt out flat so their center back edges form one continuous line, and pin them right sides together. Starting at the top edge of the inner skirt, baste the slit area closed with a long stitch, without backstitching. Cut the thread, switch to a normal stitch length and sew the center back seam from just below the slit mark, straight across the hem join and up the bubble skirt to just below the zipper. Push the zipper tapes diagonally out of the way as you sew. Press both skirts' seam allowances open, including the slit area of the inner skirt, then remove the basting from the slit.
  9. Attach the inner skirt at the top. Fold the inner skirt up, wrong sides together, and pin it to the upper edge of the bubble skirt and waistband within the seam allowance. Sew the inner skirt's slit allowances over the zipper tapes by hand, so the zipper is enclosed between the inner skirt and the bubble skirt. Baste or stitch the inner skirt to the upper edge, staying within the seam allowance.
  10. Finish the waistband. Fold the seam allowances at the short ends of the waistband to the inside, wrapping them over the zipper ends. Fold the waistband to the inside along its pressed fold so the pressed lower edge lies just over the waistband seam. From the right side, stitch in the ditch of the seam to secure the inner waistband, or slipstitch it by hand from the inside with invisible stitches. At the zipper, secure the small open edges of the waistband to the zipper tapes with a few hand stitches.

Tips

  • Alternative: inner skirt fabric. The inner and outer skirt can be cut from the same fabric if it feels comfortable against the skin. Otherwise use a matching lining fabric for the inner skirt. If you will wear the skirt over tights, a real lining fabric is strongly recommended so the skirt doesn't cling or ride up.
  • More volume. For extra volume and a crisp, long-lasting bubble shape, underline the bubble skirt with lightweight tulle or nylon netting before gathering. It adds bounce without weight.