How To Line An Unlined Skirt - A Tutorial

Deep down inside, I must be a little granny because I love to line my skirts (I've been known to wear a half slip but don’t judge).  Cotton, linen or otherwise, making the the inside as pretty as the outside is part of the fun of sewing.  I recently made McCall’s 7096, a six gore unlined skirt, out of a wool boucle.  Needless to say I wanted it lined.  Since I have a skirt blog series coming up soon,  A "How To" for skirt linings seems appropriate.

A lining should be as smooth as possible as the last thing we want to do is add bulk to the inside of a garment. Making a lining with as few seams as possible is the goal. I turned this six gore skirt into a simple one piece front and one piece back lining.  Here’s how to do it:

Draw the stitching lines on the front and side front pieces along the front seamline.

Overlap the stitching lines and pin together.  Go as far as you can while keeping the pattern pieces flat.  They will spread into a “V” near the top.

Place tracing paper over the pinned pattern pieces and trace the outside and the “V” at the top of the pattern.  This forms the new dart or pleat.

Make all the pattern markings on the new pattern and repeat for the back.  Cut off the hem allowance from the original pattern (in my case I cut off 1 1/2” as stated on the pattern.) ​

There it is!  Easy peasy, right?
Enjoy!