The Melancholy of Haruhi Suzumiya - Half pleated Skirt Tutorial

I am cosplaying Yuki Nagato and have looked everywhere for a good tutorial, without success. As a sewing noob I can honestly say that its not a difficult skirt to sew ٩(｡•‿•｡)۶

Haruhi's uniform skirt is a short high waisted skirt with two inverted half pleats on each side. I have used twill fabric because it is stiff and pleats well

Hope this tutorial helps other Haruhi cosplayers! ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ

Materials:

ღ Fabric (E.g. twill)
ღ Sewing Machine
ღ Scissors + chalk + ruler

Measurements:

ღ Waist
ღ Skirt Lenght

Instructions:

Measure your fabric and cut two identical rectangles 40" x 20" [Note: These measurements for the fabric needed are a bit exaggerated because the first time I made this skirt it ended up too small, so I just used a lot the second time round, just in case!]

Draw a vertical line marking the center of your rectangles, and also where your pleats will be. I marked mine four inches from the middle, and I didn't make them symetrical... one side of the pleat is wider than the other (2" vs 4"). I don't think it makes much difference, I just thought it would drape better when extended. However, you will need pretty deep pleats for accuracy, so make them 2" at least.

Draw another line marking the center of your rectangle, this time horizontally. Also hem the bottom on both pieces of fabric. Its a pain to do it after, trust me.

Fold your pleats into themselves, pin and press down well!

 

Sew your pleats into place from the wrong side of the fabric, until your horizontal marking.

You can now cut the excess fabric of the back and front of the skirt to the lenght of your waist (circumference /2) plus seam allowance. Sew both sides together (remember to do the left side halfway only, you won't be able to get into your skirt otherwise). I personally love using french seams for this step.

Sew your waistband (fold, sew on one side, fold over, sew the other side, press).

Add some belt loops and close the half sewn left side of the skirt using a zip, hooks or whatever method of closure you find best. I used hooks this time because I haven't bought a blue zipper yet

Finito! ٩(｡•‿•｡)۶ Your finished skirt should look like this (or hopefully better, excuse the crap photograph):