Skirts Made From Men's Shirts: A Quick & Easy Refashion Tutorial

Tools and materials:

• Men’s shirt
• Measuring tape
• Ruler
• Chalk
• Scissors
• Pins
• Seam ripper
• Buttonhole foot
• Button
• Matching thread
• Iron
• Fitting skirt as a guide

1. Cut up the shirt

Divide the shirt by cutting it up at the seams and if there’s a pocket, rip it out. 

2. Cut the skirt pattern

Fold the back of the shirt in half and lay your best-fitting skirt on top, right on the fold. You’ll be cutting the back of the skirt, so fold the skirt to the relevant side. Next, cut around the shape, adding a 1-inch seam allowance. 

Be mindful of where the darts are located, as you’ll need this for making the darts in the next steps. 

Layer the two front panels on top of each and lay your skirt on top, folded, so the front side shows outward. The edge of the skirt should line up with the outer edge of the panels, leaving the button section untouched. 

Cut the front side as shown above. 

3. Sew the darts

I eyeballed the measurements here by finding the center of the back skirt and then folding the sides. If you’re unsure, use a measuring tape to get the measurements you need. 

Fold the area and pin it in a pointing down triangle. Then, repeat on the other side. 

These are how the darts look. Once you’re satisfied, head on over to your sewing machine and sew them in place. 

Then, press them down. 

4. Sew the side seams

With the right sides facing each other, pin the front panel to the sides of the back panel. 

Sew along the edges to secure. 

5. Make the waistband

Measure the width of the top of the skirt and cut a strip accordingly. Here, I placed the skirt (folded in half) on a spare piece of fabric and drew the width with chalk. 

Draw a rectangle, as shown. Then, fold the fabric in half and cut out the pattern. 

Cut the folded rectangle in half so that you have two equal pieces. Then, sew both pieces in the center to make one long piece. 

Tip: You can also add interfacing to the piece. 

Press the strap for a smooth finish. Then, fold the top edge and press the fold. 

Fold the whole strip in half and press. 

6. Attach the waistband

Open the fabric and attach the waistband to the edge of the skirt with the edge that you didn’t fold over. The waistband actually serves as one big bias tape. So, the idea is to sew the edges and then fold over the strip to the other side. Then, sew the edge. 

Now fold the strip over and pin accordingly. Then, sew all around once you’re done. 

7. Sew a button and buttonhole

Now that the waistband is in place, you’ll need to add a buttonhole and button to the waistband. Remember, it needs to align with the rest of the buttons.

I’m using my buttonhole foot to get the exact size of the buttonhole. If you don’t have this, you can manually measure it with a ruler. 

Now, sew the hole accordingly. 

Open the hole using a seam ripper. 

Attach the button to the other side. I used my machine for this, but you can totally do this by hand. 

How to make a skirt from a man's shirt tutorial

You’re ready to rock your new skirt! I can guarantee you that no one will ever guess that this is a skirt made from a shirt. This is really a fabulous upcycle, don’t you think?

Now that you know the technique, you can make a whole bunch of skirts made from men’s shirts and spruce up your style and closet inexpensively. Thanks for joining me!