To make these skirts, I buy 5 yards of the fabric. I cut the fabric lengthwise while it is still folded over in half the way it is wrapped on the bolt. And then cut down the center, with 11 inches on each side of the cut.
Next, I unfold the top half and cut down the fold line with 11 inches on each side. Now I have 4 strips of fabric that are 5 yards long and 11 inches wide.
I always use the 2 fabric strips from the bottom of the first cut to be the bottom tier. Those edges are already somewhat finished when they come off the bolt and won't unravel. That way I do not have to make a 10 yard hem at the bottom of the skirt. The fabric edge is my hem :)
So I take those 2 strips and sew them together to get a 10 yard strip that is 11 inches wide. Then I sew a line of wide stitches with my sewing machine along the unfinished 10 yard edge to be the top of the bottom tier's gathering spot. Then comes tons of gathering. I sit and pull on one string from the machine-stitched line and gather the fabric down until it is half its width (now 5yd).
Next, I line up the 5 yard gathered edge of the bottom tier with the bottom edge of another 5 yard strip of fabric and pin them together. Then I sew those 2 pieces together. After that, I gather the top edge of the second tier the same way as I did the first tier, taking it down to 2.5 yards in size.
Next I cut the remaining 5 yard strip of fabric in half vertically to get 2 x 2.5 yard/11" wide strips. I line up one of these 2.5 yard strips with the gathered edge of the 2nd tier, pin and sew to make the 3rd tier. Then I gather up the top of the 3rd tier to about 1.5 yards. Now, at this point you could make it whatever width you need. I think the last skirt I made I took it down to 1.25 yards, but this one I left a little roomier. You could also make it bigger and gather to 1.75 or 2yd or whatever you like if you want it fuller in the top or need more room for hip size etc.
I cut the remaining 2.5yd strip of fabric down to desired length, pin and sew it to the top of the 3rd tier creating the 4th tier. Then I line up the left and right edges with right sides facing and pin them together and sew up the side.
After that, the only thing left to be done is to fold over the top edge and sew along it to make a casing leaving an opening for a strip of elastic to run through for the waistband. I used 3/4" non-roll elastic for mine.
Since I am tall, the 44 inch fabric is the perfect width for me. By the time I have sewed all my seams and folded over for the waistband it is just the length I need (I measure about 39 inches from my hip to the floor for my bellydance skirts), If you need it shorter, you could fold over more at the top for an easy fix. You could also cut the fabric strips thinner than 11 inches but that seems like a good deal more work, and I wanted a skirt that was as quick and simple as possible ;) If you're really ambitious you could experiment with the math and more yardage to make a 15 yard or 25 yard skirt. That's a little too much gathering for my liking.
I wait until I get 40% or 50% off coupons for JoAnn to buy the fabric. So with thread, elastic and fabric included these skirts generally cost me maybe $12 to make. It takes me a couple hours with all the gathering, but it's worth it.
Here is the finished result!
Other skirts I have made using this method:
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