When I saw Emma Jayne’s skirt made from this same fabric, I couldn’t resist visiting my local IKEA store and getting some of the fabric too. It is upholstery fabric and rather stiff, but I just loved the crazy pattern and wanted to try whether I could make it work as a skirt as well. I chose to make a seamless wrap skirt with no waistband because I didn’t want to break up the pattern any more than necessary.

IKEA Envelope Wrap Skirt: Front

I’m not completely happy with the fit, but the skirt is definitely a statement piece, and a stranger already complimented me enthusiastically on it while I was out for a few minutes taking photos for this post. That never happens to me!

Pattern

I started out with swellmayde’s tutorial, but changed quite a few things, so the skirt is pretty much self-drafted.

IKEA Envelope Wrap Skirt: Side

Fabric

For the exterior, about 60cm of IKEA HÄLLEKNOPP upholstery fabric. I have approximately the same amount left over because I hadn’t chosen what exactly I wanted to make at the time I bought the fabric, so I got enough to potentially match the pattern at whichever seam lines I might need.

IKEA Envelope Wrap Skirt: Back

For the lining, the same amount of IKEA BOMULL (unbleached muslin), dyed orange. I wanted something softer than the upholstery fabric next to my skin.

Adjustments

  • I added in some darts. I just “draped” (the word doesn’t fit because the fabric is much too stiff) the skirt on Janička and pinched out darts where I thought I needed them, pinned them and tried the skirt on myself. I repeated this as often as I needed to make the skirt fit reasonably well. It was a very haphazard process and the darts aren’t symmetrical—but the whole skirt isn’t (and neither am I), so I don’t care.

IKEA Envelope Wrap Skirt: Side

  • I “lined” the skirt. I didn’t do this properly, I basically just sewed the exterior and lining fabrics together right sides facing and turned them right sides out. I didn’t sew darts in the lining, but instead just folded out pleats. I put them next to the darts in the exterior rather than in the exact same places in order to reduce the bulk. I sandwiched one side of the zipper between the exterior and lining fabrics.

  • I added a slanted zipped welt pocket. It’s useful and I also thought that it added a nice detail.

IKEA Envelope Wrap Skirt: Pocket

  • I used two (big) snaps instead of just one. I placed one where the tutorial has it and the second one at the bottom of the underlap in order to keep that in place. I’m considering to add another, even, because the fabric is heavy and the underlap still shifts a bit while I’m wearing the skirt.

Photo of the pocket taken by my boyfriend.