Bed Skirt with Pockets – Free Sewing Pattern

DIY HOME DECORATION, Sewing Patterns

Love reading in bed? This pleated cotton bed skirt with pockets – free sewing pattern- offers a solution to keep things uncluttered and tidy by creating dedicated places to put your glasses and your favorite book.

bedskirt pockets free sewing pattern
Image credit: BHG

And beyond that, I think these bed skirt pockets are ever so handy for storing your lip balm, clean bed socks for cold feet, as well as anything romantic.

Bed Skirt with Pockets – Free Sewing Pattern

Be sure to read these instructions 2x before cutting any fabric. Pleats can be tricky.

Materials

You’ll need pretty cotton fabric for the outside of the skirt; white cotton fabric for the lining, and contrasting fabric for the pockets.

First, measure your bed. That is: your mattress length x width; and your bed frame length x width; thickness of the frame rim and rim height from the floor.

  • Pretty cotton fabric (skirt): 2x the length and 1x the width (foot strip), adding 1 inch seam allowance, and pleat allowances.
  • White cotton fabric (top, between your mattress and frame): width x length of your bed frame, adding 1 inch seam allowance.
  • Contrast/patterned fabric (pockets and pocket flaps).

How to Tutorial

  1. We’re assuming your mattress is 53 x 74.5 inches, and that your frame rim is a 15-inch from the floor. Now, jot down your actual measurements.
  1. For the top: I would cut 54 x 75 1/2 inches from my white cotton fabric. You cut the (length+1 inch) x (width+1inch) of your mattress.
  2. For the bed skirt bed foot section: To realise this, cut one fabric strip of 144 x 16.5 inches. That is nearly 2x the length of the foot section of the bed. Prorate it for the actual length of your bed. Note: It has a 1.5 inch seam allowance for the height of the skirt, i.e. 0.75 on top, and 0.75 on the bottom. Note: your actual fabric may not have that length/width and you may need to sew (piece, is the official term) fabric together.
  3. For the bed skirt bed side sections: I would cut/sew a fabric strip of 202.5  x 16.5inches for each side. (i.e. 2 strips), and you want to prorate these dimensions to your actual bed size. Pro-tip: Add an extra 12 inches to each length to avoid any unsightly seam on the top of a pleat. This will allow you to cut and re-piece lengths to hide seams on the inside of the pleats.
Pleating

We’ll assume 9-inch-wide pleats with a 2-inch-spacing in between them.

Ensure you have 9 inches to both side of each pleat. This allows you to fold the pleat back 4 1/2 inches and then flatten it against the other 4 1/2 inches.

  1. Before pleating, we put straight-pin markings in our strips of fabric as follows: 2 inches in to begin the side strips and then at 9 inches, 9 inches, 9 inches, 2 inches, 9 inches, 9 inches, 9 inches, 2 inches, and repeat.
  2. Once all pins were in place, we pinned in and steam-pressed five pleats for the foot of the bed and seven pleats for each side of the bed. We did not stitch them in place yet. Also, leave 2 inches at the foot-end of the side strips for the corners and 2 inches at each end of the foot strips.

Pockets

  1. In contrast fabric: cut a 9-x-9-inch piece.
  2. Fold in and press 1 inch all around to make a finished 7-inch square. Topstitch all sides. (We turned the pockets in a full inch because they will be used for storage. The extra fabric ensures strength and durability.)
  3. Pocket flap: cut 8-x-3-inch strips of fabric.
  4. Turn all edges under 1/4 inch and again 1/4 inch and press.
  5. Topstitch all sides.
  6. Open up the pleated and pressed strips, being careful not to flatten the pressed seams. Measure and sew the pockets in place starting 5 inches from the bottom raw edge of the bed skirt.
  7. Overlap the flaps about 1 inch on the pockets and stitch along the top edge to secure.
  8. Press all pockets.
  9. Fold under a 1/2-inch hem and fold under again 1/2 inch on all strips; topstitch.
  10. Press the hem.
  11. Hem the sides of all pleated strips.
  12. Now repin all pleats and press again if necessary.
Assembly
  1. With right sides facing: attach the strips to the large white cotton base piece. Sew all pieces together, adhering to a 1/2-inch seam allowances.
  2. Put the bed skirt over your bed frame, between it and the mattress.
  3. Now remove all pleat pins. Pro tip: by leaving them in till this stage, your pleats will stay neat and tidy.

Source: bhg

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