Thread: fixing Madame Abla skirt

I finally have decided that this skirt works fine EXCEPT when i do Turkish in it( i know---i was foolish).

But now that i am using it again----i have to keep the skirt in place. No zipper. It came w/ the elastic thru the thread casing. I can redo this cause it's getting trashed. I have an idea of an elastic piece in the front that i can snap into place when i have pulled the skirt on ( pulling the skirt tighter)

The problem is---pull it up over my butt( which stretches the elastic) and then tighten the elastic to keep the skirt in place . Maybe i should put some felt lining inside the top of the skirt( to keep it from sliding down) . I hate dancing and thinking-----is my underwear/nylons showing? ( i wear no-nonsense sheer to the waist.)

Any ideas??

sorry ----here is the skirt photo. the front of the skirt looks like the back.

Hi there, I have two ablas just like this. I put in new, non-rolling 1" thick black elastic all the way around, and pull it on over the hips. It stays because the elastic is new and sturdy.

When you are ready to pass this lovely costume on some day, please contact me. it's beautiful.

If you run a secondary drawstring of soft cord or ribbon through the same casing as the elastic, that can help tighten up the top (assuming the casing is sturdy enough). Alternatively, you could replace part of the elastic with a reinforcing fabric that does not stretch, sort of like how some (normal clothes) pants and skirts have a flat front and elastic in the back. The problem with elastic is that in order to get it tight enough to be secure, sometimes it is challenging to get the garment on, and the wrestling with it can rip seams--and when you do get it tight enough, if you have any softness to your body, it creates a bulge. If you can replace stretch with something that doesn't stretch, you can make things more secure and less muffin-top-y. It would probably not be worth the effort in this case to take most of the elasticity out and put in a zipper, but in a different circumstance, that would be another possible approach.

It doesn't look like you wear a body stocking, but if you did, little hooks sewn in around the top of the skirt can hook through the mesh.

You could sew body-hugging shorts into the skirt.

You could put elastic in a casing in the front of the skirt as well as in the back.

Ezma and Tourbeau have great ideas, too.

THANKS---- you ladies are the best!! i knew there was something i wasn't thinking of-----the non--stretch stuff( drawstring) will be great.

EzmaSiddiqah----i'll keep you in mind. There are a few small snags in the lycra----otherwise it's all in great shape.