How to Crochet a Mini Rippling Skirt

In making my Princess series, there were a lot of varying dresses and gowns techniques I tried out to make them look slightly different and unique.

There was a lot of experimentation involved but it really came down to a basic template I used, which I’ll be covering.

Basics of making the skirt

In this particular illustration, I started with a magic ring of 10 and continued on to using double crochet in the 2nd round.

Round 1: Magic ring 10 - 10st

Round 2: 2dc10 - 20st

2dc10 refers to 2 double crochet in each st, around the 10st in the ring.

Types of skirts to crochet

These are basic interpretations of skirts that I crochet for my dolls, which is by no means exhaustive and I’m not sure whether it generally applies for real life skirts! Let’s get to it:

1) Straight skirt

In the next few examples, I will mention the 3rd round in complement with the above and I will only mention the increment for easier reference.

Round 3: Dc1 all around

This is the simplest way to continue in the round, it’s simply the same number of total stitches as the previous round, in this example dc20. As for Tiana on the right, the subsequent rounds were in single crochet, instead of double crochet.

2) A-line skirt

Now to make the skirt flare out slightly, there will be an increment in the subsequent row, not much just slightly.

Round 3: (Dc3, 2dc1) all around

So in this case, I have continued the round as per normal for 3 consecutive dc stitches (dc3), then an increment in the 4th st (2dc1 or increase).

3) Godet skirt

As for this skirt appearance, the skirt is starting to fan outwards more. So in crochet sense, you are technically making the initial magic ring increase outwards.

Round 3: (Dc1, 3dc1) all around

This time, I chose to increase not just once but twice, such that there are 3 double crochet in each alternate stitch. The eventual round has a lot more stitches than the preceding round (round 2).

4) Circular skirt

Very similar to the godet skirt above, I am yet again not only making the skirt fan outwards but it is also starting to ripple.

Round 3: (2dc1, 3dc1) all around

And so round 3 has a lot more stitches than round 2 because I have an increase and a double increase in alternate stitches.

5) Ruffled skirt

This skirt I made for Merida has the most rippled effect, that’s why I dubbed it the ruffled skirt. The edges of the skirt have a wavy appearance and can look quite nice when making gowns for amis.

Round 3: 3dc1 all around

As you can see, this method will make the highest number of stitches in the subsequent round because you would be squeezing 3 double crochet in each and every single stitch! Which means round 2 of 20st will make a round 3 of 60st!

This is how the 5 princesses turned out with their varying skirts... I also previously made some pleated skirts for Sailor Moon and Hermione.

The single and full bundled patterns will be available soon!

Happy crocheting and do continue to experiment until you get the effect you want. Try sc, try 2dc or 3dc or some combination of them and see what you end up with!