DIY Bed Skirt Using Dental Floss

Hello, everyone.  If that headline seems a little strange, read on.  It will make sense, I promise.  In our new place, two of the guest bedrooms will have queen size beds.  I ordered a bed skirt from etsy (you can see that bed skirt here) for one of the rooms and decided to sew one for this particular guest room which is located on the third floor.   About twenty years ago, a friend taught me how to make gathers using dental floss, and it is such an easy no-fail method that I want to show you how to do it.  I prefer gathered bed skirts over box pleated bed skirts because I think they are more lush looking.  Let me preface this by saying that I absolutely do not consider myself a seamstress.  However, I can sew a straight line and do math.  That’s all that is required to make this DIY bed skirt using dental floss.  And believe me, if I can make it, then so can you. (Please note that these photos were taken using my iphone and some were taken using the light of the sewing machine.  Sorry about the quality.)

DIY  Bed Skirt Using Dental Floss

I selected a beautiful decorator fabric at my local fabric store, and luckily, it was on sale.  Then I bought a plain inexpensive white cotton queen size sheet.  First, I washed the sheet to eliminate any shrinkage.  Then I lay the sheet on top of a queen mattress and just cut the sheet to be the same size as the mattress.  That’s 60 inches by 80 inches.  Then I set that sheet aside.  I would later attach a gathered piece to both long sides of the sheet and to the shorter width at the end.

Next up, I determined how long I wanted my bed skirt to be from top to bottom, which was 15 inches.  (This can be longer if your bed is taller.)  Then I cut out the fabric long enough to allow for a two inch hem and one inch at the top for the gathers.  I also determined that I wanted the thickness of the gathers to be one and one-half times the length and width of the mattress.  That means that for the 80 inch length of the mattress, I would need two long pieces (one for each side) that measured 120 inches.  For the end of the bed, which is 60 inches wide, I needed a piece that was 90 inches.

I cut out all of the pieces, ironed them, sewed them together and hemmed them.

How to Make the Gathers

Then to make the gathers, I guided a piece of dental floss along the top of the bed skirt and zig zag stitched over it.  This step is the magic that will make the gathers easy to form.  I did this for all of the lengths of fabric.

When that was finished, I gently pulled the dental floss, and gathers formed.  After my gathered lengths of fabric were 80 inches and 60 inches, I put the right side of the skirt to the right side of the sheet and attached them with pins.

Then I slowly attached the ruffle to the sheet using a regular stitch.  And guess what!!!  It turned out perfectly except…………

 

The Final Look

…….We decided to buy a new mattress, and the bed skirt was too short for the new thick mattress.

So, I solved that problem by ordering this white bed skirt, which I raved about in a recent Saturday Selections post, and I layered them.  (You can find the bed skirt here.) Although I wasn’t originally going for double layers, it looks adorable.  I am only showing you the bottom portion of the bed right now because the new headboard hasn’t been attached yet, and the room is waiting for its furniture.  That will all happen when our pods that are holding our belongings are delivered in two weeks.

If you are jonesing to do a sewing project for your home, this DIY bed skirt using dental floss is a good one to do.  I will certainly show you photos when this room is put together.

Take care.

 

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