Did you find yours already? The perfect pleated skirt

Only since recently do I fully appreciate the pleated skirt. Not because I don’t like this, I love them and have always done, you know I’m a preppy girl. As a fashion lover I always look out for new trends but with this skirt I expected to have to skip it. However I kept on looking for these skirts, I kept my eyes open wherever I went in shops or online. I was searching for my beloved skater skirts and couldn’t find them, all I saw was pleated skirts. What the heck, just give it a go and after fitting a couple of different skirts I found one which really suited my shape.

pleats

You’d think that a pleated skirt is really preppy, even old fashioned but that doesn’t have to be so. Luckily the casual wear and leisure trend is here so you can just rock the skirt with a pair of sneakers. Wear your top tucked into the waistband to create more curves and emphasising your waistline. However you will have to find the perfect skirt first, so I lined up my favourites. Click on the image to check out all the details, prices and availability.

shape

The pleated skirt isn’t just a skirt, it has a rather straight shape but because of its harmonica effect is can open (and close) up easily. It will never fit very straight and it’s important to choose the right one. This goes for every size by the way, not just plus sizes. Personally I like to wear the skirt high waisted so that it just casually drapes over my hips without standing open. I wear my top tucked into the waistband to show off the waistline and at the same time making sure the skirt doesn’t stand open. If you think this is scary, a tucked in top, then just wear a jacket or cardigan over the skirt. You have to be creative, but whatever you do, it will suit you if you try hard enough.

baby pleats

Besides the regular pleated skirts there are also the baby pleats. Very tiny, narrow pleats on a light weight, flowy fabric which they like to call crinkle pleats. This has a better drape compared to the standard pleats and thus has an easier fit. I love to wear this, I think its very flattering and doesn’t stand open as much as regular pleats. The crinkle pleats are very feminine and are also lots available in other items like a dress, top or even trousers.

fashion girl

During my internship which was ages ago, one of the assignments was to produce pleated skirts in Poland. Not just any skirt, but a check printed skirt in chiffon with pleats. It was a challenge to keep the print straight, nice positioned pleats and a perfect fitting skirt with lining. A fabric is printed (or not, for a single color skirt) and goes onto a mold where they press in the pleats. This way the pleats in the skirt are being fixed with heat. When there’s a coating on it, like with the metallic skirts it’s sometimes done on purpose so it gives a cracked effect.

fun fact: pleated skirts are often stitched and then placed on a dummy. They check the bottom hem and adjust it on the dummy in stead of on a sewing table. This way they’re making sure the skirt is straight as the fabrics tends to go everywhere.

metallic

The 2.0 in this trend is the pleated skirt in metallic look. How does that work? Well in general it’s just the finish of the fabric, as they put an extra layer on top of the fabric with this shiny coating. This is often in a soft tone or in metal colours. You also see them with a black finish, too much looks like leather, too little is very subtle.

This is just a selected Ive found online, but there are so many more. It all depends on what you are looking for, short or longer. Big pleats or small pleats, dull colors or bright as spring. I chose to show you the bright and metallic colors as these are so colourful and they make me happy. Black skirts we can shop and wear all year anyway! I’m curious which is your favourite and which would you wear?

which skirt is your favourite?

me in pleats:

metallic pink