Make an Easy Bustle with no Sewing Machine

This bustle was a super easy project that I completed in one afternoon, so if you are still looking for a last minute bustle for your steampunk Halloween party or your Victorian Tea, don't fret!  

Here are the supplies you need:

2 floor length skirts. 1 is for you to wear as a skirt, and 1 is to make the bustle with.

Needle and Thread to match

1 Pillow (optional)

Safety pins and/or other pins

I am fortunate to have a mannequin to do this on, but if you don't, you can either use a friend or simply try the skirt on several times throughout the process.

1. Put both skirts on your mannequin. I started with the skirt that was to be my main skirt, the copper one, and then put the black skirt over it. The black skirt will be the bustle.

 

2. Cut the top skirt up the center front, stopping in the center of the pelvis area. Do not cut it all the way!

3. If you are using a bustle pillow (or any kind of padding), insert it now. I pinned mine in with safety pins so that it would be removable.

4. Start pinning up your bustle. Most bustles have multiple layers they are gathered in. I created 3 main rows of gathering, then went back to fine-tune it.


5. Pull back the sides of your overskirt, taking care to pin them back in a way that keeps your pillow/padding hidden.









 
6. After pinning, hand-sew the points you pinned, taking care to sew them well since you don't want them to rip out. And that is really all there is to it!

I later decided I didn't want the bustle pillow because it got in the way of some other accessories I was using, so I took it out. I pulled the front of the bustle up tigher around my waist to make up for the lack of padding.

It was easy to do and added some fun contrast to the copper skirt. I got both the skirts at a thrift store (as well as a lot of the other things you see in these pictures!)