Wardrobe 911 ®

A Wardrobe 911 Reader Asks:

One fashion concept I’ve never understood is the bias-cut skirt.  What are they, who should wear them and who should stay away from them?

Wardrobe 911 Responds:

The “Queen of the Bias Cut” was Madeleine Vionnet who introduced the world to her bias-cut dresses in the 20’s and 30’s. Bias-cut fashions result in a flowy and feminine garment but they cling to every curve – thus, not super great on most rectangles, triangles and hourglasses!

When a skirt is cut from a woven fabric on the bias, it has much more elasticity than if it were cut on the grain. A bias is the diagonal direction of a woven fabric. A good way to understand this is to grab a good quality scarf or square piece of fabric that is cut on the grain. (Most clothing patterns require that you cut on the grain.) When you hold two opposing corners and pull, the fabric stretches – this is the bias. So if you have hips, then the fabric will tend to pull and feel strange.

The seams of bias-cut skirts are a little trickier to sew and one must stretch the fabric slightly when they stitch it together. Because of this, it is really easy to tell if a bias skirt is poorly made because the seams will pucker.

If you have a straight hip or are fairly thin and toned, then the bias cut is the most flattering on you because it gives you the illusion of curves.  For most of us, this style is best left on the rack.