Belt: Knowing what you need and what to cut

First we need to define a few terms so that we know we are talking about the same thing.

Belt front: may be made of fabric, vinyl, or, like the original, leather (part B)

Belt backer: fabric sewn onto the belt front. same size and cut as the belt front, it is unseen, directly behind belt front.

Ribbon: may be made of ribbon or fabric (part A)

Back band: you have a lot of options here. this may be one elastic piece (option 1), it could be 2 fabric pieces joined with a button closure (option 2), or extended fabric or ribbon pieces that tie in the back with a bow or knot (option 3). this one is also unseen in the picture, but it is simply the piece that goes around your back.

Seam allowance: 1/2 inch unless other wise noted

Now that we are all on the same page here is the formulas to know how much to cut, find example measurements in parentheses:

Belt front and backer – cut one of each

1. measure your waist (30 inches)

2. 2/3rds of your waist measurements + 1 inch for seam allowance = belt front and backer length (30 x 2/3 = 20 + 1 = 21 inches)

3. width is equal to the width of your ribbon or desired width + 1 for seam allowance (ribbon width = 2 inches +1 = 3 inches wide)

4. cut fabric front and backer fabric (21 inches by 3 inches)

Ribbon – cut one

1. take 2/3rds of waist measurement x 3 (30 x 2/3 = 20 x 3 = 60 inches long)

2. cut width as desired or leave as is (I want my finished belt to be 2 inches wide, so I bought 2 inch ribbon, but if you are using fabric you can cut it to any width, just cut it to the finished belt width, don’t add a seam allowance)

Back band

option 1 (elastic – cut one): waist measurement x 1/3 + 1 inch for seam allowance (30 x 1/3 = 10 + 1 = 11 inches) I bought 2 inch elastic to match my belt front width. Note the finished circumference is equal to your waist circumference.

option 2 (button closure – cut 4): waist measurement x 1/6 + 3 inches, one for seam allowance, one for ease, & one for over lap (30 x 1/6 = 5 + 3 = 8 inches each)

option 3 (tie in back – cut 2 if ribbon, cut 4 if fabric): waist measurement x 1/2 or longer if desired (30 x 1/2 = 15 inches each)