What Is a Maxi Skirt?

Where does the maxi skirt come from?

The maxi skirt as a named fashion comes from the mid-1960s, when long hemlines returned in Paris and New York as the counterpart to the miniskirt, although floor-length skirts are far older. The fashion historian Pamela A. Parmal notes that skirts reached the floor for most of Western fashion history. The exceptions were working-class dress and brief periods in the 1780s and 1830s when ankles showed. Designers first raised hemlines several inches above the floor in 1915.

The word

Oxford Learner's Dictionaries dates “maxi” to the 1960s, as an abbreviation of “maximum” formed on the pattern of “mini”. The fashion historian Heather Vaughan Lee identifies a July 1966 syndicated report from Paris on Jacques Syma's collection as one of the first times “maxi” appeared in American newspapers. That report covered the micro-mini skirt and “its counterpart the maxi skirt”.

From film to fashion

Lee traces the style's start in popular culture to the film Doctor Zhivago (1965). She quotes Collier's Encyclopedia on its costumes, which included “the maxi, or ankle-length, skirt”. In a 2008 article she quotes in the same post, Lee wrote that maxi-length skirts “had begun to outdo the mini skirt in 1967”, with the dress and the maxi coat following.

The ASU FIDM Museum notes that by 1968 designers had begun to introduce the calf-length midi and “even the floor length maxi skirt”, and that fashion advertisements from 1968 focus mainly on those two lengths. Not everyone went along. A group of New York women calling themselves “mini militants” made protest signs reading “Maxis are Monstrous”.

The hemline battle and after

Parmal writes that designers' attempts to bring back longer hemlines, the midi and the maxi, met fierce resistance. When designers, manufacturers and retailers introduced the midi in 1970, most women rejected it. The FIDM Museum describes the resulting spread of lengths as the “mixi” aesthetic, and records mail-order patchwork kits for mini, midi or maxi skirts marketed both to buyers drawn to a hippie look and to women who wanted to buck fashion trends. Since then, Parmal concludes, skirt length has been a personal choice rather than something designers dictate.

What makes a maxi skirt a maxi skirt?

A maxi skirt is defined by length alone: its hem reaches the ankle or the floor, whatever the cut, cloth or waistband. A narrow jersey tube, a full tiered cotton skirt and a pleated satin skirt can all be maxis.

Dictionaries draw the lower boundary differently. Oxford Learner's Dictionaries defines a maxi as reaching the ankles. The Random House definition on Dictionary.com describes a maxiskirt as ending “below the middle of the calf but above the ankle”, which overlaps the midi. Because the label is loose, compare the skirt's stated length with your own waist-to-ankle measurement before buying.

What are the main types of maxi skirt?

Because the name fixes only the length, maxi skirts come in almost every skirt cut, and the cut decides how the skirt moves and how easy it is to walk in.

How do you tell a well-made maxi skirt?

A well-made maxi skirt hangs level all round from a smooth, firm waistband, and its gathers, seams and lining lie flat without pulling. The checks below follow New Mexico State University's construction standards and the Texas 4-H clothing quality standards, both used to judge garments.

Waistband and zip

• Run a thumb and finger along the waistband. It should be an even width with square corners, and firmer than the skirt cloth because it is interfaced.
• Look where skirt meets band. The skirt should be eased slightly onto the band, not stretched flat or bunched into tucks.
• On an elastic waist, the casing should be flat, of even width and only slightly wider than the elastic. If the elastic can roll over inside a loose channel, the casing is too wide.
• Zip the skirt up. The zip should slide easily and be fully covered, the placket should lie flat without puckering, and the band should sit exactly at the top of the zip.

Hem

• Hang the skirt up, or ask someone to look while you wear it: the hem should hang parallel to the floor. On a long skirt, a hem that dips at one side is easy to see.
• Look at the hem from the right side. It should be flat and inconspicuous, and the edge finish inside should not make a ridge.
• On a hand-finished hem, the stitches should be evenly spaced, about ½ inch (1.3 cm) apart. On a flared or tiered hem, the fullness should be eased in evenly so it lies flat.

Gathers, pleats and pattern

• Hold each tier seam flat between your hands. Gathers should be the same density from one side seam to the other, with no accidental pleats, and full enough not to look skimpy.
• On stripes and checks, follow a line across the side seams: plaids and stripes should match.
• The cloth should have the weight and drape the design needs, cut on a balanced grain.

Lining and seams

• Lift the hem. A lining should be hemmed about 1 inch (2.5 cm) shorter than the skirt so it never shows below it.
• A free-hanging lining should be held to the skirt at the seams by French tacks, short chains of thread, and should fit smoothly with its seams aligned to the skirt's.
• Seams should be straight, flat and securely stitched, with a finish that suits the cloth and does not fray.

Red flags: a hem that dips or ripples unevenly, gathers bunched in places, a puckered zip, a lining that peeps below the hem, or a waistband of uneven width.

How do you wear a maxi skirt?

Wear a maxi skirt with the hem just clearing the ground in the shoes you will actually wear, and balance its length with a top that shows where your waist is.

• Set the length for your shoes. A hem chosen for heels will drag with flat sandals. Pick one height of shoe and buy or alter the skirt for it.
• Leave room to walk. A straight, narrow maxi needs a slit, a kick pleat or some flare. Writing about the mini-to-maxi years, the FIDM Museum notes that maxi skirts often featured knee- or thigh-high slits.
• Keep the waist visible. Tuck in a shirt or knit, or wear a short top that ends at the waistband, so a full skirt does not swamp you.
• Match the cloth to the occasion. Tiered cotton or a print belongs with boho day clothes; a bias-cut satin maxi with a fitted top works for evening.
• Layer in cold weather. Add a jacket or knit that stops at the waist, and ankle boots under the hem. A long coat looks best when it reaches close to the hem.
• Mind stairs and kerbs. Lift the front of the skirt slightly on steps so you do not tread on the hem.