A prairie skirt is an American

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

 style of skirt

Skirt

A skirt is a tube- or cone-shaped garment that hangs from the waist and covers all or part of the legs.In the western world, skirts are usually considered women's clothing. However, there are exceptions...

, an article of women's and girls' clothing

Clothing

Clothing refers to any covering for the human body that is worn. The wearing of clothing is exclusively a human characteristic and is a feature of nearly all human societies...

.

Prairie skirts are slightly flared to very full, with one or more flounces (deep ruffle

Ruffle

In sewing and dressmaking, a ruffle, frill, or furbelow is a strip of fabric, lace or ribbon tightly gathered or pleated on one edge and applied to a garment, bedding, or other textile as a form of trimming...

s) or tier

Tier

TIER may refer to:* Taiwan Institute of Economic Research, one of two major economic research institutes in TaiwanTier may refer to:* a layer or ranking or classification-group in any real or imagined hierarchy...

s, and are often worn over a ruffled eyelet or lace

Lace

Lace is an openwork fabric, patterned with open holes in the work, made by machine or by hand. The holes can be formed via removal of threads or cloth from a previously woven fabric, but more often open spaces are created as part of the lace fabric. Lace-making is an ancient craft. True lace was...

-trimmed petticoat

Petticoat

A petticoat or underskirt is an article of clothing for women; specifically an undergarment to be worn under a skirt or a dress. The petticoat is a separate garment hanging from the waist ....

. They were introduced to fashion by Ralph Lauren

Ralph Lauren

Ralph Lauren is an American fashion designer and business executive; best known for his Polo Ralph Lauren clothing brand.-Early life:...

 in his fall 1978 Western-themed collection.

Prairie skirts are so-called after their resemblance to the home-sewn skirts worn by pioneer women in the mid-nineteenth century, which in turn are a simplified version of the flared, ruffled skirts characteristic of high-fashion dresses of the 1820s.

In keeping with their design inspiration, traditional prairie skirts are usually made of "country" fabrics such as denim

Denim

Denim is a rugged cotton twill textile, in which the weft passes under two or more warp threads. This produces the familiar diagonal ribbing identifiable on the reverse of the fabric, which distinguishes denim from cotton duck. Denim has been in American usage since the late 18th century...

 and flowered calico

Calico (fabric)

Calico is a plain-woven textile made from unbleached, and often not fully processed, cotton. It may contain unseparated husk parts, for example. The fabric is less coarse and thick than canvas or denim, but owing to its unfinished and undyed appearance, it is still very cheap. Originally from the...

. Prairie skirts are a staple of women's western wear

Western wear

Western wear is a category of men's and women's clothing which derives its unique style from the clothes worn in the 19th-century American West. It ranges from accurate historical reproductions of pioneer, mountain man, Civil War, cowboy and vaquero clothing to the stylized garments popularized by...

, and very full prairie skirts are worn for square dancing

Square dance

Square dance is a folk dance with four couples arranged in a square, with one couple on each side, beginning with Couple 1 facing away from the music and going counter-clockwise until getting to Couple 4. Couples 1 and 3 are known as the head couples, while Couples 2 and 4 are the side couples...

.

Mid-calf length, button-front denim prairie skirts with a single flounce, worn with a petticoat that was slightly longer than the skirt, became a mainstream fashion

Fashion

Fashion, a general term for a currently popular style or practice, especially in clothing, foot wear, or accessories. Fashion references to anything that is the current trend in look and dress up of a person...

 in the 1970s and early '80s following Lauren's introduction.

Short, many-tiered prairie skirts of voile

Voile

Voile is a soft, sheer fabric, usually made of 100% cotton or cotton blends including linen or polyester. The term comes from French, and means veil. Because of its light weight, the fabric is mostly used in soft furnishing. Full-length curtains in hot countries are made with voile and used as...

, chiffon

Chiffon (fabric)

Chiffon, , from the French word for a cloth or rag, is a lightweight, balanced plain-woven sheer fabric woven of alternate S- and Z-twist crepe yarns. The twist in the crepe yarns puckers the fabric slightly in both directions after weaving, giving it some stretch and a slightly rough...

or other lightweight fabrics were a fashion trend in 2005. Some wear longer-length prairie skirts with a slip or underskirt to preserve modesty.