How To Sew A Dress

Press the center back seam to one side with your clothes iron. Next, place the bodice front piece on the bodice back piece with their right sides together. Line them up along the shoulder and side seams. Pin both of the shoulder seams, and both side seams, together.

Use a serger, or zigzag stitch on a sewing machine, with a ¼ inch seam allowance to stitch the shoulder and side seams.

Next, we need to add ¼ inch wide elastic to the shoulder and side seams. This gives the seams more stability and durability and will help prevent them from getting stretched out of shape. Cut two pieces of elastic to match the length of the shoulder seams, and two more pieces to match the length of the side seams.

Using a serger or sewing machine, overlock or zigzag stitch the cut pieces of elastic onto the seam allowances for both of the shoulder and side seams. Make sure to not stretch the elastic as you sew, as this can create puckering. Once all four pieces of elastic have been sewn onto the shoulder and side seams, press each seam towards the bodice back.

You can now set aside the bodice for a moment, as we now will notch the waistline of the skirt. Make a small notch, less than ¼ inch deep, through each layer of fabric at both sides of the folded skirt waistline. In total, you should have 4 notches. Once the skirt is unfolded, the notches should be evenly spaced around the waistline of the skirt.

Next, we need to evenly quarter the waistline of the bodice. Fold the bodice so that the side seams are aligned at the center. Place a sewing pin in the center of the fold, at either side of the bodice. One pin will be marking the center front and the other will be marking the center back.

Next, turn the bodice right side out. Then slide it upside down, into the waistline of the skirt. The waist of the bodice should be facing towards the top, and the bodice and skirt pieces should have their right sides positioned together.

Slide the bodice down into the skirt, so that the waistline of the bodice is even with the waistline of the skirt. Match up the side seams, center front pins, and back pins in the bodice with their corresponding notches in the skirt. Pin the bodice to the skirt at these four points.

At this time, add additional pins between each quarter-point pin, to secure the skirt waist edge to the bodice.

Next, sew the skirt around the waist seam to the bodice piece. Use a ¼ inch seam allowance on a serger with an overlock stitch, or a sewing machine with a zigzag stitch.

To finish off the waist seam, stitch a ¼ inch elastic to the seam allowance for stabilization. Since this is a rounded seam, it is easier to stitch the elastic into the seam before cutting it. During this process stop sewing when the elastic overlaps the seam by about 1 inch. Then, simply trim the excess elastic away close to your stitching. When finished, press the waist seam allowance up towards the bodice.

Now let’s finish the raw edges of the dress. First, overlock or zigzag stitch along all of the raw edges of the dress with your serger or sewing machine.