Sewing a jersey dress: Dresses made from jersey are the perfect, breezy summer outfit! And they are very easy to sew. In this post, you'll learn everything you need to know!
The most important things at a glance
- Jersey dresses are a great project for sewing beginners (easy to sew, look great)
- There are many special features that make jersey the perfect fabric for dresses
- Our Yoko pattern is the ideal beginner pattern for a jersey dress
Sewing a jersey dress for women
Jersey dresses are ideal for all ages and every size! This is because jersey fabrics are available in so many qualities. This allows you to sew enchanting dresses: from stylish to classic, or simply casual! Of course, you can also very easily sew the neckline with a V-neck.
By the way, jersey dresses aren't just suitable for the warm season: combined with long cardigans and leggings, they are wonderful companions all year round!
Can beginners sew a jersey dress?
Of course! Sewing a jersey dress is hardly any more difficult than sewing a T-shirt. If you are a beginner, you should make sure not to choose a pattern that is too complicated. This way, you can familiarize yourself with the subject of clothing step by step.
The only difference between a shirt and a dress is often the length of the garment. And therefore more material. But with jersey, that's usually not a problem because the fabric is light and rather fine.
Using an overlock, or perhaps a coverlock for the hems, makes it easier for beginners to handle the stretchiness of jersey.
If you have experienced waves forming in the jersey, feel free to read my blog post on sewing jersey without waves beforehand.
Why is jersey perfect for sewing a dress?
Unlike woven fabric, jersey is a soft, elastic material that even forgives small mistakes or deviations. It is stretchy and hugs the body beautifully. That accounts for its particularly comfortable wearing properties.
Since jersey is available in many different fabric qualities, it is very easy to always choose the most suitable material for your new favorite dress.
It makes a big difference whether you sew the jersey dress from, for example, modal jersey or ponte di roma.
Modal jersey is a fine, cool knitted fabric with a smooth drape that can, however, prove challenging when sewing. This is because modal is inherently a bit slippery. But what makes it so comfortable to wear also makes it difficult to sew.
Sewn from ponte di roma, your new dress will have a nice firmness. Ponte di roma is very easy to work with and hardly ripples when sewing. By the way, this also makes ponte di roma a perfect fabric for sewing beginners.
Sewing your own jersey dress
Sewing a dreamily beautiful women's dress from jersey: With the Yoko pattern, this is quite simple even for sewing beginners! The dress is cut close to the body up to the waist and widens towards the hem in a moderate A-line.
The sleeves are also cut narrow.
To ensure you can adapt the pattern for all occasions and seasons, the following variations are possible:
- Jersey dress with American neckline
- Jersey dress with round neckline
- Sewing a jersey dress with long sleeves
- Sewing a jersey dress with three-quarter sleeves
- Sewing a jersey dress with short sleeves
- Sewing a jersey dress as mini, midi, and maxi
- Using the skirt part as a separate pattern for jersey skirts
Great for kids too:
Also cool: Here, the skirt part of dress Yoko has been given the crossover yoga waistband of Moe leggings.
Sewing a jersey dress with pockets
The pockets of this jersey dress are patch pockets. And therefore especially easy for beginners to sew. They are simply finished and then topstitched on.
By the way, the version with a simple side-seam pocket is also great. You can find a detailed sewing tutorial with a pattern for the pocket bag here on SewSimple.
Sewing a jersey dress with a hood
Simply mega cool, such a hooded dress! Whether with sneakers, boots, or sandals: a hood instantly gives your jersey dress a sporty touch! And it is quite easy to sew.
You can download a free pattern for a simple hood made of stretchy fabrics here on the blog. In a detailed tutorial, I show you how the hooded dress is sewn.
Sewing the hem
What sounds so simple can be the biggest challenge with your self-sewn jersey dress. Why is that? Because jersey sometimes ripples quite nastily when topstitching!
But don't worry, you can avoid that.
If you want to sew a simple, turned-up hem, you should first overlock the fabric edge beforehand. Specifically, do it while slightly easing in the fabric. You achieve this by adjusting the "differential feed" setting.
How much or how little you need to ease in depends on the settings of your overlock. You should test this once beforehand on a scrap piece.
What does easing the hem achieve? It reduces width. Because it is logical that a hem that flares out widely is wider at the bottom than a bit higher up. With the width reduced by "easing," you can iron the hem without any problems and then topstitch it.
How can I topstitch the hem of my jersey dress?
You should choose a stitch that accommodates the stretchiness of the fabric. Perfectly suitable are, for example:
- Twin needle stitch
- an elastic stitch on your sewing machine
- Cover stitches
- Binding with a fabric folder
Topstitching the hem with a twin needle
A great way to sew beautiful dress and skirt hems without using a coverstitch machine! I show you exactly how it's done in my post about sewing with a twin needle.
By the way, a combination of twin needle and walking foot can also be helpful.
Topstitching the hem elastically
The hem of your jersey dress should remain elastic. Therefore, you can wonderfully use an elastic stitch for topstitching the hem. A zigzag stitch or a nice decorative stitch are great for this purpose. Feel free to also read my detailed blog post about topstitching.
Sewing the hem with a coverstitch machine
This is the professional version: a beautifully topstitched hem with the coverstitch machine. It transports the stretchy jersey particularly evenly. This prevents waves from forming in the fabric. The finished seam looks beautiful, even, and professional!
Binding the hem with a fabric folder
One of my favorite methods for beautiful hems: binding with the coverstitch machine's fabric folder goes super fast and is totally easy! Feel free to take a look at my detailed post about sewing with a fabric folder!
By binding it, the jersey dress hem gets another special eye-catcher. And also a nice stability.
What do I need to sew a jersey dress?
First of all, of course, a nice fabric with which you can realize your dream dress project. Suitable options include, for example:
- Cotton jersey fabrics*
- Viscose jersey*
- Ponte di roma jersey*
- Sweatshirt fabrics*
- French terry*
- lightweight knit fabrics*
What accessories do I need to sew a jersey dress?
In addition to the fabric for the dress, you need basic sewing supplies. And of course a sewing machine and/or an overlock. You can sew the dress with both an overlock and an elastic stitch on your sewing machine.
What is so good about our Yoko pattern?
Sewing a dreamily beautiful women's dress from jersey: With the Yoko pattern, this is quite simple even for sewing beginners! The dress is cut close to the body up to the waist and widens towards the hem in a moderate A-line.
The bodice of the jersey dress is worked with nice darts so that it sits perfectly in the bust area!
The sleeves are also cut narrow.
To ensure you can adapt the pattern for all occasions and seasons, the following variations are possible:
- Jersey dress with American neckline
- Jersey dress with round neckline
- Sewing a jersey dress with long sleeves
- Sewing a jersey dress with three-quarter sleeves
- Sewing a jersey dress with short sleeves
- Sewing a jersey dress as mini, midi, and maxi
- Using the skirt part as a separate pattern for jersey skirts
- With or without patch pockets
The pattern is therefore extremely variable and super easy to sew.
What is included in the eBook?
- detailed, illustrated sewing instructions
- Pattern with short, three-quarter, and long sleeves
- Pattern template with American neckline
- Pattern template with round neckline
- Pattern in sizes 34 – 60 in A0 and A4
- Cutting layouts for all size ranges
- Tables: body measurements, finished measurements, fabric consumption
- Experience level: suitable for beginners
Has this blog post helped you?
Then I look forward to a comment! :)
Happy simple sewing, your Sabine
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