How to Make a Silky DIY Slip Dress Using a Free Sewing Pattern
It’s been a while since I’ve made something from scratch, so I decided to take the plunge and do a lovely DIY slip dress! This fantastic DIY comes with a free vintage slip dress sewing pattern. Ready to follow along? Let’s start!
Tools and materials:
- 1m (1.1 yards) thick silk fabric
- Slip dress pattern
- Paper
- Sewing machine
- Matching thread
- Water-soluble marker
- Scissors
- Pins
- Iron
- Pencil
1. Modify the pattern
I’ll be making some modifications to customize this slip dress sewing pattern. First up, I’ll be removing the center seam, as shown.
To make it a full piece, draw a line straight down the middle and place that line on the fold of the fabric.
I want my DIY slip dress to be a mini length, so I’ll be cutting the pattern at the third notch, (You can opt for longer, if you want).
How to make a dart smaller
I did a trial run just to make sure everything fits me well and realized the darts on the bust are too big. They point out way too much.
To make the dart smaller, take your front pattern and place it onto a new sheet of paper. Mark your new dart. Mine was about 1” smaller on both sides.
Align the top of the dart and the top of the pattern onto an axis.
Place your finger on the top of the axis and rotate the bottom until the new dart marking hits the axis. Then, trace that side of the pattern.
Repeat on the other side; rotating the pattern until the new dart hits the axis, and trace the other side.
Draw out your new dart and cut out your new pattern.
I still wasn’t happy with the dart sections, so I decided to smooth out the dart into a curve. Like this, I’ll be able to make cute ruffles and gather the fabric, rather than have a pointy dart.
Be mindful of the pattern’s sizing. I cut mine in a medium, and it’s pretty big. So, the top part (for me) is small, while the skirt part stays medium, then I connected them at the waist.
2. Cut the pattern
Place all your slip dress sewing pattern pieces on your folded fabric, ensuring the front piece’s center is on the fold. Trace around the pattern with a water-soluble pen.
Pin the two layers of fabric and cut!
3. Cut the facing (optional)
If you want to add a facing to the top front and back, trace the top part of the respective patterns and add 1.5”. Then, cut it on fold.
Cut the bottom with a pair of shears to prevent fraying (or zigzag stitch the edge). Then, repeat the same for the back.
We are ready to start sewing the slip dress!
4. Sew the back
Place the back skirt and top back pieces right sides together and sew one side. The seam allowance on this dress is ½”.
Zigzag stitch all the raw edges and trim the excess seam allowance.
Place the back right sides together to the skirt and sew.
5. Gather the bust
For the two front top pieces, sew two parallel basting stitches on the bottom.
Take the two stitches and gently pull on the to gather the fabric. Concentrate the ruffles where the dart used to be.
6. Sew the front
Mark the seam allowance of the skirt to make the center nice and clean. Do the same for the top.
Place them right sides together and align the two points on top of each other.
Pin everything securely in place and sew. Sew between the two basting stitches and stop sewing until you reach the marking.
Sew halfway through the center front.
Sew a topstitch around the bust and skirt to make everything lay flat.
7. Sew the front to the back
Place the front and back right sides together, pin the side seams, and sew.
8. Add a zipper (optional)
I needed a zipper on the side, so I went ahead and added that.
9. Make the straps
Cut two 1” wide strips of fabric with around 20” length.
Fold them into fours and iron.
Sew the open edge.
10. Sew the facing
Place the facing right sides together and sew one end (if you have a zipper).
11. Attach the straps to the front
Pin the straps onto the top and place the facing on top, right sides together. Then, sew to secure. Leave the center front open.
Understitch the facing.
12. Finish the zipper
You can also add bias tape to the zipper (helps with fraying).
Finish the facing at the zipper, folding and sewing the raw edges accordingly.
Fold the center front in half, fold the facing, pin, and sew down the middle.
13. Attach the straps at the back
Attach the back straps by seam ripping a tiny hole between the layers. Pass the strap through and sew the hole.
14. Hem
Hem the bottom of the DIY slip dress.
DIY slip dress tutorial
This silky DIY slip dress is done! Thanks for joining me on this tutorial on how to sew a slip dress. Let me know what you think of this tutorial and the final result in the comments below.
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