It Doesn’t Take Much to Sew This Beautiful Ruffle Hem Dress

Tools and materials:

• Stretchy jersey fabric
• Old dress as a pattern
• Measuring tape
• Curved ruler
• Pins
• Sewing machine
• Matching thread

Pin and cut the pattern

Lay out your dress on your folded fabric and pin all around. I wanted a shorter length, so I folded some of the dress’s bottom to shorten the length. When it’s all pinned in place, cut around. You should have two pieces.

Next, cut around the front neck area by folding one of the pieces in two and pinning it in place. Mark 2 inches down on the folded edge and 2.5 inches from the neck area.

Using a curved ruler, join the lines and cut accordingly.

Next, mark 2 inches down the center of the fold and cut. This is your neck slit.

Cut the ruffle piece

Fold your fabric in half and measure 10x60 inches. Cut three pieces of the same size.

Cut the sleeves

With the fabric on the fold, measure 15 x 15 inches, then mark 10 inches lengthways from the 15 inches lines.

Secure the fabric in place. Connect the 15-inch line to the 10-inch line in an inverted ‘s’ shape by using a curved ruler.

Then, connect to the 15-inch line on the edge of the fabric.

Secure in place and cut. Also, make the second sleeve by placing the cut-out sleeve on the fabric and cutting around.

TIP-

Watch exactly how I connect the lines from 4:00 minutes.

Assemble the dress

Pin the front and back dress pieces together at the shoulder and side seams and sew.

Pin the ruffle pieces together and sew. The goal here is to create one long piece.

Stitch on one side of the ruffle piece with long thread. Next, pull the threads to gather the fabric, thus creating a ruffle effect.

Pin the ruffle piece (right sides together) to the hem of the dress. Evenly distribute the ruffled fabric, too. Sew the ruffle piece to the dress when you’re done pinning.

TIP-

Start by pinning the sides first and then the center.

Attach the sleeves

On the longer side of the sleeve, baste the sides and pull the strings to gather.

Attach the armband to the ruffled side and sew ( armband measurements: 6x10 inches). Fold the armband in half so that its edge touches the stitching. Pin and sew.

Now, baste the rest of the sleeve. Then, pull the threads together to create a ruffled effect through the edges.

Pin the underarm area, as shown, and sew. Be sure to repeat these steps on the second sleeve piece.

Attach the sleeve to the dress via the armhole area, right sides facing, and sew.

Attach the necktie

Cut out a lengthy necktie piece from your remaining fabric and attach it to your neck area of the dress. Pin in place and sew.

Woohoo! We are done. Look how lovely this dress came out. It’s puffy and ruffled in all the right places and sits so well on my body. I love the elegant flowy vibe, and the color is just superb. I wore a see-through belt around my waist to give this dress an extra dimension. I hope you enjoyed this tutorial and that you now have the inspiration to make your own ruffle hem dress!