12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

HOME FREE VINTAGE SEWING TUTORIALS FABRICS

SEWING PATTERNS ABOUT MY CURLY PROJECTS

0


DRESSES

DIY Vintage HELLO THERE!

Dress
AUGUST 3, 2018

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 1/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

My name is Marlena and I'm

blogging to you from Oslo,
In this tutorial, you will learn
Norway.
how to make a beautiful and
easy DIY Vintage Dress.

For my dress, I used 2 m (you VISIT MY OTHER PLATFORMS

might need to buy more TO GET MORE INSIGHT INTO
depending on your MY CURLY PROJECTS
measurements) of gingham
fabric, but you can use other
cotton materials or linen.

You will also need an invisible

zipper, rouleaux turner (really WOULD YOU LIKE TO BUY MY
DRESS?
worth buying one!!!) and a
strap of cute lace if you wish.
If yes, click here to visit my store!

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 2/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

Part 1 of DIY
Vintage Dress –
The Skirt
THE VINTAGE PATTERN SHOP
 

I am pleased to announce that I

The skirt is an ultra-simple became an official ambassador
gathered skirt. for The Vintage Pattern Shop –
the biggest seller of reproduced
vintage sewing patterns in the
Step 1 – Make and world!
cut out the pattern
They have over 3,000 vintage
In order to make the pattern patterns available on their
you will need two website, so go ahead and check
measurements: your waist them out!

circumference and the

distance between your waist
and the point where you want
your skirt to finish (below the
knee/above the knee/ankle?).

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 3/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

To calculate the width of the

pattern piece:

Divide your waist
circumference in two and
then, multiply this value by 3.

For example, my waist is 60

cm. I usually add 1 cm for ease, RECENT COMMENTS
so I take 61 cm and divide it in
two = 30,5 cm. Then I multiply  Marie Obrad on DIY Vintage Dress

30,5 cm x3 = 91,5. That final  Rosalie on DIY Vintage Jacket

value will be the width of my  Mia November on April 2018 DIY
pattern square. projects- What I’ve been up to

 Laia on Sew-along for “Audrey 1951”

Dress Sewing Pattern
61/2= 30,5 x 3= 91,5
 Moranes on DIY Vintage Jacket

The distance between your

natural waist and the point
where you want your skirt to
finish is the length of the Type keyword 
square.

Here is how the pattern for

your skirt should look like after HELLO THERE!

adding 1,5 cm seam allowance

all around.

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 4/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

Cut out two pieces. One will be

the front panel of your skirt,
the other will be the back
panel of the skirt.

Step 2 – Assemble My name is Marlena and I'm

blogging to you from Oslo,
the skirt
Norway.

Serge, zigzag or pink the front, VISIT MY OTHER PLATFORMS

and back panels. TO GET MORE INSIGHT INTO
MY CURLY PROJECTS

Pin front and back right sides

together and sew the right
seam together. Start sewing
the left side. When you reach
the point where your zipper
starts, backstitch and baste the THE VINTAGE PATTERN SHOP

two panels together all the way

I am pleased to announce that I
up. Iron the seams open.
became an official ambassador
for The Vintage Pattern Shop –
the biggest seller of reproduced
vintage sewing patterns in the
world!
mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 5/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

They have over 3,000 vintage

patterns available on their
website, so go ahead and check
them out!

Why did I stitch the left side

seam all the way up? I
discovered a brilliant method
of inserting an invisible zipper RECENT COMMENTS
which never ever produced
any puckering at the bottom  Marie Obrad on DIY Vintage Dress
and always comes out even at  Rosalie on DIY Vintage Jacket
the top.  Mia November on April 2018 DIY
projects- What I’ve been up to

 Laia on Sew-along for “Audrey 1951”

Step 3 – Gather the Dress Sewing Pattern

skirt  Moranes on DIY Vintage Jacket

Now, make a gathering stitch

all the way around the top of
the skirt. Make sure you don’t Type keyword 
stitch over the seam allowance
of the left side seam (you can
stitch underneath). Gather
your skirt until you reach your
waist circumference. Then,
distribute the gathers evenly
and run a basting stitch within
the seam allowance to hold the
gathers in place.
mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 6/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

Part 2 of the DIY

Vintage Dress –
The Bodice 

Step 1 – Make the

pattern

If you don’t have any basic

bodice pattern, find a shirt that
fits you well. Make sure that if
you choose gingham or other
non-stretchy fabric you take a
shirt which doesn’t
stretch either. Trace the front
and back of the shirt, without
tracing the sleeves.

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 7/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

Modify the shirt pattern as

shown on the picture. Take in
as much as possible at the
waist because this dress looks
best when the bodice is well-
fitted.

Make a muslin to test the fit

and modify in case there is a
need. I had to put in a dart
over my bust to prevent the
front bodice from rolling up
and revealing too much.

Step 2 – Cut out the

pattern pieces and
make the shoulder
straps 

Cut out both the front bodice

and the back bodice on the
fold. If you don’t have enough
material, that’s ok. Cut out the

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 8/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

back bodice in two pieces, put

them right sides together and
sew. Make sure that the
gingham stripes align well.

Use this wonderful tutorial by

Sew it Over to learn how to
make 4 rouleaux straps for
your dress. They are charming
and extremely simple to make.

Serge the side seams and the

bottom edge of both bodice
pieces.

Step 3 – Finish the

bodice

Start with sewing the darts in

the front and back bodice, iron
them towards the center front.
mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 9/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

Next, put front and back

bodice right sides together, pin
and sew together on the right
seam, baste it together at the
left seam. Iron the seams flat.

Close the top edges of the

front and back bodice by
creating a rolled hem. The
armholes of this dress are not
very curvy, so you shouldn’t
have any problem with it.

Alternatively, you can also use

a bias tape to bind all the
seams around the dress. It
might create a unique accent if
you use a bias tape in
contrasting color.

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 10/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

Once the seams are done,

Attach the rouleaux straps to
front and back bodice.

I decided to put a little lace to

cover the rolled hem on the
top of my bodice. I absolutely
love this little detail and it
came in really handy to cover
all the stitches.

Part 3 of the DIY

Vintage Dress –
Finishing
Touches 

Step 1 – Connecting
bodice with the
skirt 

 
mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 11/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

You will be pinning the bodice

and skirt right sides together. I
like to flip skirt to the wrong
side and put the bodice inside
the skirt.

First, align the side seams and

pin the skirt to the bodice.
Remember to mark the left
seam because we will only
baste it to the skirt.

Locate the middle of the front

bodice and pin it to the middle
of the front skirt panel. Do the
same at the back. From that
point, it will be easy for you to
pin it all evenly.

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 12/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

Start stitching skirt to the

bodice by first basting it
together at the left seam. Once
you pass the seam, back stitch
and start sewing with normal
stitch length until you get to
the left side seam.

Iron the waist seam up

towards the bodice.

Step 2 – Inserting an
invisible zipper

Follow this tutorial for

inserting an invisible zipper.
The waist seam makes it a bit
complicated but not
impossible. I usually follow
with the tutorial until it gets to
the point where I need to sew
the zipper with the zipper foot,
I just rip a few stitches and
when I am done with the
whole thing I come back and
secure the waist seam by hand.
This way I get into every little
corner.

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 13/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

This method might seem a bit

troublesome in the beginning,
especially if you have a waist
seam like we did here and a
gathered skirt but I must say –
this method gives me the best
looking invisible zippers ever. I
wish I had found that method
right after I learned how to
sew. It would have saved me so
many headaches.

Step 3 – Hemming
the skirt 

I had plenty of material for this

simple dress, so I decided to
make a vintage -looking wide
hem. I love the look of 1950’s
dresses when the hem is very
wide. I turned up my hem by 10
cm and then used my all time
favorite blind hem foot to hem
the dress.

You can slip stitch the hem to

the dress, but I personally suck
at hand stitching! The machine
blind hem foot not only saves
me time but also makes my
mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 14/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

hems very neat and tidy. I

could not ask for more!

Congratulations! You are

done!!!

Try on your dress, tie the

straps into cute bows and
enjoy your beautiful DIY
Vintage Dress!

Go ahead and make your new

lovely dress or save this
tutorial for later.

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 15/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

Did you enjoy this tutorial?

Would you like to make your
own vintage-inspired dress?
Please let me know in the
comments.

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 16/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

Connect with me on Instagram

and let me know if you are
going to make this dress for
yourself!

Love,

 
mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 17/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

BY MARLENA | IN DRESSES | 14 COMMENTS

Published by
Marlena

PREVIOUS

The Red Vintage-Style

Dress

NEXT

1940’s Vintage Coat

Pattern

14 thoughts on
“DIY Vintage
Dress”

SUDHA NAMBIAR SAYS:

SEPTEMBER 27, 2018 AT 7:23 AM

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 18/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

Simple and elegant

REPLY

VIVIAN VALLEN SAYS:

DECEMBER 17, 2018 AT 4:34

PM

Oh I LOVE this
dress. Can’t believe
I’ve never found
this tutorial before.
The lace detail is
lovely, and I can’t
wait to make myself
one <3
REPLY

MARLENA
SAYS:
JANUARY 2,

2019 AT 1:39

PM

That’s
lovely to
hear,
Vivian! I
would
love to
see your
dress if
you
decide
to make
it!!

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 19/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

REPLY

LAURA SAYS:
JANUARY 26, 2019 AT 12:05

PM

You dont explain

how to do the
bodice where to
put the darts. I’m
trying to make this
but I just dont
understand
REPLY

CB SAYS:
JULY 13, 2019

AT 7:37 AM

I also
see she
doesn’t
say how
far to
put the
zipper
or
measure
.
REPLY

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 20/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

MARLENA
SAYS:
MARCH 1,

2020 AT 4:31

PM

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 21/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 22/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 23/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 24/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 25/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

REPLY

MARLENA
SAYS:
MARCH 1,

2020 AT 4:11

PM

Hi
Laura,

Thank
you for
your
commen
t. I will
try to
improve
that
part of
the
tutorial.

If you
are a
beginne
r and
don’t
feel
comfort
able
with
making
your
own
mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 26/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

patterns
yet, it
would
be great
for you
to find a
basic
bodice
block
and take
it from
there.

When I
make a
new
pattern
for
myself, I
always
make at
least
one
muslin.
Once
you put
bodice
muslin
on your
body,
you will
see
where it
needs to
be
tucked

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 27/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

in. That
will be
the
place
where
you will
need a
dart.
Give it a
try and
you will
see that
the
process
is quite
natural
and not
as hard
as it
looks.

Big
hugs,

Marlena
x
REPLY

LIZ HUNTER-SMITH
SAYS:
MARCH 21, 2019 AT 8:31 AM

Hi Marlena, I love
this pattern, and
how simple! I would
be tempted to add
a couple of ties to
mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 28/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

the sides for a bow

at the back. (I’m a
bow fiend lol) also a
little chest pocket?
Thanks for the
upload.
REPLY

LAURENT SAYS:
MAY 21, 2019 AT 7:43 PM

Hello,

Thanks for sharing

some ideas and
skills, very pretty
vintage dress, So
cut and feminine,
perfect

Please have a nice

day

Laurent
REPLY

EVA SAYS:
FEBRUARY 10, 2020 AT 7:03

AM

Wow! I made this

dress and it was
super easy and
practical! Love it!
REPLY

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 29/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

ANGELINA SAYS:
MARCH 27, 2020 AT 7:28 PM

Verrry cute. Nice

work.
REPLY

LELIA SAYS:
APRIL 27, 2020 AT 11:05 AM

I can’t believe I saw

this only now it’s
amazing I love
vintage sooooooo
much and this is
absolutely amazing.
I’m so gonna do
this!!
REPLY

MICHELLE SAYS:
MAY 23, 2020 AT 2:57 PM

You really ought to

add in amount
needed for hem to
the instructions for
determining the
length for the
pattern. An
inexperienced
sewer might not
think to do so.
REPLY

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 30/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

MARIE OBRAD SAYS:

JUNE 11, 2021 AT 3:01 AM

PLLLLLLEEEEEEAA
AAAASSSSSEEEE
could you make a
short video tutorial
for this beautiful
dress. I am also a
curly haired warrior
myself – I’m new to
dressmaking and
patterns but able to
use using a
machine. I’d like to
try something thats
more challenging.
REPLY

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be

published. Required fields are marked *

COMMENT

NAME *
mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 31/32
12/04/2022 14:39 DIY Vintage Dress -

EMAIL *

WEBSITE

Post Comment

mycurlyprojects.com/dresses/diy-vintage-dress/ 32/32