How to Make Clothes From Bandanas

Use colorful bandanas to make clothes.

You can make clothes from bandanas to put a fun fashion spin on the old-fashioned handkerchief. True bandanas are often called hankies. Used by men and women, bandanas are a generously sized handkerchief that fits in the pocket. Bandanas traditionally are red or dark blue, but they can be found in a rainbow of colors and shades. Bandanas contain a paisley design somewhere on the cloth, usually in a contrasting color such as white. Clothes made from bandanas are colorful and make an interesting fashion statement. Make a child's dress by sewing bandanas to a child's shirt. The bandanas create points on the full skirt of the dress.

Things You'll Need

• 3 or 4 bandanas
• Girl's T-shirt
• Thread
• Scissors
• Sewing machine
• Ribbon (optional)
• Embellishments (optional)

Instructions

1. Select the bandanas and a T-shirt in complementary colors. The sky is the limit with the variety of colors and designs of bandanas available. Consider the person who will be wearing the bandana dress and use her favorite color. Wash the bandanas and T-shirt to avoid bleeding of colors and to allow for shrinkage.

2. Fold the bandanas in half so the bandana is doubled in thickness with two of the points together forming a triangle, like what would be used to make a kerchief. Cut the bandanas in half at the long, straight edge so you have two triangle pieces. With three bandanas, you will have six triangles.

3. Turn the T-shirt inside out. Place the cut edge of one of the triangle-shaped bandana pieces on the bottom edge of the shirt with the right sides of both fabrics together. Pin the bandana to the shirt.

4. Continue adding the triangle-shaped bandana pieces to the shirt. Stagger the triangles so the points of the triangles fill the space between the bandana immediately beside the previous one. Pin the pieces together to create a seam to sew the T-shirt and bandana pieces together.

5. Ensure the skirt portion of the bandana dress contains enough triangles to go around the entire T-shirt, creating a complete skirt portion of the dress. Use more bandana pieces as needed to create the skirt.

6. Sew the T-shirt to the skirt made from bandanas using a sewing machine with a 5/8-inch seam allowance. Trim the threads and ensure that the skirt is firmly attached to the shirt.

7. Turn the dress so that the tee shirt and skirt made of bandanas are both right side out. Press the fabric up to flatten the fabrics and to create a professional finish to the bandana dress. Top stitch around the waist where the T-shirt and bandanas meet to finish the look. Add a ribbon to the waist if desired for a more defined look to the waist.

Tips & Warnings

• Add embellishments as desired to the T-shirt portion. Small beads, sequins and charms are good additions to a bandana dress.

References

• Stitched by Janay

Resources

• How to Make a Bandana Purse