How to Make a Bandana Dress

Make a closet full of brightly colored bandana dresses.

You can make a bandana dress from two bandanas of any fabric for a baby, toddler or small child. The child can wear the dress on its own during the warm weather months or overtop of a turtleneck or thick shirt during the winter. Make a few bandana dresses for your own child and then make a few for family and friends for birthday gifts. The dress is easy enough to make that it can be used as an introductory sewing project for individuals with no previous sewing experience.

Things You'll Need

• 2 bandanas
• Iron
• Sewing machine (or sewing needle)
• Thread
• Ribbon, ¾ inch wide

Instructions

1. Lay each bandana on a flat surface and iron out any wrinkles. Place one bandana on top of the other with the right sides together and the wrong sides facing outward.

2. Pin the left edges together and then the right edges together. Use a tape measure to find 8½ inches from the top of the bandanas. Beginning from this mark and working downwards sew the left edges and then the right edges together using a tight straight stitch. Leave approximately 1/4 inch edge beyond the seam line.

3. Fold the bottom ½ inch of the edge of the bandanas upward onto the wrong side of the fabric. Pin the fold in place and use an iron to make a crease in the fold line. Sew the folded fabric using a straight stitch to make a clean bottom edge.

4. Fold over approximately 2 inches of the top fabric onto the wrong sides of the bandana.

5. Cut two pieces of ribbon, each 2 feet long. Lay one ribbon within the fold on one side of the bandana dress and the other within the fold on the other side. Sew the folded fabric closed around the ribbon, but be careful not to stitch through the ribbon.

6. Tie the ends of the ribbon in loose bows so that they can be adjusted on the wearer.

References

• Dollar Store Crafts: Make a Bandanna Dress
• Daisie Janie: How to: Bandana Shirt/Dress for Girls