How to Sew a Kurta
A kurta is a traditional, loose-fitting, long tunic worn by men and women in Asia and the Middle East. It is generally worn over a pair of loose-fitting pants. Kurtas are simple garments, consisting of a front, back and sleeves. In the absence of a sewing pattern, you can use an old T-shirt, that loosely fits the person, as the basis for a pattern for the kurta you will make him. Anyone with basic sewing skills can make a simple kurta, but the more skilled you are at sewing, the more intricate and embellished you can make it.
Things You'll Need
- Seam ripper
- Sewing pins
- T-shirt
- Tape measure
- Fabric
- Scissors
- Thread
- Sewing machine
Instructions
-
-
1
Undo the seams of the old T-shirt, so that you have the basic pattern pieces of a front, back and sleeves. If the T-shirt has no side seams, cut a back and front by cutting straight lines under each armpit down to the hem.
-
2
Measure the length of the person from waist to knee to determine how long you want the kurta. Then measure from the bottom of the T-shirt to the length you want the kurta to determine how much additional fabric you will need.
-
-
3
Pin your pattern pieces to the fabric, allowing extra fabric at the bottom of the T-shirt for the length of kurta you want.
-
4
Cut around your pattern pieces, allowing a 1-inch seam allowance around each piece.
-
5
Pin the front and back together, with the right sides of the fabric facing each other and sew the shoulder seams on either side of the neckline.
-
6
Hem the sleeves, while they are flat, by turning them up 1 inch and sewing them.
-
7
Pin each sleeve in place, right sides of the fabric facing, and sew them to the body of the garment.
-
8
Sew the sleeve seams and side seams of the garment, with the garment inside out.
-
9
Cut an 8-inch slit from the center of the front neckline down. This will provide a simple detail and make the kurta simple to put on and take off.
-
10
Pin the neckline seam allowance down and sew around the neckline.
-
11
Hem your garment to the correct length, by pinning it in place and sewing around it.
-
12
Add embellishments such as ribbon or beads to the neck and hemlines. These can be sewn on, or glued on using a fabric adhesive. If you intend to wash the garment frequently, sew the embellishments on, so that they stay in place.
-
1
References
Resources
- Photo Credit Creatas/Creatas/Getty Images
