How do I Make a Kurta?

Made from cotton, kurtas are cool, airy garments ideal for hot weather.

A kurta is a loose, knee-length tunic traditionally worn over loose-fitting pants by men and women in the Middle East and Asia; it consists of a front back and sleeves. Providing you have some basic sewing skills, you should be able to make a simple kurta within a couple of hours. If you do not have a kurta sewing pattern, you can use an old t-shirt that fits loosely as the basis for a pattern. If you are experienced in sewing, you can make your kurta more intricate and add embroidered embellishments in threads of coordinating colors.

Things You'll Need

• T-shirt
• Seam ripper
• Scissors
• Sewing pins
• Fabric
• Thread
• Sewing machine

Instructions

1. Take apart the seams of the t-shirt; make simple pattern pieces of a front, back and sleeves. Should your t-shirt have no side seams, cut straight down from each armpit to the hem to make a front and back.

2. Measure from your waist to your knee to determine the length of your kurta.

3. Pin the pattern pieces to the fabric. Allow extra fabric at the bottom of the t-shirt to give you the length of kurta you want.

4. Cut your pattern pieces out. make a 1-inch seam allowance around each of the pieces.

5. Pin the front to the back, with the right sides of your fabric facing each other. Sew the shoulder seams on each side of the neck.

6. Hem the sleeves while they are flat, by pinning the fabric at the bottom of each sleeve up 1 inch and sewing.

7. Pin each sleeve in place, with the right sides of the fabrics facing. Sew them to the body of the garment and sew up the sleeve seams.

8. Sew the side seams of the garment, with the right sides facing.

9. Cut a 10-inch slit from the center of the front neckline straight down and hem around the neckline. This simple detail makes the kurta easy to get on and off over the head.

10. Try the kurta on and check its length. Pin the bottom hem at the length you want and sew it up.

11. Sew ribbons, beads or trim to the neckline, sleeves and bottom hems -- or use a fabric adhesive to glue them on.

Tips & Warnings

• If you intend to wash the kurta frequently you should sew the embellishments on to hold them firmly in place. If the kurta is for a costume or one-time wearing, gluing the embellishments will hold them firm enough.

References

• Learn Stitching: Stitch Kurta

Resources

• Sew Homegrown: Men's Indian Kurta Tutorial