Free Sewing Tutorial: Flouncy Dress + Churidar Salwar (Lots of Pics)

April 1, 2013 by Veiled Purl 17 Comments

The neckline & arm have elastic

The wrinkles/gathers at the bottom is what makes this salwar unique

The other day my sister gave me a kameez+salwar that she said she didn’t want anymore, so I decided to turn it into a Flouncy Dress + Churidar Salwar for my niece. The dress was really easy to make and so was the churidar.

Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s get crackin’!

Needed Materials: (Since I was making this outfit from an already made outfit, the yardage I say below is an estimate)

-Around 3/4 yards (you may need less/more depending on your little one’s size) of fabric for the top. (My niece wears clothes for a 4 year old, so this much fabric was good)

-Around 1(1.5)yard (you would need the fabric to be 1(1.5) yards x 54″ or more to have enough…more is always good) for the Chooridar salwar.

-Elastic! (I used the kind that you can find in the 99 cent store & come in 3 sizes) Use the smallest (1/4″) size for the neckline + arms. Use the 1/2″ for the chooridar.

**Click on the pictures to make them bigger**

I don’t use an official pattern where you print it out and put it onto the fabric. I basically draw out what I want and use this as a guide for when I cut out the fabric.

Okay so let’s officially start!

The Dress:

1. Use the widest measurement you have and use this as a guide for how much you should start the folding with. Get your fabric and fold it in half length wise twice. (In this photo I have only folded it once because I’m using one side of the kameez, but since you guys should have the full fabric you can use the real method).
2. Draw out a wide neckline. For a little kid, around 4.5″ is good.
3. Draw out the armhole shape. You can use an old shirt for a guide.
4. Draw the basic shape you want the dress to take. Use what ever length you desire the dress to be. (This one is 20″)

The Sleeve:

Use your bodice as a guide for cutting the armhole as shown:

Here is how the sleeve should look like. Make 2

Here is what this all should look like once cut:

The Churidar:

I think it’ll be best if you guys just see how I folded the fabric. I did one leg at a time.

   

I had to switch sides to make sure the chooridar would fit my niece. Sorry bout the switcheroo

 

Sewing The Dress:

Place the right side of one bodice armhole on top of the right side of one sleeve armhole so that the wrong side is facing up. Sew along the edge of the armhole leaving .5″ seam allowance. Do the this to the rest.

It should look this this when all sewn up. Now you can over-lock the edges before moving on so that nothing frays.

Now you are going to fold the neckline to create a hem for the elastic. **Make sure to leave a small portion unsewn so you can squeeze in the elastic**:

 

Do the same to the sleeve:

Time to put in some elastic! Get your handy dandy safety pin and do this:

 

Now you rinse and repeat. Just kidding. Just do the same for the sleeves. And sew the ends of the elastic together.

Now just sew up the side seams. Don’t forget to over-lock. You are done with the Flouncy Dress!! (Sorry I don’t have pic)

Sewing the Churidar:

Remember the triangle piece we cut up earlier? You are going to:

I have no clue why I wrote: “Sew the seam to up.” Just ignore that and instead just sew these pieces together on both legs

This is a pic of it sewn together

Now you sew up the crotch seams, follow the pics:

One leg crotch ontop of another leg crotch

It should look like this

Sew up the inner leg seams and hem the bottom and you are done!

I love the wrinkles on the bottom!

You are done! Congrats on making your first Flouncy Dress and Churidar. :) That wasn’t so bad was it?

I hope you have as much fun making it as I did. I would love to see any pictures you take if you make this outfit. Let me know if you have any questions.

Have a great day everyone!