Make a Bandana Dress for your little girl in this fun sewing tutorial!

How to Make a Bandana Dress for your Little Girl

- posted by Amy Griffiths

Isn’t she cute? It’s so simple: a t-shirt and two bandanas, and you’ve got a brand-new outfit for your little girl! This is a fun sewing tutorial and you’ll be hooked on making these for your toddler. There’s a lot of room for her to grow in a dress like this!

Abby in her camo bandana dress

For Smith & Edwards, I HAD to make my little girl a Realtree camo dress!

You’ll need:

  • 1 storebought tee
  • 2 bandannas (same or different!)
  • Sewing machine, scissors, ruler, and chalk pencil or sewing marker

How to make a Bandana Dress

  1. Measure the width of the bottom of the tee.
    Measure the width of your tee shirt.
    Now, use this formula: Multiply the width by 2 and add 1.5".
    For my tee, I took 12.75 x 2 = 25.5. Add 1.5 = 27".
  2. Now, fold your bandana in half to make a triangle, and fold in half again.
    Fold your bandana in half to make a triangle.

  3. Take your number from step 1 and divide by 6.28 (this is pi times 2, for those playing along at home.)
    For me this means 27 / 6.28 = 4.29" (I used 4.25")
  4. Place one end of your ruler on the corner of the bandana, and mark along the bandanas at the mark you found in step 3 – for me, that’s 4.25". Make sure and make several marks, then join a line with a chalk pencil.

    Measure your length
    And mark where to cut your bandana

  5. Cut along the line you made. Unfold, and you’ll have a perfect circle cut in the middle of your bandana.

    Cut along your mark

  6. Repeat step 4 & 5 on your second bandanas.
  7. Now, lay one bandana on top of the other, and offset so you can see all eight points. Pin together.

    Unfold the cut bandanas, and layer on top to show eight points.

  8. On your sewing machine, use a large stitch to baste your bandanas together (about 1/4") .

    And unfold your bandana

  9. Slip your tee in the opening you’ve made.
    Slip your tee inside the bandana skirt
  10. This part may seem a little tricky! You don’t want to join the edge of the bandanas with the very bottom of the tee: bring it up an inch, so you don’t see the hemmed seam of the tee.
    Make sure the tee hem is below the edge of the bandana skirt!
    Make sure right sides are together, and pin tee to bandanas.
    Pin the bandanas to the tee
    I do this by folding the bandana in half, as well as the tee, and pin. Fold that half in half and pin together. Keep doing this until you’ve got about 8-12 pins in.
  11. Now, sew it together. Tip: Your tee is smaller than your bandana cutout, so just make sure you stretch your tee as you sew.
    Sew the bandana skirt to the tee
  12. Unfold your dress, and you’re done!
Add an embellishment made from the circles you cut!

Add an embellishment made from the circles you cut!

With the leftover fabric from the bandana holes, you can embellish your dress: Cut out a heart and use iron on fusing like Stick ‘N Hold or Wonder-Under – or, make a handmade flower! It’s all up to you!

Bandana skirt dress with flower embellishment
Get your bandanas online at Smith & Edwards online: Get a Realtre AP Camo Bandana or traditional bandanas to make your own bandana dress!

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