Raglan T-Shirt Dress

Raglan T-Shirt Dress

Difficulty Level = Beginner

The raglan t-shirt dress has a gently shaped raglan sleeve. There are two different styles to choose from; flared or straight. There are several neckline options; a cowl, and a wide or narrow v-neckband, three sleeve lengths; short, three-quarter and long, and five lengths; top, mid-thigh, knee, three-quarter and maxi. The straight three-quarter and maxi have a side slit. With so many options you can sew multiple looks from just one pattern.

Our Facebook group is a great place to get help, share your tips and creations! We are a friendly bunch, and we love to help and see what you have made.

Please read the full instructions before getting started.

Wash, dry, and press your fabric before starting your project. A bit of prep now prevents shrinking and means your garment will stay the same size you made it.

Never leave a child or baby unattended or allow to sleep in a garment made from one of our patterns with ties, snaps, buttons, or anything they could remove, choke on, or get caught on. Always use caution if you are unsure. We love our patterns, but we love your bundles of joy more!

Size Range

Womens 1-10, Womens Curvy 6C-15C

Size Chart

Finished Measurements (Inches)

Both styles are fitted at the bust. The straight dress will skim over the hips, flowing straight down to the hem. The flared dress will flow over the hips to the hem.

• Picking your size – When picking your size, if you fall between sizes, go for the size with the correct chest measurement. That way the shoulders, arms, and upper back are likely to fit well. Then, grade out or into the correct waist size.
• Grading – You may notice on some pattern pieces that there is a slight shape difference. This is to ensure that, with such a wide size range, the pattern can still offer a great fit. Just measure and print the size/s you require. You’ll still need to add any personal adjustments you know suit your body best (such as a full bust adjustment or bicep adjustment), and for this we highly recommend making a muslin.
• Height adjustment – This dress is designed for a height of 5 foot 6 inches. If your height is above or below 5 foot 6, use this tutorial as a guide for making height adjustments to your bodice and sleeve.
• Bust adjustment – This dress is designed for a sewing C cup (approximately a ready-to-wear B cup). If your bust size is above a D cup, you may need to do an FBA (full bust adjustment). Follow our free tutorial to make this adjustment to your pattern pieces.
• Bicep adjustment – Check your measurement against the finished garment measurement above. If your measurement is larger, follow our free tutorial to adjust your sleeve.
• Muslin – To ensure you get the best fit, sew a muslin This is how I would recommend you muslin this dress:
  • Use an inexpensive knit fabric similar in weight to the final fabric you plan to use.
  • Cut out all pieces. Label each with tailors chalk or a fabric pen.
  • Baste these together using a ⅜ inch seam allowance.
  • Try on. If you are happy with the fit, continue to your final garment.
  • If you feel the fit needs adjusting for your personal shape, turn the muslin inside out and try on again. Adjust the seams with pins until you are happy.
  • Trim your new seam allowances to ⅜ inch and pull out your basting stitches.
  • Use these bits of fabric as your pattern pieces instead of the original pattern pieces. Continue on to sewing your final garment.
  • Make sure to keep your adjusted pattern pieces…. It’s like having a tailor-made garment so they’re a valuable addition to your pattern library in case you wish to make more!

If you get stuck with fitting, see our favorite resources on our Pinterest Sewing Fitting Advice board.

Fabric – Your fabric needs to be a stretch/knit fabric. It can be any weight; however, best results and fit will be achieved with a light or medium weight fabric such as jersey, silk satin with elastine, silk jersey with elastine, double brushed poly, rayon spandex, bamboo spandex, modal, cotton lycra, ponte, poly rayon spandex etc.

Your fabric will need to have at least 20 – 30% stretch to get the fit as it’s designed. To check how much stretch your fabric has, take a piece of fabric, and pull along its stretch. I.e., A 2-inch piece of fabric (unstretched) should be able to be stretched to 2.4 – 2.6 inches.

The stretch recovery of your fabric is just as important as the stretch percentage. This will ensure your tee maintains its shape and fit for as long as possible and not become baggy. To test the stretch recovery (elasticity), simply check that when you stretch your piece of fabric it returns to its original size.

A fabric with 4-way stretch (stretches in all directions) will give more drape than a 2-way stretch (only stretches in one direction).

Generally, knit/stretch fabrics are heavier than wovens. You may find you need to hem your garment slightly higher if it stretches out in length while wearing it.

Fabric Requirements 60 inches/150 cm wide (in YARDS)

* If you are using a narrower fabric, a directional print, or a fabric with nap you may need more.

** Make sure to wash, dry, and press all fabrics before cutting out in case they shrink.

You will also need:

• Thread to match

Tools needed are, sewing machine, pins, scissors, tape measure or ruler. Serger/overlocker is optional but not required.

Settings

The pattern is a separate download. Choose either the US letter paper, A4 paper, or A0 paper size based on the printer you wish to use. If you are in the US or Canada then your printer will likely use US letter paper. Other regions normally use A4 paper. Some people prefer to print their patterns at a print shop: A0 is best in this case.

Print at 100%.

On the second page, you will find a 1-inch and a 3-inch square test box. Print this page first, on its own, and measure these squares.

Once you are happy that the test box is accurate, print the rest of the pattern pages.

Please follow this video for information and assistance on assembling this pattern.

Also, please note that some Rebecca Page patterns and projects also come with cut files and a printable design page which you can use to plan your project if you wish. These are provided in a separate section below to avoid any confusion! 

Cut each of the pieces according to the directions on the pattern piece. Seam allowances are all included so just cut them as is.

Cutting Checklist:

• Front – Fabric cut 1 on fold
• Back – Sizes 1 to 10 – Fabric cut 1 on fold

Sizes 6C to 15C – Fabric cut 2 (1x mirror image pair)

• Sleeve – Fabric cut 2 (1x mirror image pair)
• Cowl Neck OPTION – Fabric cut 1 on fold
• Neckband OPTION – Fabric cut 1 on fold

NOTE – To cut fabric on the fold, fold your fabric over parallel to the selvage edges. Align the pattern piece so it is on the fold of the fabric. Cut around the edges, leaving the fold. If you have folded your fabric correctly the fold will be parallel to the two edges of the fabric that are finished. The raw edges will be at a right angle to your fold.

Tips for Sewing with Knit Fabrics

Using a serger is not a necessity to sew with knit fabrics! Here are a few tips to get the best results on a regular sewing machine:

• Use a ball point needle of a size appropriate to your fabric when working with knits – The ball point needle has a slightly rounded tip and will prevent from damaging the fiber. Use ball point pins or clips and, if you can’t, use regular pins into the seam allowance and you should be just fine.
• Use a stretch stitch – You can use either a short and narrow zigzag or a stretch stitch (lightning bolt stitch) for construction. Test on a scrap of fabric to find which stitch and tension settings work best for you. You don’t want the fabric to pucker under your stitches.
• Your machine might have many fancy stretch stitches and you are welcome to play with them, but often the basic zigzag or stretch stitch are just right.
• Use a walking foot – Using a walking-foot is not a necessity but it is highly recommended when working on a stretchy knit. The walking-foot helps to prevent one layer of fabric from stretching out while sewing. Both layers of fabrics are fed at the same time under your needle.
• Reduce your presser foot tension – Some machines will allow you to change your presser foot tension. Check your manual to see how to reduce your presser foot tension. Reducing tension will prevent your fabric from stretching while it goes through the machine.
• Use a ball point twin-needle (double needle) for top stitching – Using a twin-needle will give you a regular double line of straight stitches on the right side and a short and stretchy zigzag on the wrong side. Alternately, if you don’t own a twin needle, you can use a medium size zigzag stitch for hemming and topstitching. I like to lengthen my stitch a little when top stitching with the twin needle. Test on a scrap of fabric to find what works best for you.
• Finishing the seams – Because knits don’t fray, it isn’t strictly necessary to finish your seams. That being said, you will achieve a more polished and durable look if you do an overcasting or zigzag stitch on your raw edges.

Here is an example of some of the stitches you could use.

From left to right: Ballpoint twin-needle, narrow zigzag, stretch stitch (lightning bolt), overcasting

⅜ inch seam allowance included – Top stitching ⅛ inch – Basting ¼ inch – Hem – ½ inch

Preparation –

1. PATTERN MARKINGS – Transfer all pattern markings.

Sewing –

1. FRONT AND BACK – Sizes 6C to 15C: Place Back pieces right sides together, align along back seam. Pin and stitch. All sizes: Stitch Sleeve onto Front, right sides together. Stitch back of Sleeve to Back, right sides together. Repeat to attach other Sleeve.
2. UNDERARM AND SIDES – Fold Sleeve right sides together, matching underarm seam. Place side seams together. Stitch. Repeat on the other side.
3. COWL NECK OPTION – Fold the Cowl Neck in half right sides together, matching short edges. Stitch. Turn right sides. Fold in half, matching pointed ends. Flatten. Baste at the V, stitching 1 inch each side. Find and mark center back neckline.
4. NECKBAND OPTION – Fold Neckband in half widthwise, right sides together. Pin long raw edge. Take two short ends and cross right as worn side over left as worn, matching points and raw edges. Pin. OPTIONAL: Baste. Find and mark center of Neckband and back neckline.
5. FINISHING THE NECK – Measure ⅜ inch down from V-point on Front and mark. Starting at V-point staystitch 1 inch on each side. Snip into seam allowance at V point. Turn dress inside out. Open up cut at v-point. Place Neckband / Cowl Neck onto neckline, right sides together, matching raw edges. Pin along center front on either side. NECKBAND OPTION: Match center back of Neck Band to center back neckline. Pin. COWL NECK OPTION: Match back seam to center back neckline. Pin. Continue pinning along neckline. Starting at V-point, stitch. Measure from V-point ⅛ inch down and mark. Stitch at V-point. Turn dress right side out. OPTIONAL: Topstitch Neckband / Cowl Neck.
6. HEM – STRAIGHT HEM – OPTIONAL: Serge hem without removing seam allowance. Fold hem ½ inch to wrong side. Topstitch. Repeat for each Sleeve. SIDE SLIT – Finish raw edge on both Front and Back, stitching up and down the side slits. Fold hem ½ inch to right side at one side of side slit. Stitch. Turn hem right side out. Press. Repeat at the other side of the slit. With the dress right sides together, measure 1 ½ inches up from the top of the side slit. Stitch 2 inches down from the pin to the top. Lay dress flat, wrong side facing up. Fold the sides of the slits ⅜ inch to the wrong side. Press. Stitch from hem up to end of side split, squaring off at the top and down the other side. Repeat for other side slit. Fold the hem ½ inch to the wrong side. Press. Topstitch. OPTIONAL: Serge Sleeve hem without removing seam allowance. Fold hem ½ inch to wrong side. Topstitch. Repeat for second Sleeve.

Congratulations, your Raglan T-shirt Dress is done. Enjoy!

We would love to hear how you got on and see photos of your finished project!

Join us at our Facebook Group, tag us on Instagram, or use the hashtag #rpraglan.

Thank you for using a Rebecca Page pattern.

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