Skip to main content

Pretty Peplum Top Sew Along: Finishing + Turning the Peplum into a Dress

We're in the home stretch! All we have to do is stitch the bottom hem and sleeve hem, then we're finished! I wouldn't normally talk about what to do for this, but Pamela has an ingenious way to get a really nice hem. I have been using it on other projects too and it's been great!

Pamela uses stay tape to finish all her hems. She likes to use SewkeysE brand, which we talked about HERE. You can also refer to the video on stay tapes in that blog post. SewkeysE has a 1" Double sided Fusible Stay Tape. If you are using this brand of stay tape for this project, you will need to cut the stay tape down to 1/2". I did not have this brand of stay tape at the time, so I found Pellon EZ- Steam II - a Two sided pressure sensitive Fusible Tape at a local fabric store. You will see that I used it in the photos below, but I'd like to try SewkeysE in the future. It was hard to get the tape off of the fusible part once it is fused down. But once you got it apart, it peeled right off.


Press the stay tape to the wrong side of the hem edge. Since the peplum is curved, you will need to cut the stay tape like Pamela mentions in the video. Remove the paper backing, fold up using the edge of the stay tape as your guide and press. Stitch in place! How easy is that? Do the same for the sleeves. If you make the longer sleeves (or any other length than the cap sleeves) use the 1" stay tape. For the cap sleeve cut the 1" down to 1/2".




I know a few of you were wondering how you could make the peplum top into a dress. I was curious too and decided to give it a try. It's actually really easy! All you need is some extra fabric (I would say about 2 yards extra), pattern paper, a yard stick or long ruler and a marking tool. The amount of yardage you need will depend on how long you want the dress to be.

Fold the fabric in half, I like to do right sides together. Then line up the peplum front piece with the top of the fold. You want to make sure you have plenty of space for the dress length.



Take a yard stick or long plastic ruler and line it up against one of the peplum side seams. Mark this length. For this demo, I have the dress 18" longer than the peplum piece. (If you see the photo above, the 18" mark is right at the bottom edge of the peplum. 



Move the ruler a few inches, keeping the ruler and bottom edge of pattern piece together at the 18" mark. Make another mark. Do this the whole way across the peplum till you have a complete skirt.




If you feel like the skirt is too big, you can make it smaller! You can adjust it when you try it on, or before cutting out. If you do it before cutting out, line up your ruler at the peplum waist. Then move the ruler till you feel like you're at a good width. The key is to make sure you keep the sizing at the waist so you don't have fit issues later!


Repeat the same step for the back peplum piece. Follow the same steps for the rest of the garment. How easy was that?

Here is my finished Pretty Peplum Dress. It's been so cold outside to get good pictures, so this will have to do for now! I like the overall look, but in certain photos the waistline does not look flattering to me. I think this may have something to do with the fact that I did not cut out the darted front top piece. Read about that HERE. I plan on taking the front piece out and re-cutting the front with the darted piece.


Tomorrow, I will share with you my finished peplum tops with some commentary about what I did on each. I'd love to see how your peplum tops are coming along! Please share photos with me and I'll share them on the blog! (Finished top photos will be due at a later time to be considered for the sew along prizes!) 

ALSO! One of our followers, Angela, submitted photos of her muslin --so far so good! Can't wait to see it finished! 




Comments

Post a Comment

Thanks for leaving a comment! All comments are reviewed before posting to help us eliminate spam. Your comment will be posted within 24 hours.

Popular Posts You Might Like

Made by a Fabricista: Structure

Hi everyone!  I can’t believe the year is nearly wrapping up already and this is my last post for 2024! You may have noticed but the barrel silhouette has been very much in right now from pants to sleeves.  To be honest I was a little bit hesitant about hopping on to the trend.  One I was not sure if the proportions would work for my body also I considered would this be a long lasting trend to keep incorporated in my closet?  But after a few seasons the barrel seems to stay in many variations, I think exaggerated proportions are such a thing now.  I saw this Cult Gaia x Gap denim dress collab with the barrel sleeves and wanted to remake it.  When I saw this brown distressed denim twill I knew it was perfect.  I had been debating between making cargo pants but I wanted to try to do something different and went for the dress once I saw the inspiration.   I used McCall’s pattern 8139 as my base with the following modifications.  Instead of...

Made By A Fabricista: A Wool Pinafore for Winter

Hello exciting wintry weather! Brrr, though. For my December post, I wanted to sew something more unusual for me, something outside my wide leg pants and big boxy sweaters, and this pinafore combination is exactly that. I really like the layering aspect and how easily one could switch up the look based on the top worn underneath, and how this pinafore pattern could easily work for all seasons based on fabric choice and possibly adding leggings. The new Love Notions Pianoforte Jumper in this incredibly charming polka dot wool blend suiting is just right. I wanted wool for warmth, and the sweet print just sent me. Of course a pinafore looks SO darling in dots. The Pianoforte is a slightly-cocoon shaped dress with princess seams and some large and handy front inset pockets. There is a zip-front option, but I went with the pullover plain front. I love the vintagey, sort of old-timey vibes of this style, and categorize this one under dopamine dressing.  Because the wool is on the heavi...

Made By A Fabricista: Cozy Sewing Season

The cozy sewing season seems like it came early this year! Temperatures in Pennsylvania have been in the freezing range for weeks, so it is time to break out the flannel, sweater knits, sherpa, wool, and other warm fabrics. Fabric Mart's website is stocked with gorgeous cozy fabric perfect for sewists living in cold climates. While searching for fabric for my first cozy sew of the season, a Cranberry Plaid 100% Cotton Flannel fabric caught my eye. I loved the colors and the plaid pattern. I ordered 3.5 yards to make a button-up flannel shirt for myself, and a little extra fabric to make a button-up shirt for my son. I also ordered two packs of 10 Soft Pearl Plastic Shirt Buttons and "My Mama Made It" sewing labels from Kylie and the Machine. I envisioned one of these labels being added to the side seam of my son's shirt for a bespoke detail. Once my order arrived, I washed my fabric and reached for my Grainline Studio Archer Button-Up paper pattern. I used this pat...