How to Make a Strapless Sun Dress

Quick and Easy Sewn Sun Dresses

What makes a strapless sun dress very easy to make is the fact that it only has two pieces to it. Granted, the pieces can be designed in different ways, but there’s still only two pieces needed for a strapless sun dress. There’s the top piece and the bottom piece, and that’s it.

When making a strapless sun dress, a good way to decide how wide to cut the top piece is to measure the bust and add a couple of inches. If you want an elasticized top on your strapless sun dress, with tiny elastic pieces every few inches, from top to bottom, you’ll need to allow 7 inches in addition to the bust measurement. The elasticized top is great for holding your shape.

To decide on the length of the top, measure from underarm to waist. After cutting the top you’ll want to shape it somewhat. Start by folding the top in half, with edges to one side and the fold on the opposite side. Start towards the center, with scissors, and barely shave a little fabric off. Continue towards the raw edges of the fabric, dipping lower and lower until you arrive at the edge. Fold the fabric in half again and make the same cut on the opposite side, using the first cut you made as the guide.

Decide which will be the front and which will be the back of the strapless sun dress. The seam for the shirt portion and the seam for the skirt portion should end up on the same side, though, so keep that in mind when cutting the skirt. On the back of the shirt part, continue cutting from where you stopped at the underarm area (side seam), on across the back, dipping the back down somewhat lower than the underarm area, but coming back up as you get to the opposite side. This will give you a deeper scoop in back than in front.