Lounge Dress Pattern Maker
A lounge dress is a loose, comfortable shape with room to move. Enter the largest circumference of your body and the shoulder-to-hem length, and the front, back and sleeves are drawn with room all round.
Choose sleeves from none to long, a round, V or boat neckline, in-seam, patch or kangaroo pockets, side slits and a loose tie belt.
Make it yours: Use your larger chest or hip measurement, adjust the hem and slit lengths, and place pockets where your hands reach comfortably.
Make this pattern in your size →What you can change
Size
- Largest body circumference: 70–180 cm (27½–70⅞″). Measure your chest and hips; enter the larger measurement. Ease is added to this so the straight dress clears both.
- Shoulder to hem: 60–150 cm (23⅝–59″). Finished length, measured from the shoulder beside the neck to the hem you want.
Sizes are typed in centimetres, millimetres or inches. The starting size is Largest body circumference 105 cm (41⅜″), Shoulder to hem 100 cm (39⅜″).
Options
- Neckline: round, V or boat
- Neck finish: bias binding or bias facing
- Sleeves: none, cap, short, elbow or long
- Pockets: none, in-seam pockets, patch pockets or kangaroo pocket
- Switches: Side slits, Loose tie belt
- Measurements and counts: Room around the body · Neckline width · Front neck depth · Sleeve length · Armhole, all round · Sleeve hem, all round · Pocket count · Pocket width · Pocket depth · Pocket opening below shoulder · Hand width · Slit length · Belt length · Belt width
Starting points
These are sizes and settings to begin from, and every one stays fully editable. Type your own measurements, or start from the nearest one.
| Starting point | Finished size, cm | Same starting point in round inches |
|---|---|---|
| Knee-length house dress | 125 cm around the body · 100 cm shoulder to hem | 50″ around the body · 40″ shoulder to hem |
| Long lounge dress | 130 cm around the body · 125 cm shoulder to hem | 52″ around the body · 50″ shoulder to hem |
| Sleeveless summer dress | 120 cm around the body · 95 cm shoulder to hem | 47⅞″ around the body · 38″ shoulder to hem |
Cutting list
At the starting size (Largest body circumference 105 cm (41⅜″), Shoulder to hem 100 cm (39⅜″)) the pattern has these pieces. Fabric sizes include seam allowance, interfacing is cut to the stitching line, and pieces cut on the fold are shown opened out. Each size is the width and height of the piece as cut.
| Piece | Fabric | Cut | Size to cut | How |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Front | Main fabric | 1 on the fold | up to 64.9 × 104.1 cm (up to ≈25½ × ≈41″) | Shaped: cut from the printed piece |
| Back | Main fabric | 1 on the fold | up to 64.9 × 104.1 cm (up to ≈25½ × ≈41″) | Shaped: cut from the printed piece |
| Drop-shoulder sleeve | Main fabric | 2 | up to 47.6 × 17.25 cm (up to ≈18¾ × ≈6¾″) | Shaped: cut from the printed piece |
| Neck binding | Main fabric | 2 | 7 × 37.5 cm (2¾ × ≈14¾″) | Strip: cut by measurement |
| Pocket bag | Main fabric | 4 | up to 19 × 26 cm (up to ≈7½ × ≈10¼″) | Shaped: cut from the printed piece |
You will also need: Thread. The cover page and materials list give the amounts for your size.
The maker’s fabric estimate at this size: Main fabric about 2.0 m of 112 cm fabric.
How it goes together
These are the maker’s own instructions at the starting size. They change with the options you pick, and the PDF carries the full set with the cover, cutting list and materials list.
- Sew a quick trial house dress first, in cheap fabric (an old sheet or calico is fine). Sew only the main seams with a long stitch and skip the finishing. Try it on and check room over your chest and hips, sitting and walking comfortably, the neckline and arm openings, and pocket reach. Change the size, ease or lengths here and print again if needed, then cut your good fabric.
- Staystitch the neckline of the front and back: a line of ordinary stitching 0.3 cm inside the edge, so the curve can’t stretch while you work.
- Pocket bags: lay a bag on the side edges of the front and back where the notches are, right sides together, straight edges level and notches matching, and sew at 0.7 cm, just inside the seam allowance. Press each bag out, away from the piece, with the allowance toward the bag.
- Put the front and back right sides together and sew the shoulder seams at 1 cm. Finish the allowances together and press them toward the back.
- Make the binding: join the strips on the diagonal, right sides together, press the seams open, then press the strip in half lengthwise, wrong sides together.
- Bind the neckline: with raw edges level, sew the folded strip to the right side 1 cm from the edge, starting 2.5 cm in from one end of the strip and stopping the same distance short; join the strip's ends on the diagonal to fit, then sew the gap. Wrap the fold over the raw edge to the back and stitch in the ditch of the first seam from the front, catching the fold behind.
- Open the top out flat, right side up. Pin each sleeve’s top edge to an armhole edge, right sides together, with the sleeve’s notch on the shoulder and its ends on the armhole notches. Sew at 1 cm, finish the allowances together and press them toward the sleeve.
- Fold the dress right sides together. Sew each side at 1 cm, starting at the sleeve hem or underarm. On the pocket side(s), sew down to the upper notch, around the pocket bag and back to the lower notch, then continue to the slit mark. Keep the opening between the notches unsewn. Finish the allowances and press the pockets towards the front.
- Slits: below the end of each side seam, press the edges to the wrong side by 0.6 cm twice and topstitch up one side, across the top of the slit and down the other.
- Sleeve hems: turn the edge under by 0.6 cm, then by 1.5 cm, and stitch close to the inner fold.
- Turn the bottom hem under by 0.6 cm, then 2.5 cm, and stitch close to the inner fold.
Fabric suggestions
Outer: Light to medium fabrics with a little drape: cotton lawn, poplin, chambray, linen, double gauze, viscose or rayon challis. Jersey or interlock for a knit version.
Lining: Unlined. Edges are finished with hems, a casing, a facing or binding cut from the same fabric.
Interfacing, padding or other layers: No interfacing. Finish the raw edges inside with a zigzag or overlocker as you sew each seam.
How each fabric family suits it
- Stable woven: great choice. Easiest to sew and press. Prewash: cotton and linen shrink.
- Heavy or stiff: possible, with care. Stands away from the body and makes a bulky neckline. Fine for a boxy overshirt in light denim or canvas; choose the facing rather than binding.
- Stretchy knit: works well. Comfortable and doesn’t fray. The roomy shape doesn’t rely on stretch; use a stretch stitch and don’t pull the fabric as it feeds.
- Slippery or fine: possible, with care. Drapes beautifully but shifts as you cut and sew. Cut single layer, pin within the allowance, and use a fine sharp needle.
The maker’s advice adjusts to the fabric family you pick in the Fabric tab.
Printing it
At the starting size the printed pieces take 19 A4 pages, taped together using the page labels, alignment marks and page map. For a print shop, choose a sheet from A0 to a 36″ roll: the pieces are packed onto as few sheets as they will fit on, and if one is too big for the sheet the maker says so. How printing, tiling and the test square work.
Frequently asked questions
Will it fit me perfectly?
No promise of that. This is a simple pattern with generous ease, not a precisely fitted one. Measure yourself, compare your measurements with the pieces, change the lengths and widths to suit you, and sew a trial version in cheap fabric first.
What size can I make?
The lounge dress pattern takes largest body circumference from 70–180 cm (27½–70⅞″); shoulder to hem from 60–150 cm (23⅝–59″). It starts at Largest body circumference 105 cm (41⅜″), Shoulder to hem 100 cm (39⅜″), and you can work in centimetres, millimetres or inches. There are 3 starting points to begin from (Knee-length house dress, Long lounge dress, Sleeveless summer dress). Every starting point stays fully editable.
Which fabric suits the lounge dress pattern?
Light to medium fabrics with a little drape: cotton lawn, poplin, chambray, linen, double gauze, viscose or rayon challis. Jersey or interlock for a knit version. In the maker’s fabric advice, stable woven is a great choice; stretchy knit works well; heavy or stiff and slippery or fine are possible with care.