Today I’ve got a ruffle bloomers tutorial for the bloomers that my niece wore with this dress.
I didn’t take pictures while making the original bloomers, so you’ll see a different pair in the tutorial. That also allowed me to use colors that will hopefully be easier for you to see. There’s a free pattern for you to download too.
So, you’ll need
- 1/2 yd of fabric for the bloomers
- 2 strips of fabric 28 inches long by 3 1/2 inches wide for the ruffles
- 1/2 inch wide elastic for waist, about 17 inches
- 1/4 inch wide elastic for the legs, about 20 inches
- The bloomer pattern, see below
How to Get the Free Diaper Cover Pattern
The pattern is in size 0-3m. If you need a different size, the full digital pattern (NB-3T) is available for purchase below.
To get it, click your preferred option below to get the free pattern only as a newsletter subscriber, or to buy the full PDF pattern + printable instructions.
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Please note that all my free patterns are licensed for personal use only (no selling items made from this unless you purchase it) and by downloading you are agreeing to this license.
This is a PDF file, you’ll print it across 2 pages of paper and then tape them together. When you print, set your printer to borderless, and don’t scale anything. . If your printer won’t print borderless, set it to the smallest margins you can and print anyway without scaling – you should be able to connect pattern lines across the page breaks. Butt the edges of the pages together – don’t overlap – and tape. The pages line up one above the other. NOTE- the front of the pattern piece runs to the edges of the paper, and the back of it goes to about 1/4″ below the edge. So if you’re having trouble with the borderless printing, make sure you draw the curve to the edges of the paper.
Cut out one, on the fold. Transfer the ruffle placement markings so your piece looks like this
Next, take one of your ruffle strips and sew it into a tube, right sided together (full disclosure – on the original bloomers, I did a rolled hem on the edges of the ruffle with my serger. If you have a serger and want to do that, it works great. But I’m writing this with the assumption that many don’t have sergers)
Next, use a safety pin fed through your tube to turn it right side out.
Press your tube so that the seam runs down the center of one side
Push the raw edges into the tube about 1/4 inch and sew across ends.
Sew down the middle of your tube with the longest stitch your machine will do. By pulling one thread (either the top or the bottom, it doesn’t matter) you create the ruffle. Ruffle until it is the same length as your ruffle placement line, then pin the ruffle onto the line with the seam down (please ignore my mistake chalk mark on the bottom of this picture). Sew in place.
Now fold the bloomers with right sides together and sew down the side edges, using a 1/2 inch seam
Check your edges around the seams at the leghole. If they didn’t match perfectly, trim.
Finish your seams. I prefer to do this by trimming with pinking shears (when I’m not using my serger)
At the waistline, turn under about 1/8″ then turn under again 5/8″. At the leg holes, turn under about 1/8″ and then 3/8″. Give or take an 8th. I always just hold up the elastic and make sure I have room to sew the edge and room to pull the elastic through. Pin your casing.
Around the crotch, things can get tricky. Don’t freak out if despite your best efforts, you have some wrinkles. They won’t matter because the leg holes get gathered so much. You can see in the pic below that my casing wasn’t entirely flat in the crotch.
Sew the casings, being sure to leave an opening to thread elastic through.
It’s best to measure your baby and then cut the elastic to their waist measurement, but if you’re making this for a gift, 17 inches is about right for a 0-3 month old waist and 7 inches is about right for a leg. Thread your elastic through the casing using a safety pin. Don’t worry that I’m using black elastic – I ran out of white and it’s the same stuff.
Overlap the ends of the elastic about 1/2″ without twisting, and sew them together, backstitching a couple times. Then pull into the casing and sew the casing shut. While sewing the casing shut, you’ll want to gently pull on the elastic to flatten the casing where you’re sewing.
Ta-da! Here’s the front of the bloomers (see, I told you the wrinkles wouldn’t matter).
And here’s the back.
Now find a cute baby booty to put them on!
Jenni
I tried making a pair of these once and got so frustrated because I couldn’t do it without making the wrinkles. Thanks for sharing that it doesn’t matter! 😉 (Need to stop being a perfectionist, hey???)
Margo
I made the panties, and put biaz binding around the legs, no wrinkles and still room for elastic. Worked great! Love the easy pattern, Thanks
Amber (Bouncing Buttons)
This makes me long for another baby girl!!! So cute!
Sharlyn
Awwww, I love ruffle bums! Thanks for the pattern, I’ll have to make some for gifts
Wendy
Oh no, I just bought a pattern for something similar with 9 pieces to it! Your tut is sooo much simpler! Thank you Thank you Thank you from Wendy at SugarTown Designs by Wendy Crooks on FB
Kerry
adorable! thanks for sharing!
Sandie Renwick-Gilmer
These are great! Thanks for sharing!
shokran Dayeem
wonderfull I will do it for my baby
thanks alot
Margie Miesse
Love UR work
momphotographer
I love it. It looks really easy to make!!!
DavKan
Thank you so much for this tutorial, and including the free pattern! I just finished making a little Green Bay Packer “cheerleader” skirt for my little granddaughter (her daddy, my son and her Grampy, my husband are huge Packer fans). After I finished the skirt, I really wanted to make coordinating bloomers to wear under it..I just enlarged your pattern a tad, and it worked perfectly! Again, thanks so much!
Regards,
K
Michelle
Thanks for this pattern! Only problem I had was I used a pattern which needed to be the right way up on both sides. I fixed it by using both your pattern pieces as seperate pieces as seperates and sewing them together at the crotch. They came up fab!
Pam
Thanks for a pattern without the front and back seams! Made embroidering so nice!!
Tez
super sweet. I made the bloomers/panties to go with a little wrap dress I made, thanks so much for the pattern. 🙂
Just a tip that I used to make the leg casing a wee bit more smooth, was to first fold and press an 1/8 hem and zig zag with a very tiny zag. Then I ran a long basting stitch around the leg hole, where I wanted the casing’s fold to be. I pulled lightly on the tails of the basting stitch (like one would to gather fabric) just enough to bend the edge inward for a pressing. Some spots, like inner leg, I gathered slightly more than the outer curves. Easy Peasey 🙂
-+
Mary Lynne
Do you have tips for using the pattern to make bigger sizes? Maybe even a 24 month size?
Cindy
would love to have the criss cross dress and bloomers pattern, thanks so much
Gail
Unable to get the patten for the criss cross dress and bloomers. How do I get this pattern
Thais Wever
Great, thanks for sharing. I will for my new niece. Greetings from Panama
JAMIE LAWSON
Thank you, I will fess up, I just cut two backs on the fold and put a seam in the crotch and up the sides, 🙂 I don’t have a 3month old to try them on. Hope they fit I’m laughing at myself it turned out so cute . I would love to have this for an older child, my granddaughter is 18 months old and I know she would be so cute in this dress. Thanks for getting back to me, now I have to make another set the correct way. Practice makes perfect. 🙂
Teresa
I’m already receiving your e-mails and would love to have this pattern – I have a 2wk old great-great niece! Am so looking forward to sewing these for her. Thanks! and God Bless you for all your hard work and for sharing this gift God has given you!
Diane Baxter-MacArthur
I would love to make the ruffled bloomers, but having trouble locating the pattern to print. These are so adorable. Thanks so much,
pat
i have been sewing for years but still look for cute things now to sew for my greatgrand children.
Eileen Haas
Hi, I do subscribe to your emails, but am not able to get the patterns for the Criss-Cross Dress and the Ruffled Bloomers. Help, please! Thanks, Eileen
Sandra Brown
Me too!!! 🙁
Teresa
I subscribed, and can’t wait to get this pattern in my email…I have several friends expecting little girls! This is going to make very cute and very inexpensive gifts! (How long does it normally take to send the patterns?)
Judy
Just made my first pair of what I suspect will be many for my new granddaughter. Super easy, super cute! Thanks!
Phoebe Duchesne
Love the bloomers. Just got a serger and looking forward to sewing again. Just for clarification, the width of the elastic is 1/2″ for the waist and 3/8″ for legs. Wanted to be sure of measurements.
Melissa Mora
Nope, if you look at the materials list again, it’s 1/2″ for the waist and 1/4″ for the legs.
Xeng Chang
I subscribed to your emailing list but am having trouble locating the links to the patterns. Please help.
Xeng Chang
Nevermind I’ve found them. Thank you so much. Would you grant permission to sell finished products? I probably won’t start yet since I’m still looking to get a sewing machine.
Shirley
Thank you for the share of this pattern and the tutorial. I’ve used it to make matching bloomers to a little dress for my 8 month old grand daughter. Thank you for tips how to increase the size of the pattern pieces for older tots which keeps the curves round the legs intact.
Linda Abbott
been looking everywhere for the seamless back and front for these bloomers. Now if I could just figure out how to make this for a 1 year old. Thanks for your help.
Jennie @ Jennie's Threads
I just found this great tutorial which is perfect for what I need for my little girl. Unfortunately when I click the link to subscribe and get the pattern, the link doesn’t work. I’m more than happy to subscribe – are you to help me get the pattern please?
Melissa Mora
The link is live and working – so it must be something to do with your computer. Try a different internet browser or device.
Denise
Sooo cute … I’m still pregnant, but I’m going to use the the last weeks for sewing, So thanks so much for the pattern!!!!
Vickie Courtney
I subscribed to your mailing list but there was no link to the dress & ruffled bloomer pattern download included. I love this little dress and bloomers and would love to sew it up for my grand daughter.
Thanks.
Melissa Mora
Your download link will be in the welcome email you get after confirming your subscription in the confirmation email.
If you’ve lost your link or can’t find the welcome email, first check your spam, social and promotional folders and tabs in your email. If you still can’t find it, the link is also included in all of the weekly email newsletters; these go out on Fridays.
CookieRN
I am totally in love with this pattern! It is sew easy! (pun intended)
Thank you!!!
Michele
Thank you so much for posting this pattern! It was a perfect practice price with the leftover fabric I had! And your instructions were much easier to follow then the last tutorial I tried. 🙂
hayden
I love this pattern! Thank you! I am having trouble making the ruffles. Any tips? I use a long stitch length and loose tension, but I can’t pull the string at all. Do I need to pull while I’m sewing? I tried it on just one strip of fabric and it ruffled fine. So is it because the fabric is folded and has to ruffle through 2 pieces? Thanks!
Melissa Mora
Here are a few different gathering methods – maybe another one would work better: http://mellysews.com/2013/12/how-to-gather-fabric.html
emilia
am i over thinking this… the pattern waist (measuring the paper itself) is creating a 17 inch wide front half of the garment, then another 17 inches for the back half…. when i sew it together, using half inch seam allowance, won’t this create a pair of bloomers that are 32 inches around? is this why they are ruffly and bloomery? when you put in the elastic, it won’t be too bunched?
Melissa Mora
Yup, you’re overthinking it. The gathering is what makes them puff out.
Cathy
When I saw the dress with the criss cross in the back I just about cried. I have a niece that I would stay up night sewing those dresses for I think she could have changed several times a day. When I had my baby girls I could not find the pattern and by then my aunt had lost the pattern. Right now I hav 13 grandchildren most boys but have a great niece that I can enlarge the pattern (I hope) and she can wear with shorts even if none of them can wear them I am sure that there are still babies in the future. But thank you for bring back and giving me back that memory.
Jane
I am a new grandmother to be. Love all your tutorials and ideas. Thank you for posting. I tried to subscribe but the send button wouldn’t go through. I am stll in sending mode.
Overall I appreciate your talents and enjoy all postings
BG Tucker
Thank you for this lovely pattern.