Tutorial: 1-Yard Summer Shawl

This tutorial will show you how to make a breezy summer shawl using only 1 yard of fabric. I used a transparent chiffon material for this, but anything lightweight will do, it doesn’t have to be see through. I’ll walk you through how to create French seams to reinforce the delicate material. This is a very simple tutorial that is a great project to try for your first time working with lightweight fabric.

Since lightweight fabric can be a bit difficult to work with, I recommend using a microtex needle. You also may want to invest in a straight stitch place, since this can keep the fabric from puckering or being pulled under the needle when you’re trying to sew. (Learn more about sewing with lightweight fabric)

using a straight stitch plate (left) has a single hole that keeps the fabric from being pulled under the feed dogs. It’s a life-saver for delicate fabrics.

Supplies Needed:

1 yard of lightweight fabric (something similar to chiffon, or georgette will work well)

Step 1

sew 10 inches on both sides

With one yard of fabric folded in half, sew the 10 inches on each side from the open edge. The next 2 steps are optional and will show you how to make a French seam (which I recommend for delicate lightweight fabrics). If you do not want to make a French seam, skip to step 4.

Optional: how to do a French seam: Sew the 10 inches with wrong sides together and use a very narrow 1/4 inch seam allowance

Step 2

Optional: Trim the seam

After sewing, trim the seam allowance to remove all loose threads.

Step 3

Optional: flip the seam allowance and sew again

Flip the fabric over the seam so that now you have right sides together. Then sew another narrow seam at 3/8 inch. This will encase the raw edges of the seam, preventing them from fraying over time.

Step 4

Hem the sleeve holes

After sewing the 10 inches on the sides, you will be left with holes between the folded edge and the sewn side. These will be the arm holes. Hem all the way around these holes to protect the fraying fibers.

Step 5

optional: Hem the shawl

The only thing left to do is hem the shawl. However, if you are using a yard of fabric, the rest should be the selvage edge of your yardage, so it should fray. If you like how it looks, you can keep the shawl as is and do not need to hem it further.

Finished!