I never bought a swim suit coverup until I moved to a warmer climate. I guess they are needed when you spend so much of your time in or around a pool.
My oldest was going away on a school related trip to a waterpark. She had pinned a really neat coverup on Pinterest, but when I went to order it, it was out of stock. So I made her one. For reference, she is 5’3″ and about a size 4.
You will need 1 1/4 yd knit (I used a jersey, but a stable rib knit or interlock could also be used), a serger, thread, etc.
Cut the fabric across the full width at 34″ to create a huge rectangle. Also cut 3 sections of binding, across the width, 1 1/2″ each.
Leaving the fabric folded, create the armhole “arc”. I used a 4″x4″ section of my cutting table and just eyeballed this. Make sure you cut at the top of the fabric, if your fabric is directional. Nothing is more frustrating that having upside down animals or flowers on your finished product. Really makes it look “homemade” and not in a good way, if you know what I mean.
From your 3 thin strips cut earlier, slice 2 sections, 10″ each off. These will bind under the arms in the arc you just created. To create the binding for the whole thing, its very similar. Start with right sides together and match up the long edge of the binding strip with the edge of coverup. Serge along this edge. I upped my differential feed to 1.3 for this whole project. If you don’t understand differential feed, please review the serger 101 posts that can be found under the “serger” tab at the top of my blog. Press the seam allowance away from the garment.
On the back, wrap the binding around, fold under, then carefully stitch in the ditch, from the right side, on a straight stitch sewing machine. Make sure to use a ballpoint needle and lengthen your stitch length and reduce your presser foot pressure, if you can. Also be very careful not to stretch the garment with your fingers as you sew. Clip off the longer ends of the binding to match the edge of the coverup.
Take the remaining sections of binding and serge them together, end to end, so you have one long strip. Starting at the bottom corner of the coverup (opposite the arm arcs), start attaching the binding, right sides together, matching long edges all the way up the edge of the garment. When you reach the arm arc, continue serging on just the binding. Continue for 12″, then place the binding on the opposite side of the arc and continue attaching across the top. When you reach the other arm arc, repeat this process. Serge just on the binding for 12″, then rejoin. Continue binding down the other side of the coverup.
For the outside binding, I also serged the raw edge of the binding to give the spaghetti straps more stability and to make turning easier. Although not shown in the picture below, I serged the whole edge of the binding, all the way around the garment.
Using the same turn and stitch in the ditch technique, finish the binding. When you reach the portion that is unattached to the coverup, take a couple of stitches to move over and edge stitch those binding pieces into spaghetti straps.
Hem as desired. I just serged across the bottom edge, turned it up and top stitched. And you are done. We tried to take a picture, in the wind, to show how the wrap goes on. I think you can get the idea. And no, she is not in a swimsuit. I couldn’t convince her to be a swimsuit model for me and since she is my daughter, I’m okay with that.
If you need this bigger or smaller, use a tape measure to estimate the beginning width and length needed for the intended recipient.
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