5 types of WAISTBANDS for your skirts and pants

Most waistbands do multiple duties in a garment. Other than just holding up a skirt or a pant or serving as placeholders of accessories like bows, they are also eye stoppers – they bring the eyes to the leanest part of your torso.

A neat and carefully made waistband is essential to a well-tailored outfit. Checkout the different types of waistbands and how to go about adding them easily.

Different types of waistbands

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Straight Waistband

How to add a basic  straight waistband to your dress or skirt

Straight waistbands are classy; there is no question about it. This waistband’s fitting finish gives a slim look to the whole basic dress silhouette. They will fit snugly at the waist and make the whole garment look the best. It is a perfect finish for fitted garments.

The most popular straight waistband width is 1.5 inches though I have sewn ones that are 1 inch and more than 2 inches as well.
Checkout the pattern /sewing tutorial for pencil skirt for sewing a waistband of this type

If you want a tutorial to attach a straight waistband with an invisible zipper, check out this tutorial for sewing a flounced hem skirt here.

One of the most important criteria for getting a good-looking waistband is to interface it. You can use fusible interfacing of medium weight.

Either interface the whole waistband fabric or cut the interfacing to the width, and length of the dimensions of the final waistband you want.

In the second instance, the seam allowance is done away with and hence no added bulk when sewing the seams of the waistband.

How to attach the waistband to the skirt

When attaching the waistband to a skirt, stitch the waistband to the skirt after the skirt is finished, including gathers, pleats, darts, and tucks, the zipper is attached, or the opening finished with a turn under finish or facing.

• Cut out the waistband pieces.
• Length of the waistband = top edge of the skirt piece + 1″ seam allowance (+ 1″ overlap if you want an overlap for attaching fasteners like hooks, buttons etc)  width of fabric piece  = 4 1/4 inch for a 1.5 inch waistband.
• Adhere the interfacing to the waistband piece to the wrong side of the waistband piece.
• Keep the waistband piece on the skirt’s waist edge, right sides together. Keep the seam allowance extended at both ends, as well as the overlap.
• The overlap would be extending past the edge.
• Join the waistband and the skirt waist along the long edge. Do not forget to backstitch at the start and end.
• Press the 1/2-inch seam allowance of the other long edge to the inside with a medium-hot iron.
• Press the waistband by almost half right sides together (almost half means less than 1/4 inch more than half, so that when we machine stitch from the top, the edge on the back will be caught in the stitching line correctly.) You can also hand stitch the edges using whip stitches.
• Stitch the side edges at both ends with a 1/2 inch seam allowance.
• Trim the corner and the seam allowance.
• Turn the waistband right side out. Pull out the corners with a sharp pointed object; You need square corners.
• On the wrong side of the skirt, the folded edge will overlap the seam line, even extending a little bit.  Pin the whole waistband in place with the folded under the edge.

• Top stitch, stitch in the ditch from the top along the seam line. The turned under edge at the back will be neatly caught in this stitching now.

If you want a step-by-step tutorial with pictures on how to sew this waistband, you will have to check out this post – How to sew a straight waistband for your skirt.

Facing waistband

A facing waistband can give the waist area a seamless and neat finish. You will have a very smooth skirt edge without any separate waistband. It is better if the facing is made with a lightweight fabric.

You can find the instructions to make such a waistband with a zipper in this post on sewing a mini skirt. 

Checkout the sewing tutorial for a straight skirt with yoke  with the faced waistband for how to sew this type of waistband with a zipper and also the  post on drafting and sewing facing to fabric edges

Stretch Waistbands

The two main types of elastic waistbands are self-waistband which uses a tuned under finish to create the casing for elastic and separate waistband which uses a separate strip of fabric to create the waistband.

You can also use wide decorative elastic directly as a waistband without a casing. Then there is shirring which is used to gather the fabric at the waist.

A stretch paperbag waistband is a variation of the elastic waistband (the picture above).

Checkout the post on different ways of sewing elastic waistbands for more details

Related post : All elastic types that you can use in sewing

Drawstring waistbands

A drawstring waistband is very similar to the turned under waistband. It is basically made by just turning under the waist fabric edge and making a casing for a drawstring cord which will tighten the loose waist of the garment.

Eyelets or buttonholes are added for the cord to pass through.

Checkout the tutorial for a drawstring lounge pants for sewing instructions for a drawstring waistband (separate) or sewing instructions for salwar pants for a turn under drawstring waistband. 

How to make a drawstring waistband

Step 1

Two buttonholes have to be sewn on either side of the center front of the waistband for the drawstring to pass through. You can use eyelet holes instead of buttonholes. Metal grommets are very easy to apply to clothes. Checkout the tutorial to make different types of eyelet holes including metal eyelets. These holes have to be completed before making the casing

Mark the folding line of the upper edge of the casing. After you have marked the center front, mark buttonholes 1/2 inch to either side of the center front right on the casing.
Finish the buttonholes or eyelets

Step 2
Fold the fabric edge twice, to the inside, Pin in place.

Stitch the casing along the folded edge. 
Top stitch the top edge of the casing as well; so that there is a channel for the drawstring cord to pass through.

Step 3

Cut a length of cord.
The length of the cord should be 30 inch added to the hip round measure
You can use shop bought cords or simple fabric tubes made using the tutorial found here

Step 4

Insert the cord / tube through the casing with the help of a pin. You can join the ends of cords or tie knots at the end of the cord or make cord stoppers like the ones in this gift bag tutorial  to prevent the drawstring from slipping outside the casing.

Related posts : Different types of cords used in sewing

Wrap around waistband 

Checkout this tutorial how to make a wrap skirt to see this kind of waistband which is a very comfortable and casual one because this waistband is as fitting as you seem fit. It is how you tie it that makes or breaks it.

You can also use a button fastening with a wrap-around waistband as is shown in this wrap skirt tutorial.

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