Circle Pocket Dress or Shirt Tutorial

I found a top on Pinterest a while back that caught my eye. A large circle pocket on the front of a shirt. So easy and fun. I made these tops for my girls months ago and they always get compliments. Here’s the tutorial for you!

I love sewing simple, quick dresses. And I especially love to sew with knit fabrics. They are comfortable and cute and I find my girls prefer them to other dresses. If you’ve never sewn with knits, take a deep breath. It isn’t as scary as it seems. And no, you don’t need a serger. It is completely possible to sew knit with your regular sewing machine. If you have a zig zag stitch, or better yet, a “knit stitch” then you’ll be able to sew this project just fine. Of course, you don’t have to do this in knit but I like the way it looks.

For this dress, find an existing dress and create your own pattern, use my free Go To Dress pattern, a peasant shirt pattern, or any favorite pattern of yours. This is a simple, easy way to switch up a favorite pattern and create something new and unique.

You can crop it and make a cute shirt as well.
This tutorial is very simple. First find a round bowl just slightly larger than you would like the pocket.

• Trace a circle onto freezer paper.
• Iron the circle onto your fabric and cut 2 circles.
• Sew circles, right sides together, leaving a 2″ opening. 
• Turn circle right side out. Iron flat.
• Pin your circle to the front panel of your dress BEFORE you sew your dress together.
• Sew the circle on the dress as the diagram below shows sewing as close to the edge as possible. Ensure your 2″ opening is now sewn closed.

**When working with knits you may find it helpful to use a stabilizer. I used a tear away stabilizer when I sewed the two circles together. Before turning the circle right side out I carefully cut out the center of the stabilizer leaving ¼″ of stabilizer along the inner edge. This will help when stitching the circle pocket to the dress by preventing odd puckering and gathering.**
Now sew your dress together! There you have it! A simple way to reuse a pattern you love and make it unique.
Thanks for having me Shanna! I’m loving this series and can’t wait to see the rest of the projects!