I love for my dresses to have pockets, but the problem is they can create bulk or lumpy areas on clothes with a tighter fit. I knew there had to be a better way to add pockets. After thinking about it for a while I had this idea to not only add pockets but do it without bulk or lumps. It’s so easy I absolutely had to share it.

This pattern hack is great for thicker knit fabrics with busy prints. I used a floral scuba knit from Minerva in this post. A ponte or liverpool knit would be good fabric to use as well for this. I personally wouldn’t use a light jersey knit but a thick, cotton jersey knit might work well. Minerva has loads of fabrics and Code MSS243KM  saves you 10% on any Minerva order.

The Pattern…

The pattern I used for this dress is the Tessa Sheath Dress by Love Notions. Patterns that have similar options to the Tessa dress pattern would be the McCall’s #6886 or Simplicity #8982. So If you have one of those or something else similar you can definitely use this same method that I will be showing.

Pocket Placement…

First you need to decided where to put the pocket and to do that you need to know where the natural waistline and hip is on the pattern. The Tessa dress has it marked and most patterns should. You may or may not need to adjust that for youself depending on your height. Once you have the waist and hip figured out, using a french curve ruler or a large plate, create a curve like this for your pocket opening. You want it to start at or just barely below the waistline and end above the hip. Make sure it’s big enough to fit your hand or cell phone in. I didn’y want to actually cut my pattern so I made a template which I will show you below.

Make a Pocket…

Then you want to create a pattern piece for the pocket. This is what mine looked like. I created two; one for the pocket and one for  the template to cut the curve for the pocket opening. You can use an inseam pocket from another pattern if you want to make it easy on yourself. You will just need to trace it on to different paper because the side where the pocket attaches will need to match the side of the dress. Once you have the pocket lined up with the side of the dress, trace that curve made with the french curve ruler on the pocket piece.

This is what my two pieces looked like. I cut two mirror image pieces of the one labeled “pocket bag.” The other labeled “pocket opening template” I used to cut the curved pocket opening into the side of my dress. Hopefully that makes sense.

The Pocket Opening…

Once the pocket opening is cut out, you will need to measure it for the facing. The facing will need to be slightly smaller than the pocket opening. You will need to stretch it slightly to fit the opening.

Mine needed to be 7 ½  inch x 1 inch. Make sure the longer measurement is the direction of the stretch. 

Then pin that right side together to the pocket opening. Using a narrow zig zag or lightning stitch, attach it to the opening. Then, because it’s a curve you will need to snip into the seam allowance like this before you turn it to the inside of the dress. Doing that will help it lay nice and flat. Once you’ve done that, turn it to the inside and pin in place so you can top stitch it. 

Attach the Pocket Bag…

Then lay the two pocket bag pieces over that to fill in the side of the dress that was removed for the pocket opening. Then you can simply stitch around the edge of the bag. The fabric is such a busy print that you can barely notice the stitch that keeps the bag in place. 

Sew It All Together…

Now you can sew your dress together just like the directions say. For me I changed things up and did a puff sleeve using the Tempo sleeve  just like I did for the shirts in this post.

And then of course I finished off the neckline with a facing rather than a band. Because I think it looks much nicer.

I’m Obsessed!

I’m completely obsessed with this way of doing pockets. I may never do another inseam pocket again on a knit dress. So tell me what you think. Have you ever tried this type of pocket on a dress before? Let me know!

Let’s be friends!

If you are looking for a fun way to elevate your patterns, hopefully this post helps you figure out what will work best with your wardrobe needs. Let’s be friends on all the socials! Come follow along on Pinterest, Instagram, Facebook and TikTok so we can chat about all our sewing projects!