Graduation has come.  Make sure you have your phone with you.  Don’t miss the photo opportunities with your friends.  Be able to hashtag your photos to the jumbotron. Text your family to find out where they are sitting. Adding a pocket to your graduation gown can make access to your phone easy.

The following tutorial is to add a pocket to any side seam of any garment.  It is easy to do.  The pictures shown is for adenim dress from Old Navy.

You will need:

• 1/4 yard or a fat quarter of fabric for your pocket
• Pocket pattern:    Download Pocket
• Basic sewing supplies

Find fabric to match your gown.  Wawak sells pocket fabric HERE.  For a dress or skirt, you could also find fun contrasting fabric or use lining fabric.

Download the Pocket Pattern:  Download Pocket

Pin the pattern to two layers of the fabric and cut.

Make a snip along the edge where indicated.

Put on the gown or garment.  Put on a belt or tie a ribbon on to find your natural waistline.  Place a safety pin at the bottom of the belt at the side seam of the garment.

Remove garment and place your pocket along the side seam 1″ below the waistline pin.  Put new pins at the top and bottom of the pocket as shown.  Remove the waistline pin.

Turn garment inside out.  Undo the stitching along the side seam, making an opening where the pocket will go.  Unstitch a little more than you need to above and below the pocket.

Hint:  There can be several stitching lines and rows of serging threads.  The safest way to unstitch this portion of the seam is to cut through all the stitching lines above and below the pocket using a seam ripper.  Then try to find a running stitch thread that will release the seam when pulled.  If this can’t be found, then use the seam ripper to remove the remaining threads in between.

Iron seam allowance edges flat.

Turn garment right side out.  Pin one layer of the pocket to the front of the garment and the other pocket layer to the back of the garment at the safety pin markings.  Be sure the right sides are together.  (I like Wonder Clips instead of pins.)

Measure the garment seam allowance.  (This is the distance from the edge of the fabric to the innermost stitch.)  Stitch just inside the garment stitching line the entire length of the pocket.  For example, if the garment has a 5/8″ seam allowance then stitch 3/8″.  If the seam allowance is 3/8″ then stitch 1/4″.

Iron the seam allowance toward the pocket.

Topstitch the pocket along the seam line.

Lay garment flat.  Align the front and back of the pocket pieces.  Pin or  Wonder Clip the  edges.

Stitch the garment and pocket in one seam.  Begin with a backtack well above the opening.  Stitch over the innermost line of stitching.  Stitch down the existing seam allowance, pivot and stitch around the pocket. then pivot and stitch down the existing seam allowance.  Finish with a backtack over the existing seam allowance.

Find the snip you made on the pocket pieces.  Mark with a pin.  Stitch along the side seam from the snip line of the pocket down until you overlap where you stitched before.

You can serge or zigzag seam allowance.

Press entire side seam towards the front of the garment.

Enjoy your pocket!

Visit Resources Page for more patterns and notions.