TUTORIELSFeb 11, 2026

How to sew sequined fabric?

As the year draws to a close, we're starting to think about our holiday outfits! It's the perfect opportunity to share all of Lise's tips for sewing sequined fabrics, including a focus on two hacks we're suggesting for the holidays:

the Easy Peasy dress and the Groovy skirt

Lise also made a YouTube video about this, which you can find HERE.

PRESENTATION OF THE SEQUIN FABRIC

To choose the right sequined fabric, we recommend selecting a fairly lightweight fabric, meaning one without too many sequins. This won't detract from the festive feel of your garment, but it will be lighter to wear and easier to sew.

SEWING TECHNIQUES SPECIFIC TO SEQUINS

First of all: do some tests on a small piece of sequin to see how your machine reacts.

To cut your sequined fabric , you can certainly use your rotary cutter or your classic sewing scissors if you are cutting a project from time to time, otherwise opt for another pair of scissors whose blades are less likely to be damaged (sequins tend to dull the blades).

Choose the right needle: a standard size 70 or 80 needle works very well.
When sewing, slightly increase the stitch length (2.8 or 3 mm)
Sew gently to avoid sequin clumps under the presser foot.
We recommend doubling the fabric for added comfort (especially at the seam allowances).
If you need to iron, your iron should not be too hot.

TRANSFORM YOUR EASY PEASY TOP INTO A PARTY DRESS!

To sew this dress in the sequined fabric, Lise simplified the pattern and did not make the small bows on the sleeves.

She widened the front and back pieces by a few centimeters from the armholes and lengthened the pattern by about 30 centimeters . We advise you to make it slightly longer than the desired length to allow for hemming at the end.

Cut this pattern once in your sequin fabric and once in your viscose lining (a few centimeters shorter at the bottom hem and sleeves so that the lining doesn't show once your dress is finished).

For the dart : Sew as indicated in the pattern, but to avoid bulk due to the sequins, cut the dart in its center and open it with an iron to flatten it on each side of your seam.

Insert your lining over your sequin dress, right sides together, to join them at the neckline, then underneath.

stitch the lining.

Make a few machine or hand stitches to hold the armhole seam allowances, lining, and sequins together.

MAKE YOUR OWN GROOVY SEQUIN SKIRT

To create this groovy skirt, Lise based it on this hack: The simplified Groovy skirt!

For her version, she lined her skirt, so she made two copies of the hack pattern, with a slightly shorter version for the lining so that it would not show when worn.

To insert the invisible zipper between the lining and the sequin fabric:

1. Pin the zipper to the sequined fabric

Open the zip completely.
Place the right side of the zipper against the right side of the main fabric of the skirt, with the teeth aligned with the raw edge of the seam.

2. Sew the zipper onto the sequin fabric

Use a special invisible zipper foot.
Sew each side close to the teeth without catching them. When attaching the sequin, leave a little more space from the teeth than you normally would, about 2mm, so that the sequins don't interfere with the closure.

3. Attach the lining to the zipper

Turn the skirt inside out.
Take the lining and align its raw edge with the edge of the zipper, right sides together.
Pin the lining to the zip (right next to the teeth, but not on top of them).

4. Sew the lining to the zipper

Using the standard foot or the invisible zip foot, sew the lining following the same stitching line as the one used to attach the zip to the skirt.

Hem the main skirt and lining (optional, you can leave the raw edges unfinished). And that's it!

SEQUIN FABRIC CARE

Machine wash at 30°C in a bag and inside out to prevent the sequins from damaging other pieces; with the drum's rotation, they could be a little abrasive and catch on other clothes.