How to Match Stripes When Sewing

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I love stripes. Sometimes you don’t feel like a floral, so stripes are a classic pattern. The tricky part with striped fabric is how to match stripes when sewing.

That said, I will say that some of my ready-to-wear, striped items are not perfect. So let’s cut ourselves a bit of slack here too. But when making something striped, I do try my best to make it all match up. There’s a certain satisfaction I get when I’ve done it.

Properly Prepare your Fabric to Match Stripes when Sewing

Before you even lay your pattern pieces down, make sure your fabric is smooth and even. Quite often, we cut pattern pieces with the fabric folded in half. Be sure to make sure that the stripes line up all the way across.

In order to be able to match stripes, your pattern pieces must be cut correctly. In other words, the pattern pieces need to be cut so that you CAN match the stripes. They need to be cut in the same locations if that makes sense.

The easiest way to do this is to align the top and bottom of the seams on the same stripe position. For instance, in this Made For Mermaids Jordan Dress, I want the stripes to match on the side seam. Therefore, I need to align the top of the side seam (by the armhole) with the stripe and it needs to be the SAME for both the front and back pieces.

So here I’m using this really soft baby french terry fabric from SoSewEnglish. The top of my side seam on the back piece is at a white stripe. I need to make sure that the top of my side seam on the front piece is ALSO at a white stripe. If I’m off and I try to match stripes, then the side seams will be skewed because they weren’t cut identically.

You’ll note that my fabric is quite simple – alternating pink and white stripes. A more complex stripe pattern with multiple colours may require more careful positioning and may use up more fabric in order to line it up where the stripe pattern begins. That’s why you see in some pattern instructions that you may require more fabric in order to match stripes.

How to Match Stripes When Sewing

So now we have our pattern pieces cut correctly, it’s time to sew them up. So how to match stripes where sewing? Here are a few strategies. Use the one that works for you.

There are 4 different ways that I am going to discuss.

Pin or Clip All Over the Place

This is the strategy that I think most of us use. Just pin or clip it to death – literally. Line everything up and hope for the best. For me, even by sewing or serging slowly and carefully, sometimes it’s still not perfect.

I love working with clips – I hardly use pins at all anymore. It’s so much easier.

I have tried this method and can only get it to work for widely spaced or fewer stripes on the fabric.

Baste Into Place First

Basting can either be done by hand or with a sewing machine, using really long stitches. Think of this as a test run. Basically, you’re just loosely sewing it into place before the real thing.

I know many people who do this. Personally, I don’t have the patience to use this strategy as it just seems like double the work and I guess I’m just inherently lazy. But if this works for you and you are a more patient person than me, go for it!

Glue It Together

Yes, you read right. A number of people recommend glueing it together first. Now, this is just not any glue – this is special fabric glue. It’s a temporary glue. Glue it together and then sew. It’s water-soluble and so it washes out afterwards.

Amazon carries fabric glue sticks. Most reviews on Amazon are pretty good. It may be worth a try.

I have not personally tried this because I am paranoid about it mucking up my sewing machine or serger. Doesn’t it gum up the needles? It just seems kind of messy to me. Many people swear by it and say that it works. Have any of you tried it? If so, please comment below with the specific glue stick that you used as well. I’d love to have some recommendations.

Tape It Together

Wonder Tape is a double-sided tape intended for fabric. It is most commonly found in 1/4 thicknesses.

What I like about these is that they specifically say that you can stitch through it and it will not gum up your needle. That’s a plus.

Here are the name-brand ones found on Amazon. The no-name ones tend to have mixed reviews.

This is my preferred method of matching stripes. It’s easy and pretty full-proof.

First, you lay the tape down on one side. It is important that you lay it down where you are actually going to stitch. The stripes will be skewed if you place it right on the edge, and then sew a 1/2 inch seam allowance – the tape is not there and so you run the risk of the stripes not lining up there. Don’t ask me how I know this!

Then peel back the top, white layer. This will reveal the sticky second side.

I lay my fabric down as I peel it back, ensuring that the stripes are lined up. One of the nice things about this Wonder Tape is that when you flip it around to check and it’s not to your liking, you can gently pull it apart and restick.

For long seam, I cut my tape into sections – I find it easier to work in small sections.

Okay, I will admit that it’s a bit fiddly, but it’s worth it if you’re an A-type personality like me.

Despite the method that you use, matching stripes on a curved seam is more challenging than on a straight seam. And let’s face it, most seams are curved.

Not All Stripes are Created Equal

Matching some stripes is easier than others. The fewer the stripes, the easier it is.

For example, here is a top made from fabric with fewer stripes. This was definitely easier to match up.

I used clips to match this up. The clips made it quite easy since there weren’t that many stripes.

As opposed to this dress with all these stripes! This is what I used that Wonder Tape on.

A patterned stripe is also fairly easy to match up. Because of the pattern, it is a bit more forgiving. I used clips on this skirt as well.

If it’s not completely perfect, don’t fret. Remember that when we make things, we are our own worse critics. We notice all the little details, but most people don’t notice at all.

Want to remember these different strategies on how to match stripes when sewing? Be sure to save this to your favourite Pinterest board.