Sew Your Own Sports Bra | Greenstyle Power Sports Bra Pattern Review

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Who would’ve thought that you could sew your own sports bra? I mean, of all the things to sew, why a sports bra? Well, just like anything it’s all about fit and cost.

I will admit that I own my fair share of lululemon sports bras. Many will tell you that finding the perfect fitting bra is the bane of existence to many.

I’m a fan of low-impact sports bras – they’re light and easy to wear. They are great for low-impact activities like yoga. But let’s face it, most are not really flattering and they’re definitely not cheap.

That said, my favourite lululemon sports bras are the Energy Bra and the Free to Be Bra.

I like the strappy backs of both of these lululemon sports bras. The fronts, however, are constructed in 1 piece making it challenging for those with small busts to have a bit of shape.

So then, why not sew your own sports bra? It definitely seemed daunting at first. It just seems so complicated. I also wanted it to be like my lululemon sports bras. I wanted it to be pretty.

Enter the GreenStyle Creations Power Sports Bra Sewing Pattern. This sewing pattern looks just like the lululemon Energy Bra and it can be easily modified to look like the lululemon Free to Be Bra. What is different about this pattern is how the front cups are constructed. It is not simply one band of fabric across the cup – but instead, it is a contoured cup sewn from 2 pieces, thereby giving the wearer more shape and definition.

Whenever I try out a new pattern, I try it out pretty much exactly as is to see how it goes. One of the nice things, when you sew your own sports bra, is that it doesn’t really take much fabric.

Sewing a pattern the first time is much like the first pancake. There may be a bit of confusion along the way, it’s not necessarily the way you would’ve done it and there can be some hit and miss. My first one was definitely a first pancake – a bit of a mess. Still wearable (it’s underneath clothing so who will notice anyway?), but even after just one, I knew exactly how I would do things a bit differently and how I’d modify it to look more like the lululemon Free To Be sports bra which I preferred.

Choosing the Fabric to Sew Your Own Sports Bra

There are a number of fabric options when making your own sports bra. First off, it definitely needs to be stretch knit fabric. If you choose any sort of yoga or athletic knit, you’ll probably be fine. The pattern calls for fabric with 75% stretch.

The sports bra pattern doesn’t require a lot of fabric so you might find something in your fabric stash (especially if you’ve already made some leggings) that you would be able to squeeze a sports bra out of.

I don’t need a lot of support so I used yoga athletic fabric. It has the required stretch and decent recovery. If you need or prefer more support in your sports bras, you’re going to want a fabric like supplex which stretches well but keeps everything held in as it has good recovery.

You’ll also need a second fabric to be the lining. Keep in mind that this fabric will be touching your skin so you’ll want something soft, not scratchy.

Many recommend supplex or the same fabric for the lining in order to maintain support. I followed these recommendations and lined my first sports bra with supplex. It’s definitely snug and keeps everything in. But I don’t really need that extra support.

I noticed that my lululemon sports bras have a thin, lightweight knit lining and so I used that for my next one. No one will see the inside so it doesn’t really matter what it looks like.

I had a couple of options in my fabric stash for a soft, lightweight lining. One was a neon green athletic mesh that I got in a mystery box of fabrics. The other was some poly interlock lining which is lightweight and a tad sheer – so perfect for lining. Both fabrics are from So Sew English.

Since the bodice is constructed with separate pieces, you can do some neat colour blocking with them or mix and match with patterns and solids. The possibilities are endless.

Greenstyle Power Sports Bra Pattern Review

As soon as I saw the picture of this sports bra, I immediately thought of my lululemon sports bra. I know that it was possible to sew your own sports bra. There is no doubt that this pattern emulates if not improves upon (I’m talking about the constructed bodice) the pattern.

True to form, the Greenstyle sewing pattern is well written, easy to follow and clearly laid out. I will admit that I have a number of Greenstyle sewing patterns. The fit is always consistent.

Be sure to measure yourself carefully in order to make the correct size. A great thing about this pattern is that it is based on your bra size – specifically a band size and cup size. This ensures that your power sports bra will have a proper fit. Quite often, ready-to-wear uses general sizes and so fit can be a challenge. With this pattern, you can make it specifically in your size.

There are a ton of pattern pieces to print out – but they are not necessary. Be sure to read the instructions which reference which pages you need. I typically only print out what I need when I sew. All cup sizes are included so there are a lot of pieces you probably won’t need.

I will say that the first time I made this pattern, it was a bit confusing. However, that was mainly because of the unknown and having never sewn a sports bra before. Once I made one, however, it was pretty smooth sailing. Remember, that first pancake is never perfect and that’s okay.

The topstitching on the seaming on the bodice was optional. I tried it the first time, realized that my cover-stitching is not that straight on a curved surface and then didn’t do it anymore. There is also an option to topstitch the bodice lining (which again, I did for the first one), but then didn’t really see the point since no one sees it.

If making those strappy bands is a pain (mine didn’t always work – too narrow and it’s a pain to turn inside out), you can substitute bra strap elastic. This is a neat shortcut that will make your life easier. I got mine from my local fabric store. Depending on the colour you want, it may or may not be easy to find. Of course, there are the basics like black, white, nude and light pink (think bra colours). You can get some pretty lace-trimmed elastic (although it may look too obviously like a bra strap? But wait a minute, it is a sports bra). You can even get silicone-backed straps if you are concerned about the strap slipping (although technically if you fitted it properly this wouldn’t happen. Trying this sports bra on without the straps attached and trying to figure out the length is, needless to say, quite awkward!

You will need a lot of elastic. I used clear elastic from my local fabric store, for the top edge of the sports bra in order to maintain good recovery. There is also a recommendation to put regular elastic in the band around the bottom – I’ve made this bra both with and without. While the one without is fine, I can see why the elastic in the bottom band is helpful as it really does keep the sports bra in place (think about those yoga stretches in which you want everything to stay in place and not ride up!).

Sewing Pattern Modifications

In order to make the Greenstyle sewing pattern similar to the lululemon Free to Be sports bra, I knew the modifications needed to sew your own sports bra to look like the lululemon one.

With these few, simple modifications, you are able to sew your own sports bra so that it is very similar to the lululemon Free to Be sports bra.

Overall, I definitely prefer the fit to my Greenstyle Power Sports Bra. The cup size and band size are customized so the fit is definitely better. These are also definitely more economical. I also like that I am not limited in terms of colours and patterns.

Want to remember this sewing pattern review and lululemon hack of the Greenstyle Power Sports Bra? Want to be able to sew your own sports bra? Be sure to save this to your favourite Pinterest page.