Sewing your own fleece leg warmers is a very simple task. You can spend a bit more time on them and make them fancy, but if you are just looking for something simple then you can whip them up in an hour or less. The sewing process is definitely a lot quicker than if you were to crochet them because crocheted legwarmers can take up to a day or longer to make depending on the pattern and the length. Anyhow, below are my step-by-step instructions on how to sew leg warmers from fabric.
The great thing about homemade leg warmers is that they can be worn underneath your pants or pajamas. Therefore, they are great for using up those scrap pieces of fabric that you would otherwise have no use for.
All you really need is a couple of rectangular pieces of fabric. Each piece is sewn up into a tube and then the ends are hemmed with a simple hem. As for the top part, you can incorporate an elastic band into the hem in order to help keep them up.
If you are new to sewing, then you might want to check out the following articles before proceeding:
Fleece Leg Warmers
This tutorial shows how to make leg warmers for a custom fit.
1.) First, measure around the calf of one leg in order to determine how wide you need the legwarmers. Then measure the length of the leg in order to determine the length of the warmer.
2.) To those measurements add:
- 2″ to the length in order to have enough fabric for the top and bottom hems.
- 1″ to the width in order to have enough for 1/2″ seam allowance.
3.) Measure and cut two elastics to fit around top of the leg. Make sure to cut it long enough for a comfortable fit and to allow for an overlapping of about 1/2″.
4.) Measure and cut material according to measurements in step #2. You should end up with 2 rectangular fabric pieces.
5.) Fold fabric lengthwise with right sides facing. Use pins to hold the edges in place and sew 1/2″ from the edges removing the pins as you get to them.
6.) Press seam open. It is important that you set the seam before you do the hems because that will help to make them look more professionally made.
7.) With wrong side facing out, fold each end over 1″ for the top and bottom hems. If you are using fabric that frays easy you can finish the edges off with a serger before folding it over. If you don’t have a serger you can use the overlock stitch, or make another small fold in order to tuck the raw edges under. Just make sure to factor that extra fold in when taking measurements, or, simply make a narrower hem.
8.) Sew all around the bottom hem.
9.) Sew top hem leaving an opening of about 2″ in order to insert elastic into casing.
10.) Insert the elastic with a bodkin or another device such as a safety pin.
11.) Overlap the ends of the elastic by about 1/2″ and sew secure with a few zig-zag stitches.
12.) Finish sewing up the top hem in order to fully enclose the elastic making sure not to sew on top of elastic. The key is to push the elastic over to the top as far as it will go so you have lots of room for sewing the seam.
Give the legwarmers a final press before turning them right side out.
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