Rather than an inseam pocket, which uses the lines of a garment to hide a pocket within the seam, a welt pocket is cut into and topstitched onto a garment. Typically, welt pockets are flat and can even show off a bit of contrast fabric if you want to get fancy! There are a few different types of welt pockets, so let’s take a look at what they are and how to sew them!
Single Welt Pocket
1. Cut interfacing and attach it to the wrong side of your garment and press.
2. Fold welt in half, press, and mark your welt seam allowance.
3. Mark your placement line for the welt on the right side of the fabric. In this case, I made this welt 5’’ wide, but it’s up to you on how wide you want to make it.
*Tip for marking: you can use dry soap to make your mark. It’s an extremely easy, removable option.
4. Place the top welt over the line you marked and hand sew in place.
5. Fold up your seam allowance ¼’’ and pin. Baste pocket bag and hand sew as you did for the top welt. Now machine sew. *Make sure your lines are the exact same length.
6. Fold the welt and pocket bag away from each other. The space in between is ½’’, draw a line in the middle and mark your cutting line for the welt. The triangle corners should be at least ½’’ from the edge.
7. Flip pocket bag and welt to the inside of the garment and press.
8. Fold triangles back and stitch them down on the welt/pocket bag.
9. Fold pocket bag up and pin to the top of the welt. Pin the rest of the pocket bag and sew. I suggest you sew the top edge first then the rest of the pocket bag.
10. Finish the pocket bag to your liking: serge, zig-zag stitch, bias binding, and/or pinking.
Welt Pocket
Before jumping straight into the project, I would definitely do a test sample before sewing the final garment.
Note: Your pocket bag can be the same fabric as your garment or a lining fabric. It’s up to you!
1. Cut your pocket bag and interfacing
2. Interface back of garment (where you are going to place your welt) and pocket bag
3. Mark your lines on your pocket. They should be ¼” apart unless you want a bigger welt, then increase the size.
4. Now mark the triangle shape corner of your welt. Fold your fabric in half and cut your triangle corner.
5. Pull the pocket through the slit and press.
6. Flip the garment to the wrong side. Fold the top of the pocket welt into a pleat and press. The pleat will go halfway down. Now fold the bottom up, pleat and press.
7. There are multiple ways to secure the pocket. Depending on what type of look you want would depend on which option you do.
8. Fold up the pocket bag and pin on the sides
Note: in certain designs, the pocket bag is cut on the fold, then folded up. Another option is not cut on the fold. In the illustration below the pocket, the bag was cut on the fold.
9. Sew pocket bag, making sure you sew down your triangles.
10. Serge, zigzag, or bias bind the edge. Then you are finished with your pocket!
Zipper Welt Pocket
The size of your pocket is up to you.
1. Cut out pocket bag and interfacing piece.
2. Apply interfacing to the backside of your garment.
3. Flip the garment to the right side and mark where do you want your welt to be.
4. Place the pocket bag on top of that line and fully mark the welts. The whole rectangle should be ½’’ wide.
5. Pin in place your pocket bag and sew.
6. Flip the pocket bag to the inside and press.
7. Place zipper underneath. Pin and hand stitch zipper in.
8. Edge stitch around the zipper, then remove hand basting.
9. Fold up the pocket bag up, pin, and sew the sides.
10 Finish sides by serge, pinking, and/or a zig-zag stitch.
