Pretty DIY Lanyard Tutorial – How to Sew a Lanyard!
Learn how to sew a DIY lanyard! The lanyard in this free sewing tutorial is double sided so you can use two coordinating fabrics to make it twice as nice.
My free Wrist Strap Keychain Tutorial has been so popular, that I thought I’d try something different but matching… a Lanyard! Of course a pretty one because the ones they try to sell you in the stores are usually just pretty sad.
This blog post has been converted to an optional PDF that’s optimized for printing. Find it here. The free DIY Lanyard Sewing Tutorial is all included in the blog post below and is totally free to read, print, and sew! Just hit CTRL +P on your computer to print. The Optimized for Printing PDF download for $2 is totally optional. Did you know you can get ALL the Optimized for Printing PDF files organized in a library for you to access anytime you want? Check it out.
To make one lanyard you’ll need:
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two 2 1/8″ x 40″ strips of fabric (one of each print)
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one 3.75″ x 2″ strip (there’s two in the picture but you only need one)
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one .75″ x 40″ strip of felt, thin cotton quilt batting, or fusible fleece
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one 1″ swivel snap clip
DIY Lanyard Sewing Instructions
1. Get started by pinning your two long strips right sides together along one long edge.
2. Sew the strips together using a 1/4″ seam allowance.
3. Press the seam allowance open, and then fold the top and bottom edges to the center so they just touch the seam allowance edges. Press.
4. Insert the strip of felt (or other stabilizer) inside one of the folded sides. It doesn’t matter which side… it should fit perfectly. Refold the strip and pin about every 6″.
5. Increase your stitch length to about a 3 and topstitch along both sides 1/8″ from the edge. If the top layer of your fabric wants to pull away while you are doing this part, try holding the strap firmly about 6″ in front of the presser foot as well as holding on to the strip from the back. Let your sewing machine feed the strip through evenly, but if you are holding firmly from both sides, the top layer won’t pull so much.
A walking foot also works great on straps like this.
6. Trim the ends of the strap to make them clean and even. Then slip the swivel hook on.
7. Set your stitch to the widest zig-zag you have. Form a circle with your strap by butting the ends right up against each other. Sew a zig-zag stitch down the center. Backstitch to hold it together during the next few steps.
Now take your 3.75″ x 2″ strip of coordinating fabric and fold the longer edges to the center. Press.
8. Arrange the lanyard with the swivel clip at one end near the zig-zag seam. Wrap the small strip around the seam, tucking the ends inside the lanyard.
9. Topstitch a square over your little piece. I like to use the topstitching lines on the strap as guides for the sides of my square. Be sure to neatly backstitch so this part holds.
10. And you’re done! Be sure to post pictures of your lanyards on Instagram and tag me @sewcanshe so I can see them!
Happy Sewing!
xoxo,
Disclosure: some of my posts contain affiliate links. If you purchase something through one of those links I may receive a small commission, so thank you for supporting SewCanShe when you shop! All of the opinions are my own and I only suggest products that I actually use. 🙂
Very pretty. But really, I also just read your post about your iron. I loved your review. I do like to read reviews on products. I have tried to get some feedback on my blog from followers about ironing boards, as I am in need of a new one. I have little traffic, so not much in the way of feedback. Would you be willing to do a review of ironing boards to get more feedback? I think it could help out a lot of people. Thanks for considering it.
Thank you Charlotte… I’m not sure I know enough to do a review of ironing boards. I’ve only owned two. The older one (which was big and heavy – probably expensive at one time) turned out to be about the same quality as my new expensive one from Target, but without the extra features like a metal iron holder that I never use. Both ironing boards were really wobbily until we removed our carpet and put in tile. I would say to either look for a heavy older one (that still works, of course) and re-cover it, or to buy as nice a board as you can afford. Either way, they are more sturdy on a solid floor! And having a nice iron helps too. 🙂 Good luck, Caroline
I just used this tutorial to make one for a Teacher Gift. Thanks for sharing!! I pinned it too. 🙂
Thank you! So happy you found the tutorial useful. 🙂
Hello and thank you for all your awesome tutorials. I’m currently making my first Sewcanshe project and I’m having problems with my lanyard. I ordered the kit and the fabrics are the correct measurement and my seam allowance is 1/4". But I still find that my felt is not wide enough. The felt piece is cut to the correct measurement. Am I doing something wrong or is everyone having to make adjustments to make sure their lanyard doesn’t have any flat/hallow edges?
Hi Christine,
Thanks for asking! Are you folding the raw edges toward the center seam until they meet the 1/4” seam allowance? This should make the lanyard 1" wide when folded. Your felt strip should be 3/4” wide so it will fit nicely inside one of the folds. If your felt strip is the wrong size or you have any other questions, please email me at caroline@sewcanshe.com so I can fix it. Happy sewing!
Just one more note… I tested out different widths of felt when I was making this tutorial, and I liked the 3/4” width the best because when you topstitch the lanyard, the felt scoots in between the topstitching and makes a nice finished looking edge. You don’t have to do anything special for this to happen. When I tried wider pieces of felt, actually topstitching on them, I had trouble with the long strip rippling and inconsistent results. Hope this helps!
So easy, so fun, so useful! Thanks!
So easy, so fun, so useful! Thanks!
I have several upcoming conferences — this is perfect for my badges!
These would make great items for the school craft stall at the fete. Thank you for sharing!
Thank you for sharing! Instructions were super easy to follow, and I love how it turned out!