Basic Leggings for Girls – Free Pattern and Tutorial!
Leggings are easy to sew! Make a cute basic pair of leggings for a girl size 2-12 using this easy pattern. The instructions are easy to follow and include many step by step images showing an easy method to add the elastic waistband.
Can you guess which of the leggings above were sewn with the serger and coverstitch and which ones I made entirely on my home sewing machine? Well, here’s the answer: the orange leggings on the left with blackberries are the ‘fancy’ ones that I sewed with my serger and new coverstitch machine. The aqua leggings look almost exactly the same and I used my sewing machine only. How did I do it? I’m going to show you!
After making hundreds of pairs of leggings (at least it seems like it), I have a method that’s quick, easy, and always turns out great.
UPDATE: This free leggings pattern has been converted to an optional PDF that’s optimized for printing. Find it here. The blog post and template below are totally free to read, print, and sew! Just hit CTRL +P on your computer to print. The 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.
These leggings are not super tight so feel free to go a size down if you want them to fit snugly. Knit interlock or cotton jersey are a great choice for these, especially fabric with a bit of Spandex or Lycra. The Spandex or Lycra provide a little flex to the leggins so the knees don’t sag. Review my tips for sewing with knit fabrics if you like.
Download the Basic Leggings for Girls – Pattern Template
You will need:
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1-1 1/4 yd of knit fabric
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less than a yard of 1/2” or 3/4” elastic
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a double needle for your sewing machine (if you aren’t using a coverstitch machine)
I drafted a pattern for you that comes in girl’s sizes 2-12. To determine the size you need, measure your child and consult a sizing chart. If you already have a legging pattern that you like or if you need a different size, you can probably follow my instructions with that pattern, too.
Prepare the Pattern Template
Print the pdf pattern and measure the 1” square to check to make sure that your printer did not enlarge or reduce it. Â To put the pattern piece together quickly, stack the pages and use your ruler and rotary cutter to cut the margins off the top and right side – all at once. The margins are just under 1/2”; cut where the lines end and you’ll be fine.
Then, use your sewing room glue stick to apply a strip of glue on the left and bottom edges where the pages connect.
This is what the pages will look like all connected. Notice how the leg lengths vary by size.
Trace or cut out the size that you need.
Lay the pattern on your fabric, secure with pins or pattern weights, and cut out. Make sure that you are cutting out 2 opposite pieces pieces of fabric. This is easy if your fabric is in a double layer with wrong sides together. If your material is directional, stripped or plaid, you should be careful to ensure the legs match.
Here’s where this tutorial becomes 2-in-1. I’m going to show you how to sew leggings with your regular sewing machine or with a serger and coverstitch, all at the same time.
Sew the Leg Pieces
If you do have a serger and coverstitch, go ahead and use the coverstitch to hem the bottom of the leggings now if you like. This especially helps with the small sizes that are hard to fit on the coverstitch machine’s awkward free arm. To double check the inseam allowance, you can measure the inseam of the child and compare it to the inseam of the pattern piece. Be sure to allow enough length to include the desired hem size.
Fold each leg piece in half, right sides together and sew the inseam with a 1/2” seam allowance. By using this method, the only leg seams are the inseams.
Above, the aqua leg was sewn on my regular sewing machine. I used a narrow zigzag that had a stitch length of 3 and a width of .5. If your machine includes a stretch stitch, use that since it is designed to allow for the give that stretch materials require. This will give the seam some stretch so the thread won’t pop when she runs around.
The orange/blackberry leg was sewn on my serger. I cut off 1/4” to make the 1/2” seam allowance.
Sew both leg pieces this way.
Turn one leg piece right side out and place it inside the other so they are right sides together.
Pin and stitch the crotch seam, matching up the leg inseams. Again, the aqua leggings were sewn with my sewing machine and the orange ones on the right were sewn with my serger.
My Shortcut Elastic Method
Turn the leggings right side out and cut a piece of elastic for the waistband that fits the child’s waist. If you don’t have the intended child close by, measure the top of the leggings and cut a piece that is 1-2” less.
Butt the ends of the elastic together and use your sewing machine’s widest zigzag stitch to sew them together.
Mark the elastic and the top of the leggings in quarters. Pin the elastic to the top inside edge of the leggings, matching the quarter marks.
Still using your widest zig zag stitch, sew the elastic to the top edge of the pants. (top left)
You can also use a serger to do this. Be careful not to cut the elastic. (top right)
Here’s how we look so far.
Since kids find it hard to tell the front from the back of handmade clothes, I usually make my own tag from a strip of soft fabric or ribbon. If tags bother your child, use a waterproof marker to draw on the material above the stitch line but within the width of the elastic. A large X is enough to indicate the back of the garment although you could print a word like BACK.
Turn the elastic over and pin from the right side. Pin your tag in place from the right side if you are inserting one.
Sew Around the Front of the Leggings
If you are using a regular sewing machine, install a double needle and thread it with two spools of thread the same color (use an extra bobbin for the extra spool if you need to like I did). The double needle will make parallel rows of stitches and is perfect for knit fabrics.
This step might look tricky but really it’s not. Use your thumb to feel where the lower edge of the elastic is.
Using the double needle on either your sewing machine or coverstitch machine, sew right over the bottom edge of the elastic from the right side. Stretch the fabric slightly to match the elastic.
If you haven’t hemmed the bottom of the legs yet, go ahead and do it now. It’s easy with a double needle.
Simply fold or press the bottom edge up 1/2” and sew it in place from the right side.
How to sew an easy hem with a double needle.
You just made some basic leggings for girls! Next time make them shorter in capri or biker short length.
Psst… you can also use this pattern for my Boy’s Swim Jammers tutorial.
Happy Sewing!
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. 🙂
Thanks for this! Do you have the size breakdown for the sizes? Thanks again.
Very well explained tutorial , Thank you…
Thank you! What kind of fabric need? Where did you buy it?
My machine won’t sew over the elastic. It gets all tangled in my machine. Has this ever happened to you?
That’s interesting. You could always fold the top edge of the pants to the inside and sew a casing instead of attaching the elastic the way that I demonstrated.
Thank you. I suppose i could just hand sew the elastic together after running it through the casing. Hopefully it holds up!
Your legging pattern looks great but you don’t give any measurements for the sizes. I have no idea what size to make for my granddaughter. She’s going to be six this month…..June 2016 but she is not average sized. I really need a breakdown of the sizes.
Thanks,
Tammy
If you wanted to make them bigger how would you do that? My daughter is bigger then a 12… 1/2" for every size up?
Thanks so much for the leggings pattern! I’ve made 3 pairs (so far) and they fit great! Thanks also for the tips for making an elastic wasteband that fits and looks professional. I appreciate you making this free pattern available.
This is so excellent Caroline! Thank you for sharing it with us!
Thank you so much my granddaughter will start school soon I wanted to help my daughter to get her ready and this is just what I needed thank you for sharing .
Thank you for the pattern, I’m planning to use it soon for my grand-daughters. I’d like to know, though , how you get the double needle to work? I’ve tried it, and the left hand stitches (on the right side) don’t catch each time, so I have long gaps in the left hand stitching. I’ve tried reversing the order of threading but it doesn’t seem ot make any difference. Any idea what I’m doing wrong?
I’m getting ready to make the leggings for my grand daughters. I do not see a sizing chart anywhere to know what size pattern to use. Is there one? Where can I find it?
Denise Taylor
ddt631@gmail.com
Thank you so much for taking the time to do this tutorial and provide the free pattern. My girls’ leggings that are store bought are always huge in the waist, baggy in the legs and too short! Now I can make their leggings to fit just right! I’ve already made 3 pairs.
Thanks for this pattern! Can you give measurements for the sizes? My daughter is a 4T, so want to know which size would be best to make?
Thanks!
The sizing is the same as most store bought leggings. So I would make a size 4. I’m sorry, I can’t provide a chart.
Great, thank you! Looking forward to making these.
Really very nice article .with Janome Marevlla sewing machine was able to sew the leggings easily. The notes and the diagrams were really useful.
Very easy to follow guide. I will give it a shot.
About the pattern weight never thought of making something for this. I normally just place some couple of cutting tools I use on the fabric.
I guess it looks more classy ot organize to use a pattern weight.
For the leggings, thanks for the free pattern.
You are awesome
Really well explained.Love the pictures and illustration given.I love sewing and legging are the most wanted in daily use.Liked the pattern and the cuts mentioned.will definitely go for it.
Thank you for the pattern and clear instructions! I made sizes 6 & 10 for the two granddaughters who usually wear store bought sizes 6 & 10, using 100% cotton knit. They fitted perfectly! I am looking forward to making more for them. Thanks again for your work and sharing your knowledge with us, really appreciate it!
Thank you for sharing your knowledge. What kind of fabric need?
Make sure you use stretchy knit fabric. 🙂
Many thanks for the free pattern.
I am making the size T2 for charity out of jersey. The crotch seam and width of the leggings are about the size of a purchased pair, but the inseam on your pattern is about 2 inches longer. Please explain why such a big difference before I do something I may regret like cutting off the 2 inches.
Hi Linda,
That could be because my inseam includes inches for the elastic casing. Or because the store bought pants are low-rise. These fit at the natural waist.
Good luck!
Hi Caroline! The seam allowance is included in your pattern? Thanks for sharing this, i’ve been doing leggings for my daughters but i’ve never sewed them like this! I will be making a pair soon!
The seam allowances are included.
Thanks for the pattern!!! It is a good fit!
Great pattern! Thanks! These fit very similar to Carters leggings. I love that these are really high waisted so it completely covers the diaper at the back.
Great Patterns! will try them soon
I noticed when I went to save the pattern to get it printed… when I enlarged it on computer to 100% that the 1" square still did not measure 1" on the computer screen. So however enlarged I need to make it, the square needs to turn out 1" when printed on paper, right?
Your screen resolution is probably not actual size, so don’t trust that. Always print my patterns at 100% – do not enlarge or reduce the size.
Thank you for this pattern and the easy to follow tutorial. I was able to use leftover stretch fabric from a dress to make a cropped pair
With your leggings pattern, does the cut out size include a seam allowance please? Thank you. Jane.
Yes it does!
Thank you very much for this sharing.
I am having trouble getting the free pattern for leggings. I went to purchase the PDF for the pattern for $2 and it took me to the subscription. Please help!
Hi Jean! No problem. First visit my Printable Posts page here: https://sewcanshe.com/shop3/
Then scroll about halfway down until you see a search bar. Type ‘leggings’ into the search bar and it will come up.
xoxo,
Caroline