Sewing a 1940s turban from a dress

Emily
Sep 22
2 min read

Black and white image of women wearing turbans — 1940s sewing pattern turning a dress into a turban

I love a vintage headscarf or turban, it adds instant glamour to an outfit and is great for a bad hair day.

Turbans were very popular in the 1940s as a practical necessity for women in the workforce, keeping their hair covered and protected from machinery, as well as a fashionable alternative to hats, which were hard to come by with rationing in place. Turbans could be dressed up by adding flower corsages and brooches to them, making them a versatile part of a woman's wardrobe.

I've had a copy of a 1940s sewing pattern for a turban for a while and finally had the chance to make one earlier this week.

Keeping in theme with the era's Make Do and Mend ethos, this turban can be made from remnants and old evening wear no longer in use.

I bought a dress from a charity shop that I really liked the colour of and the floral pattern, to use as the material for my turban.

Following the measurements on the pattern's diagram, I made a paper pattern.

It was 16 inches wide and 31 inches long. The pattern said to cut up the middle for 24 inches and then cut 4 inches either side of the centre (8 inches in total). This is the neck edge of the turban.

I used pinking shears to cut out the fabric to minimise any fraying.

Left hang image is a paper pattern with scissors on top. Right hand image is of a red piece of floral fabric cut out the same size and shape as the paper pattern

The 'tails' are then folded over right side to right side, and sewn up the sides and at the bottom end. These are then turned right way out and pressed.

The remaining sides are hemmed, before the top edge and smaller neck edge are gathered.

I did find the hemming quite fiddly was there was no seam allowance mentioned in the pattern.

left hand image of a partially made turban inside out. Right hand image of a partially made turban turned right sides out and hemmed

Even though I followed the instructions and diagram measurements to the letter, unfortunately the turban came out very small. It was more a child's size and the turban did actually fit my daughter's head better than mine.

Going back to the original instructions, the head length measurement was given as 10.5 inches, however on the diagram, it said to cut 24 inches out of 31 which left a head length measurement of 7 inches. So I made a new paper pattern measuring 34.5 inches and attempted a second turban using a cotton remnant I had in my stash.

The second turban turned out more successfully than the first and fitted my head this time!

To wear the turban you place it on your head with the tails at the back either side of your neck. You cross the tails over at the back, covering the gathered neck edge, and bring them up and round to the front. Cross or knot the tails as desired and tuck the ends in.