DIY Beach Coverup in less than an hour

This diy beach coverup post is a paid collaboration with JOANN. All opinions and dance moves are my own.

Several years ago, I saw an ad for the simplest beach coverup I had ever seen. I immediately thought, “I could make that in like 30 minutes.” It only took me a couple of years, but I finally decided to try it out, and it really is so easy!

Thanks to the no-fraying nature of knit fabrics, there is very minimal sewing in this project. It lends itself to being a very beginner-friendly make. So head over to your local JOANN, and pick up the following supplies.

DIY Beach Coverup Dress Materials

About 2 yards of knit fabric (I used this one)
One yard of foldover elastic in a matching color (or contrast if you want some extra flair)
Sewing machine (or hand sewing tools instead)
Matching thread

The first step for this diy beach coverup, is the cutting. You basically need to cut a large rectangle. I played around with the fabric–wrapping it around me in a similar style to the final result–to see how wide I wanted it to be. I ended up wanting it to be about 65 inches wide, so I folded my fabric in half, and cut it about 32.5 inches from the center fold. (The final measurement was 65 inches by 34 inches)

My fabric is a 2-way stretch knit. I cut the it so the stretch would be perpendicular to the ground. So instead of the stretch wrapping horizontally around my body ( like I have usually done with knits), I had it run lengthwise up and down my body. When I cut it, the selvage edge was the top edge of the coverup where the straps were added. Due to the draping of the coverup, I didn’t want the extra stretch to make it too loose.

I used a tank top that fits me, and followed the angle of it to cut the underarm curve. I ended up making it just a little bit shorter since the straps I added are different than the tank top I was using.

After the curve was cut, I continued to cut the width of 32.5 inches from the center fold all the way down.

*If you have a serger, this is the best time to serge the edges before moving on. It’s optional, but may be useful in helping the coverup to last.

I waited to cut the length of the coverup until after I added the straps. I wanted to try it on first, then decide how long I wanted it to be.

For the straps, I took the yard of foldover elastic and cut it in half. If you have awesome muscles or otherwise curvy arms, you are probably going to want to have more than a yard of foldover elastic so you can alter the length to be the most comfortable for you.

After stay-stitching the underarm curve, I took each piece of foldover elastic, and sewed the ends together by using a zigzag stitch with the right sides together.

I then sewed the foldover elastic onto the coverup by aligning the middle of the elastic with the raw edge of the underarm curve.

After one side was completely stitched, I folded the elastic over to enclose the raw edge of the fabric completely, then sewed on top of it again. This time, I continued sewing until the whole elastic had be sewn with the fold in place.

With the straps attached, I was ready to try on my beach coverup. I used a pin to mark where I wanted the length to sit, then I cut the excess fabric. It ended up being about 34 inches long.

At this point, you can be done! If you are a perfectionist, you may want to stay-stitch the edges of the coverup. I tested several different overcasting and zigzag stitches to finish the edges on my machine, and they just weren’t working. I finally opted to simply stay-stitch the edges to give them a little bit more reinforcement.

You may also choose to round the edges of your coverup. I did this by gently curving the outside corners using my rotary cutter.

And then, it was done, and I was happy!

The coverup can be a little confusing to put on if you haven’t seen how it’s done before, so I made you this special gif with the help of my 6 year old and a special photobomb by my one year old. You’re welcome ;)