I love wearing tank tops in the summer. Even though they’re fashionable, I’ve found my straps will begin to stretch after I have worn one a few times. In the past when this has happened, I’ve retired the tank top. But now I’ll just add adjustable straps! Now all I need to do is adjust the straps when they begin to stretch.

Adjustable straps make great additions to tops, dresses, lingerie, and swimwear. When adding straps to your garment, you can use strap elastic, non-stretch strapping or hem tape.

What do I use for the majority of my adjustable strap sewing projects? Homemade hem tape! For this tutorial, I use hem tape, but you can easily substitute elastic or non-stretch strapping.

What You’ll Need

• Homemade or store bought, double fold bias tape
• Matching Tread
• Rings and Sliders

Making Adjustable Straps with Bias Tape

You can use or make traditional bias tape for this project, but I recommend making non-stretch bias tape. Over time, this will reduce the amount of stretch in your straps. To make non-stretch bias tape, you will not need to cut your material on the bias as I show you in this tutorial. You can simple cut strips on the salvaged edge.

To determine the length you need for your straps, measure the adjustable straps on your favorite tank top.

How to Make and Assemble Your Adjustable Straps

Start out by cutting the length you need for your straps. For this project, I used my 18 mm) bias tape maker to create my straps. Once your bias tape is cut out, sew along the edges to join the material together.

Your first step is to attach the loop to the back of your top. Start by cutting two, one-inch sections of your bias tape. Next, loop the material through the ring and pin or hand stitch the fabric to keep it in place. Pin your bias tape and ring to your fabric, with the right sides facing together and sew in place.

Next, loop the long piece of your bias tape through your slider.

With the stitch side up, feed the loose end of the bias tape through the ring.

Next, take the loose ends and thread it through the slider to create the adjustable strap.

Fold down the end of the bias material and sew a tight zigzag stitch in place to secure the tape to the slider.

Untwist the strap and lay flat before you pin and sew to the front of your garment.

Making adjustable straps has become a fun project for me! I find myself looking for new projects to create so I can use them. Recently, I have added adjustable straps to a swimsuit and a few dresses. (Blog post tutorials coming soon for both!)

Do you plan to use adjustable straps for an upcoming project? Let me know in the comment below!