Sewing a Short Tutu With a Wide Elastic Waistband
Any little girl can tell you that twirling around your room to your favorite music is far more entertaining when you have a big, fluffy, girlie tutu to do it in. Make a set of matching tutus for you and your daughter to wear while you play ballerina, princess or just dance around the house. You can also use the homemade tutus as part of a Halloween costume or even to add something a little funky to your wardrobe.
Things You'll Need
- Tape measure
- 2-inch wide elastic
- Ruler
- Scissors
- 3 yards of tulle for child's size, 6 yards for adult
- Sewing machine
- Straight pins
Instructions
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1
Measure around your waist with a tape measure. Measure from your waist down to mid-thigh, as well.
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2
Cut a two-inch wide piece of elastic the same length as your waist measurement. Bring the ends of the elastic together and sew with a half-inch seam allowance. Sew over the seam once more to make it extra durable since you'll be stretching the elastic to pull the tutu on and off, putting a lot of stress on the seam. Trim the seam allowance down to one-quarter inch. Flip the band right side out, putting the seam allowance on the inside.
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3
Multiply your waist measurement by three to determine the width of tulle needed. Cut three pieces of tulle to that width and the same length as your waist to knee measurement.
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4
Fold one of the pieces of tulle in half, left to right. Sew together the edges opposite the folded edge with a one-quarter inch seam allowance. Trim the seam allowance down to one-eighth inch. Repeat with the remaining two pieces of tulle.
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5
Tuck one of the tulle pieces inside a second piece, then tuck those two inside the third. Twist the pieces around so that the seams of all three pieces line up. Sew together the three pieces around one edge with a one-eighth inch seam allowance.
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Tuck the elastic waistband inside the end of the tulle that you sewed around. Line up the seam of the waistband with the side seam of the tulle and pin the two together at the seam with the edges of the two lined up. Pin the two together again directly across from the seam. The tulle is much larger around than the elastic, so it's important to pin in these two locations to help keep the two lined up.
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Sew the elastic and tulle together all the way around with a one-quarter inch seam allowance, stretching the elastic to fit the tulle as you do. When you release the elastic after sewing on the tulle, the tulle will bunch as the elastic retracts and give the tutu extra poof. Sew around the edge again with a zigzag stitch that falls just off the edge to encase the edges of the two, making the waist less scratchy.
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8
Flip the tulle over the waistband to turn the completed tutu right side out. Along the top of the tutu, 1 3/4 inches of the elastic waistband will be visible. Scrunch up the tulle all the way around the tutu with your hands to help fan out the layers of tulle and create a fuller look.
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Tips & Warnings
Add strips of ribbon or rickrack to your tutu. Cut them to the same length as your waist to mid-thigh measurement. Pin them to the top edge of the three pieces of tulle after you tuck them inside each other before you sew the tulle pieces together around that edge. When you sew the tulle together around the edge, catch the ends of the ribbon or rickrack in the seam.
Cut the three pieces of tulle from different colors to create a multicolored tutu.
Always remove any pins you have in a project before they go under your machine's needle. Letting a pin go under your machine's needle can result in a broken needle and a bent pin.
