How to Make Kids' Pageant Dresses

Kids' pageants are a competitive environment and to have a chance of winning, you need to design a dress that complements your child's winning personality. The appropriate dress can't always be found. Store-bought dresses are either too glitzy or just don't have that special something. Often that special something can only be created by you and your child. Designing and decorating your kid's pageant dress will give it the personal touch that has been known to wow the judges.

Things You'll Need

• Child's dress
• Fabric glue
• Rhinestones
• Ribbons
• Sequins
• Tulle
• Needle
• Thread

Instructions

1. Find or buy a plain dress that you and your child are comfortable with her wearing to a pageant.

2. Draw a design for the dress for the child. You may need go through a couple of designs before you get it right. Think about what color sequins, rhinestones or ribbons you want to use, where you want to place them and the kind of style you want to create. For inspiration, look at pictures of dresses in magazines or online.

3. Glue your decorations to the dress following your final design.

4. Turn your dress inside out and with your needle and thread sew in your tulle. This fine netting will add volume to the dress.

Tips & Warnings

• You may want to sew your decorations onto the dress rather than glue them. Decorations attached by fabric glue have been known to fall off.

• Remember that most pageants have a rule that children under 10 can't wear strapless dresses.