By Valerie Longhurst
If you are looking for a quick and easy gift for a young girl's birthday or you have a little dancer at home, you can benefit from learning how to make a tutu skirt. There is actually a simple method that requires no sewing and takes about a half hour. Then she can play dress up and dance for hours looking pretty.
How to Make a Tutu Skirt
Once you have your tutu completed, your daughter, or your child's friend, can enjoy it as a costume for Halloween, wear it to ballet class, practice dancing, or use it to play dress up. Thankfully, it is not complicated at all and there is absolutely no sewing required. You can certainly make more than one in an hour or two.
You will need a durable material for the waist, such as an elastic band or a thick, strong ribbon. Make sure it is wide and strong enough to hold on your little one's waist when she is moving around.
The major material for the tutu will be tulle. Cut the pieces into the size that you need to fit your girl. To make a nice full tutu, use twice as much tulle and fold it in half. You will leave the folded end at the bottom and make a knot at the open ends to your support band or ribbon. Make sure that you don't crimp the band and keep the knots even and very close together. For a professional and boutique quality look, you don't want to leave any space in between the knots. If you do choose to leave some space in between, make sure that it is a very small gap and that it is even all the way around.
You can secure the ribbon with glue and a knotted bow. You can also use a nice strong glue to secure the end of the elastic. Once everything is secure and in place, you can add decorations.
You can buy various embellishments for your tutu that will make it unique. You can really get creative with the colors of tulle, bows, ribbons, lace, chiffon, beads, glitter, and a host of other deigns. One other option is to buy two different colors of tulle and alternate them around the band. The possibilities are virtually endless.
Now that you know how to make a tutu skirt you can easily make many more your special little ballerina. Be creative and have fun!
Valerie Longhurst, a tutu enthusiast and instructor, teaches all the secrets, tips and techniques for how to make beautiful boutique quality tutus with her comprehensive step-by-step instructional course. Visit her website for more information: http://www.howtomaketutus.com
