Making a Dancesport Gown: Sequined Fabrics

I ordered 2 different sequined fabrics from Spandex House in NYC, and loved both of them! One of them turned out to be a disaster however.

This picture is similar to the purple sequined fabric that I used. This one worked great, because the small sequins lay very flat against the mesh that they are sewn to:

This picture is similar to the peach sequined fabric that I used on the dress with the peacock feathers:

It was a disaster from the get-go, and yet I forged ahead. Because of the larger, looser stitched sequins, every time the fabric got folded  right-sides together, the threads from one side got tangled up in the sequins on the other side. Then it grabbed the chiffon of the skirt and floats and left huge snag marks.  Thank goodness I decided to try out dancing in it before using it for a competition! I got onto the floor and 1) one arm got stuck by my side, and 2) I got stuck to my partner!

So my advise is, if you are using sequined fabrics, be sure to play with the fabric samples when you get them.

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Purple Dancesport Gown: Stoning

I’ve got quite a bit of shopping around for dress crystals (flat backs), and have found that Dreamtime Creations seems to have the best prices, even after a fairly large price hike (which they gave more than fair warning about) in the spring of 2011. Most of what I learned about stoning I found in the Ballroom section of Dance Forums, which is a great resource for all things ballroom.

The first question was Swarovski or Preciosa? Preciosa is less expensive, but most people agree that they don’t sparkle as much as Swarovski. Some claim that one is sparklier up close, and the other is sparklier from a distance. Well, as the blog title implies, I went the cheaper route with Preciosa.

You will also want regular flatbacks that you attach with glue, and not the hotfix ones. As for glue, you have several options. The two main ones are E-6000 and Gem-Tac. The E-6000 was recommended to me by a professional dancer, & sure enough it has amazing holding power. The only problem is that I found it hard to work with. It makes long threads of glue when you pull away the toothpick you are applying it with, and there really isn’t any way to undo mistakes. I’ve had better luck with Gem-Tac, which is basically a white craft glue. The problem with Gem-Tack is that it dries quickly, so you have do the stoning fairly quickly as well.

To get prepared, you will need:

– the flatback stones (size 20ss and/or 16ss seem to be the most popular for stoning dresses according to people on Dance Forums)

– Gem-Tac

– a chopstick (although I suppose a pencil would do)

– a paper plate or index card as a “glue palette”

– a couple of toothpicks

– poster adhesive.

Poster adhesive?! Yes – I use Duck Brand Poster Putty shown here, but you can also use Blu-Tack or any other similar product.

If you put a small blob of the putty on the end of a chopstick, it is exactly tacky enough to pick up a small rhinestone and place it where you want it, but not so tacky that you can’t get the stone off. You may need to use a clean toothpick to push it off once you go to place the stone however.

1) Put a small blob of glue onto your paper palette. Don’t squeeze out too much until you know how quickly you’ll be working, because Gem-Tac dries quickly

2) Use a toothpick to put several dots of glue where you plan to put the stones. Again, do fewer dots until you have an idea of how quickly you can work since the glue dries quickly.

3) Use the chopstick with the putty to pick up the stones, and place them on each glue dot, gently pushing off with a clean toothpick if necessary. Keep some additional clean toothpicks around in case your glue dot was too big and you need to clean up the glue that oozes out from behind the stone. This whole process seems to be a balancing act of having enough glue to hold the stone tight without having too much and making a mess

4) After the glue has set a little, 3-5 minutes. gently pat the stones down (without moving them!) to ensure good adhesion.

A couple of things I discovered through trial and error:

– Always keep some stones in reserve for repairs – no matter how well you glue the stones on, a bunch are bound to fall off anyway

– A gross (144) of stones is a remarkably small amount – even though it sounds like a lot,  it’s maybe a scant teaspoon

– It’s better to have the stones clustered together than sprinkled far and wide across the dress – they’ll show up more

– I am completely incapable of getting the darned things on completely evenly, so I keep reciting my  mother’s favorite phrase, which was “It will never show on a galloping horse”.

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Purple Dancesport Gown: Putting in the Sleeves

When making street wear you set in the sleeves almost parallel to the body because it is designed to be worn with your arms at you side. Dance sport gowns on the other hand, are designed to be worn with your arms up, so the sleeves are set in almost perpendicular to the body.

1) Put on the dress and place a pin on each shoulder where you want the sleeves to meet the dress, and a pin on each underarm. Remove the dress and adjust the pins so that they are even on both side

2) Baste the over dress to the bodysuit at the armholes in a gentle curve between the pins. Try the dress on again to make sure that the baste lines look like they are placed correctly. Trim just outside the baste lines.

3) Lay out your sleeve fabric, and check the direction of the stretch. For 2-way stretch fabric you want the stretch to go around your arm, *not* lengthwise. Fold the fabric to roughly form the sleeve with the right-sides together.

4) Lay the dress down over the folded fabric, with the fold at the shoulder and the edge that will have the seam at the arm pit.

5) Adjust the fold until the sleeve is the correct width.

6) Cut the length of the sleeve and cut a curve to fit the arm hole. Use this sleeve as a pattern to cut a second sleeve.

7) Baste the length of the sleeves on the raw edge.

8) Slip a sleeve over your arm and pin to get the correct fit. Baste along the pin line, and repeat the process until the sleeve looks like it will fit correctly. Once it fits, duplicate the baste line on the other sleeve. This photo shows the multiple baste lines on one of the sleeves.

9) Machine a straight seam along the baste line, using very long stitches. Trim away the excess fabric and zig-zag stitch the raw seam to bind it.

10) Pin the sleeve to the inside of the arm hole, matching the sleeve seam to the body seam. Work your way around the sleeve so that it is eased in evenly

11) Baste the sleeve in, then straight stitch with long stitches. Finish off by binding the seam with a zig-zag stitch.

12) To cut the pointed cuff, try on the dress and mark the sleeves with a pin on the top of your hand near the base of your fingers, and a pin on the underside of the wrist. Leave enough room for a narrow seam allowance.

13) Remove the dress and lay it out. Adjust the pin marks so that they are the same on both sleeves. Cut between the pins as shown in the picture

14) Make a narrow hem encasing a narrow round elastic. I start the elastic up under my wrist to make it easier to add the elastic loop on top that will go around your finger.  Leave the ends long so that you do not risk losing the elastic inside the casing. Baste, then zig-zag on the machine with clear nylon thread.

15) Tie the elastic ends into a knot, dag with Gem-Tac, and then cut off the excess when the glue dries.

16) Hand stitch in a loop of elastic at the top point of the cuff. I use white elastic that I have colored brown with a fabric pen. I rinse the elastic slightly leaving a nice tan color that won’t show too badly. Try it on and adjust the length of the loop as needed. Tie a knot in the elastic, dab the knot with Gem-Tac, and then cut off the excess elastic when the glue dries.

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Purple Dancesport Gown: Attaching the Bodysuit

1) Put the bodysuit on the dress form, and then put the dress over it (right-side to)

2) Check that the shoulder seams and the side seams line up.

3) Use masking tape to mark where you want the neckline to be. Make sure that it is at least as large as the opening that you already cut on the bodysuit. also make it a little smaller than you think you’ll need, you can always go back and make it larger, but you’ll never be able to make it smaller.

4) Baste the dress to the bodysuit inside the tape line. Make sure that the basting is very loose because the neck hole needs to be able to stretch.

5) Trim the fabric inside the tape line (this photo just shows the initial cut)

6) Try to step into the gown & see if your hips and shoulders will fit through. Mine didn’t the first time. Repeat the taping/basting/trimming process until it fits.

7) Because of the sequins coming off of the raw edge, machine zig-zag the raw edge with clear nylon thread.

8) Fold the edge to the inside to encase narrow round elastic, and leave the end of the elastic long at the ends. You don’t want to risk having it get pulled inside the casing before you have a chance to tie it off.

9) Machine zig-zag the neckline with clear nylon thread.

10) Tie a knot in the elastic on the inside, and put a dab of  Gem-Tac on the knot. Once the glue dries trim away the excess elastic.

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Purple Dancesport Gown: Making the Overdress Bodice

Because I am using a sequined fabric for the overdress, these directions include some steps, like binding seams, that may not be necessary when using a plain spandex fabric

1) Before beginning, be sure to check which way your fabric stretches. If it is a 2-way stretch like this sequined fabric is, then you need to be sure that the stretch will go side-to-side around the body instead of up-and-down, or you will really run into trouble!

2) Cut 2 rectangles of fabric that is a few inches wider than the widest part of your body, and about as long as from your shoulder to mid-thigh

3) With the right sides of the fabric together, baste the long sides straight up the edges, leaving enough room for arm holes at the top, and baste the shoulders leaving enough room to fit your head through in the center. Don’t forget to slope the shoulders down slightly to follow your natural line.

4) [NOTE: Because my dress form isn’t the right size for me (too small!), I do all of the following by trying on the garment, pinning, basting, and repeating.]  Try on the garment with it still inside-out, and pin the sides to get the correct fit.

5) Remove the dress, and lay it out flat. Use a ruler to adjust the pins so that they are positioned evenly on both sides, then baste along the pin line.

6) Try the dress on again, and repeat the pinning-basting process until you have the fit that you want.

7) If you think that you may get confused as to which baste line to follow when machine stitching, remove the outer baste lines. Stitch along the inner baste line with a very long straight machine stitch, pulling the fabric slightly as you go along

8) Trim the fabric about 1/4″ from the stitch line.

9) Carefully pick out the basting. Use a zig-zag stitch to bind the seam edge

10) This dress will have a pointed hem where it meets the skirt. I have found that this works best if the tops of the points are slightly (an inch or so) above the crotch line to allow for ease of movement. Try on the dress (still inside-out) and put in several pins where you think the tops and bottoms of the points should be.

11) Remove the garment and lay it out flat. Place a piece of masking tape across the average top line and average bottom line. By average I mean that since you used several pins on each line, they may not all line up exactly

12) Measure the top tape. Mine was 18″. Multiple by 2 to get the circumference of the dress at that point. 18 * 2 = 36. Since we want 6 points, divide this value by 6 to get the width of each point. 36/6 = 6. This means that each point will be 6″ wide

13) Mark the center point on the upper tape (since mine is 18″, the center will be at 9″).  Then mark point-width inches on either side of the center mark (for me that is 6″ on either side)

14) The bottom tape on mine is a little wider than the top, so I need to fudge the numbers a bit. Mark the center of the lower tape (since mine is 19″, the center is at 9.5″). Mark the tape at 1/2 a point-width (3″ for me) on either side of this center mark.

15) Use masking tape to connect the marks as shown in this picture. I also put arrows on my tape so I would remember which side of the tape I want to cut on.

16) Cut along the tape lines as shown above. Remove the excess tape, and because raw edges of sequined fabric look bad and fall apart, baste a very narrow hem along the edge of each point.

OK, now on to making the skirt!

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Purple Dancesport Gown: Making the Bodysuit

Just started my new gown. This project began when I found some uber cheap pink sparkly chiffon at Joann Fabric,, & ended up with a trip to Spandex House in New York City where I bought some purple sequined fabric. I only have about 2 weeks to make this dress before my next competition, so wish me luck!

Just as an aside, my serger croaked, so these directions all show sewing seams, then trimming them before binding the seam with a zig-zag stitch. If you own a serger then you can do it all in one step.

1) Cut 2 pieces of fabric that are about shoulder width and a little longer than the distance from your shoulder to crotch. Mine is around 30 inches long. IMPORTANT If you have 2-way stretch fabric, make sure that they stretch will go around the body. Even if it is 4-way stretch, sometimes it stretches in one direction more than the other, so make sure the stretchier part is going around the body

2) With the “right sides” of the fabric together (even spandex has a right side, or just one you prefer) pin the shoulders, leaving just enough room at the center for your head to fit through. Don’t forget to make the shoulders slope slightly along the natural body line.

3) Pin the sides leaving enough for your arms to fit through.

4) Baste the seams where you have pinned.

5) Now comes the fun part – leaving the garment inside-out, try it on and start pinning. Pin where it needs to be narrow at the waist and where it needs to be at the underarm. Keep pinning (be careful not to stick yourself) until you seem to have a good fit.

6) Remove the garment and use a ruler to adjust the pins so that they are placed evenly. Baste.

7) Repeat steps #5 and #6 until you have a good fit.

8) Because the bodysuit will be attached it to the dress and you will be stepping into in through the neck (unless you want to try making a snap crotch), we now need to widen the neck hole and make sure that your hips will fit through the waist. And better to do it at the basting stage! Put some thought into how the final neckline will be cut, because the dress and bodysuit need to be cut exactly the same. Mine is going to be a shallow V in the front and a deep V in the back, but I am only going to cut the minimum amount to be able to get my bum through. So carefully cur the neck hole a little larger, & keep testing it until it’s just large enough. Adjust the waist if you can fit through.

9) Stitch the seams (using a stretch-type needle) with a very long stitch and stretch the fabric a little as you go. If the seams are too tight the threads are likely to break if they get stretched. Be sure to sew the shoulder seams from the neck outward, and the side seams from the top down.

10) Trim the seam allowance to about 1/4 inch, then bind the seam with a zig-zag stitch.

11) Now it’s time to put in the bra. I tried using the sew-in cups for making bathing suits, and I just couldn’t get the right fit. So I started buying inexpensive strapless bras from Walmart and removing the boning from the sides. They have nice structured cups (you don’t want a soft cup), and have the added bonus of a rubberized band that sort of sticks to you and doesn’t have any straps to cut off. For some dumb reason this time I bought a regular bra because I wanted pink. In retrospect since it won’;t show through and I;’m the only one who will ever see the inside, who cares? Not only doesn’t it have the rubberized bad (so I can feel it shifting), but the entire thing is constructed from some sort of foam material that was a nightmare to sew through.

Anyway, wear the bra as you normally would, and put on the bodysuit right-side-to. Without stabbing yourself (not easy!) pin the bra to the bodysuit. On the sides be sure that the pins are to the front of the seam & not the back (because later we will stitch the bra band into the bodysuit seam).

12) Unhook the bra & remove the bodysuit. Baste the bra in. If there are straps, now is the time to cut those off, then use a zig-zag stitch to attach it to the bodysuit. Depending on the fabric the bra is made of, the stretch-type needle may or may not work. If the thread starts to break or the bobbin thread bunches up, try using a sharp-type needle.

13) Trim off band on either side so that it comes to the edge of the seam allowance.

14) Stitch over the band on either side along the existing seam (return to a stretch-type needle)

15) Try it back on to see if it’s snug enough so the girls won’t slide out the bottom. If necessary, baste it a little tighter and restitch.

16) Bind the seam with a zig-zag stitch.

17) Cut a piece of fabric for the crotch. You can use a pair of panties as a template.

18) Put on the bodysuit right-side-to, pull down the back so it just cups under your butt, and place a pin there to mark the spot

19) Remove the bodysuit and use a ruler to get the pin centered on the back

20) Mark the center of the crotch

21) Place the crotch onto the back, right sides together, just over the pin and baste.

22) Stitch a straight seam over the baste line

23) Cut a notch out at the seam line for your seam allowance (we’ll trim the legs later) and bind the seam with a zigzag stitch

24) Put the bodysuit back on, pull the crotch forward between your legs, and put a pin to mark where it needs to be stitched

25) Remove the bodysuit, turn it inside-out, and center, pin and baste the crotch front to the bodysuit front. Try it on again to make sure it’s in the right place.

26) Repeat steps #22 and #23 for the crotch front.

27) Try on the bodysuit and mark with pins where to trim the leg holes. Remove and trim both legs

28) Put a piece of 1/4″ elastic around your upper thigh. Adjust until snug, and pin. Do the same for the other thigh. In case your 2 thighs are different sizes, mark them so you can tell the right from the left.

29) Zig-zag the elastic loops closed. You may need to use a needle other than the stretch-type needle.

30) Pin one elastic into the inside of one leg hole.

31) To make the pinning easier, imaging a clock face on the leg hole and on the elastic band. Pin 12 o’clock to 12 o’clock, then 6 o’clock to 6’oclock. Then continue alternating opposite sides to keep it even.

32) Baste the elastic to the leg. To make this easier, I actually put my leg through the elastic so that I can pull it up and get enough tension on it that the fabric lays smoothly on the elastic between the pins.

33) Turn the elastic under once, and pin again using the same pinning method. Zig-zag stitch the leg. Only pull the elastic tight enough to smooth the fabric over it. If you pull it too tight you can stitch the elasticity out of it. Repeat with the other leg.

34) OK, we’re as far as we can get with the bodysuit. Time to start the dress.

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Old Projects: Making Dancesport Gowns

I started ballroom dancing about 3 years ago, & finally decided it was time to compete. Not one to spend $5000 on a dress, I decided to make one.

The first gown was supposed to be a copy of one I saw online. Who knew that:

1) regular chiffon wouldn’t drape across the bodice since it doesn’t stretch

2) when the chiffon doesn’t work you should call it a day because the end result is looking naked on the dance floor

3) everyone was right when they said not to use a zipper because it puckers and you look like you have a spinal deformity

4) when they say to make the sleeves tight, it doesn’t mean that it should double as sausage casing

5) it turns out that while a gross (144) Swarovski crystals sounds like a lot, it’s only like a 1/4 teaspoon of stones

For the 2nd dress I decided that I needed a pattern, so I cut one from muslin. This time I learned:

1) a size 4 dress form is a bad idea if you’re a size 12

2) *always* check to see if you have 4-way or 2-way stretch fabric, and if it’s 2-way then it had better stretch side-to-side and not up-and-down or the dress gets longer & longer

3) don’t make a dancesport gown in black (even if the fabric is super cheap) or your dance coach will call you an idiot because you just look like the leader’s shadow on the dance floor

The next one turned out a little better, and I haven’t worn it yet, but…

1) the sequin fabric has torn the heck out of the chiffon each time it has gotten near it

2) the sequin fabric sticks to itself & rips itself apart

3) I probably should try it on because the sleeves may be too long

4) the feathers are placed too high because I suspect that the skirt is going to stretch in length like crazy & I’m going to have to re-hem it

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