No Sew Tutus

There are a million tutorials out there on how to do this.  If you've been following over the past month, you have already seen this video with the Kid dancing with tulle-inspired glee. Or maybe you saw this teaser.

I will give you basic instructions on how to make a tulle skirt with a minimum of fuss. This is a skill that comes in handy for future ballerina and Tinkerbell costumes, petticoats for school musicals - yes, I danced a mean "Shipoopi" in The Music Man - and possible goth/rave outfits if done in the appropriate shade of black.

Materials List:

• 1" Elastic cord, cut 1 inch shorter than the wearer's waist
• 4 inch strips of tulle (length varies on the height of the wearer - for a 3 year old, I went with 5 yards of tulle)
• Scissors

*Note that you can either buy the tulle in 3 or 4 inch widths on a spool or cut a large bolt of fabric using a cutting mat and rotary cutter (my method)*

Directions:

1. Tie the elastic into a knot as small as possible, leaving as little free ends as possible. Optionally you can sew the ends of the elastic together for a slightly more finished look, but that sort of negates the whole "no sew tutu" thing.
2. Stretch your elastic around something sturdy - the back of a chair, your legs, etc.
3. Take the tulle strips and make slipknots all the way around the length of elastic.
4. Twenty minutes of Project Runway later, finish the skirt.
5. Convince your toddler not to take every finished tutu and try it on and dance like a club kid at a rave.

More tutorials (with actual pictures) at the following blogs...

Mommy Blessings...
Plum Tickled
Tutu Cute Boutique