Saturday 10 September 2016

My 1st DIY - How I made a no-sew Tutu Skirt




I have seen so many passionate mums wanting to make something personal for their little ones, from dresses to quits (made of their infant clothes) and even teddy bears (yes, teddy bears!). I wish I had that kind of talent, unfortunately, I don't - though I hope I will someday learn to make a quilt for her.

So, since she is turning 1 in slightly more than 1 month, and I am planning a DIY cake smash photography for her, I decided that I could dress her in a cute little tu-tu skirt, but when I googled for where to buy them, many many tutorials on how to MAKE them actually came out and it didn't seem that difficult, so, I decided I could make her her very first and very own tulle skirt. 


I followed the exact instructions from this blog Katie Crafts, where the author really did an excellent job in explaining each step, so you could probably pop-by if you want to learn to make your own tulle skirt.

There is some homework to be done before I got started. 

Needed materials:
Waist Band, Tulle Material, Sewing Kit and lots of patience!

1. 1 inch (1") = 2.54 cm


2. Where can I get tulle fabric that comes in a roll of 6" x 25 yard dimensions? 
- I found a seller on carousell but I couldn't be sure of the color, hence I preferred to look and feel at spotlight and indeed, I found what I wanted there paying a total of S$21.50 for the measurements I required.

- At spotlight however, they only sell it in large dimensions instead of 6" rolls, hence I was prepared to do the extra work of cutting them into 6" widths.


3.  Waist measurements? 
- Since new born measurements are 13" in waist (which meant 14" with 1" for overlap) therefore 6 - 12 month old will require about 16" in waist.

- Not sure what waist length? See here, (another blog featuring all the different dimensions you'll need).

- So this meant I needed 17" waist band in order to have 1 inch overlap for gluing together.

4. Length measurements?
- My estimated tutu length should be 7-8 inch long (after it is folded into half & knotted), it meant the cloth need to be 7" x 2 (for folding) + another 2" (for knot) = 16" which meant I needed to cut up the cloth into rectangular strips of 6" x 16" (15cm x 40cm)  
- Total number of such rectangular fabric needed = 36 pcs x 2 different colors for better layering effect.

So the DIY began!

She loves her tulle and even used it was a mosquito-net... 
in this Zika-threatening times.. what better way to be fully protected?

I gotta admit, the cutting of the fabric was very tedious - 
cutting up a big cloth of 1.8m x 1.5m  into rectangles of 40cm x 15cm. 

Confirming that I got the length right!


Finally, overlapping he 2 different colors and knotting them over the waist band.


I was really excited with this project and tried it on her the very next morning!

TADA!! Pretty?


All in in, I spent only 1 evening getting this done. Most of the time was spent on cutting the fabric. When it comes down to tying them all up, it actually took about 2 hours?

Overall, I am really pleased with my first DIY!

I hope you mummies reading this will be inspired to do your own DIY! 
It will create a special memory for you and your girl!