Can someone help me with a homemade tutu.
I'm not sure how much tulle I would need for this empire waist dress
This is a dress for my DD's 2nd birthday. She wears size 3T right now. I was looking at a tutorial for the empire waist dress and the maker suggested 150yards of tulle which i thought was WAYYY too much.
honeydew / 7622 posts
I'd start with 10ish yards. I made a skirt once for a photo shoot (for an adult) and used 15 if I remember correctly.
pineapple / 12526 posts
That dress was made with rolls of 6" tulle. Each roll is 25 yards, so that would give you 6 rolls... That seems probably pretty close, to be honest.
honeydew / 7091 posts
I make L skirt-length tutus, and get 2 yards (from a bolt) of 2 colors (4 yards total). They are SUPER poofy and I end up with plenty leftover (I could probably get away with 1.5 yards of each color).
SO, for a dress length, I can't imagine needing 150 yards (?!) but like @Amurray: said, start with 10 maybe?
ETA: Pic of 3 yards of tulle (1 yard of 3 colors)
grapefruit / 4442 posts
@loveisstrange: 150 yards sounds like a lot of tulle. I guess i'm fabric challenged since I never made a dress in my life. do you happen to know what 150 yards might equate to if I went with to a fabric shop and they sell them in bolts of fabric? Sorry if its a stupid question
@Amurray: do you have a picture of your finished product?
honeydew / 7091 posts
@bunnylove08: If I kept it 'brushed' it was about knee-length on her (and only started at her waist, not at her chest). She was only 10 months there, so not very tall obviously. All the crawling and rolling around she did made the tulle get pretty messy and kind of curl up, making it a lot shorter - a 2 year old would keep it in better shape!
honeydew / 7091 posts
@bunnylove08: Also, I wanted it really poofy, so after I had all my strips cut out I put 2 together before looping them around the elastic, which doubled the fluff. That also accounts into the amount of tulle I used. I imagine you wouldn't double up on tulle for that dress
grapefruit / 4442 posts
@swurlygurl: The dress looks extra poofy, so i might need to double up, unless I put the tulle very close together. Now I'm wondering if I should just get a black cami and sew to the tutu.
honeydew / 7091 posts
@bunnylove08: Here's a mom that DIY'd that dress, and it ends up looking kind of... messy?
http://diymomdiaries.blogspot.com/2012/07/diy-tutu-dress.html
I think maybe your idea of a black cami with a skirt would look better
pear / 1599 posts
I have made several and I think 150 yard for a dress sounds about right. I made a "dress" scarecrow outfit and I want to say I used 75 to 100 yards and that was when DD was 10 months. And then I made 2 skirts and each was at least 50 yards. I prefer a very full skirt, very poofy.
grapefruit / 4442 posts
@pinkb: Did you use the 6" spool of tulle?
The dresses came out great!
pear / 1599 posts
@bunnylove08: @swurlygurl: the spools of 6" tulle. I can't image dealing with it off a bolt!
Thank you 
GOLD / pineapple / 12662 posts
I have made several tutus. I bought my tulle off a bolt (so that I could control strip width as well as length). I also prefer a mix of colors (I always use 3), and I use each color in each knot (with a specific color layering pattern for even color distribution).
grapefruit / 4442 posts
@MsLipGloss: very pretty!
how much tulle do you buy when you buy off the bolt?
GOLD / pineapple / 12662 posts
@bunnylove08: It depends on the length (more length for a taller child . . .the blue/purple tutu is longer). I usually buy 2-3 yards of each color. You will definitely need a rotary cutter . . . the cleaner/straighter the cuts, the better the tutu will look.
GOLD / pineapple / 12662 posts
To determine length, measure from the LO's waist to where you want the tutu to hit, and then double that measurement (knotting the tutu will halve the length of the strips).
grapefruit / 4442 posts
@MsLipGloss: thanks for the tip about knotting. my DD is about 2.5" and the tutu needs to bee about knee length. I was thinking about making it an empire waist dress the dress needs to be at least 1.5 from chest to knee?
GOLD / pineapple / 12662 posts
@bunnylove08: I would definitely measure to be sure, as over/underestimating the needed length can be a pain to correct. But for an 18 inch strip (which would need to be cut to 36 inches), I would go with 5 yards of tulle per color.
GOLD / pineapple / 12662 posts
Oh, and for strips that length (36"), make sure you have a cutting mat long enough for that length . . . it will really save you some time during the cutting phase.
grapefruit / 4442 posts
Okay Ladies I purchased 8 yards of tulle (from a near by fabric shop) and I'm going to attempt to make a skirt instead of the empire waist dress. I'm going to get a tank or leotard and have DD wear that on top.
I'll try to remember to take pictures. I hope i have enough tulle but if i dont I can always buy more!
GOLD / pineapple / 12662 posts
@bunnylove08: Good luck - I'm sure it will be beautiful! I mean, if I can do it--and I don't have a crafty bone in my body!--then you most certainly can (the tutus above are the first two I made).
grapefruit / 4442 posts
@Greentea: LOL
Does anyone have any tips on how to keep your Tutu from curling? So I made the tutu, it was a PITA but it was done. I think it looks good but it keeps curling so it looks messy. I tried to use some downy wrinkle release on it but that didn't work. I keep finger combing it but when DD touches it get wrinkled (poofy again) any advice?
GOLD / pineapple / 12662 posts
2 tbsp of liquid fabric softener and 1 cup of warm water. Mix well. Add to a spritz bottle and lightly mist the tulle and fluff with hands to smooth out the cling and wrinkles-do this before the tutu goes on. Spritz it lightly - don't saturate the tulle.
You can also hang it in the shower to steam out any wrinkles. Although that takes a few minutes.
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