Quick Ballet Skirts........

Missy asked me to show the ballet skirts that I mentioned in the last post. Here is Emily's. Basically I used some ivory tulle that had a slight glimmer to it and some grosgrain ribbon....all from Hobby Lobby. I put several layers together and then cut it to the length the girls wanted. Then I ran gathering stitches along the top edge. I measured each girls waist and then on the ribbon marked where I wanted the skirt to begin and end so that the remaining ribbon could be tied in the back. Then I gathered the tulle to match the starting and stopping point on the ribbon. After pinning the ribbon onto the tulle I machine stitched two rows across the ribbon. I even offered to do some decorative machine stitching across the ribbon...but both declined.....they usually go for simplicity! And there you go....a quick and easy ballet skirt on the cheap!

As a side note, when I was a graduate student, I made these for a couple ballet classes one year. It was crazy how much money these moms paid me to make these for their little ballet girls. Don't let anyone tell you that sewing isn't worth it. I currently am co-teaching a new crop of little girls to sew clothes for their American Girl dolls. I am loving it!!! I have designed a couple dresses to help them easily learn basic heirloom techniques. We are having a blast!!! More photos and information to come soon.