Tutu How-To

First of all, the title of this post "Tutu How-to" is so much fun to say...say it a few times, you'll agree.

Materials
1/2 inch wide elastic
At least 5 yds. tulle (more if you want a fuller look)
Rotary cutter & cutting mat
Sewing machine (or you can use needle & thread)

1) Measure your child's waist. Subtract 2 inches & cut your elastic to that length. (Example: My child's waist is 18 inches. Elastic measurement is 18 inches-2 inches= 16 inches.)
Using a zig zag stitch, sew elastic ends together like so (or you can hand sew this together using needle/thread):

2) Cut tulle into 6 inch wide strips like so (& don't stress if your strips aren't exactly 6 inches wide...no one will notice...I pinky promise):

3) Stack your strips, making sure to keep the folded ends on the same side. It should look something similar to this:

4) Decide how long you want your tutu...Long? Short? I wanted mine to go a little longer than my daughter's knees. Starting at her waist line, I measured down just past her knees and it measured at a length of 15 inches.

5) Cut your strips to the desired length. IMPORTANT: Measure your length starting from the folded edge. See picture:

Once cut, your strip should unfold & double in length. My strips opened up to 30 inches long. In case this isn't painfully obvious, I've included a picture to illustrate:

6) Slip each tulle strip through the elastic and even up the ends so that each side has an equal amount of tulle. Tie a single knot...I used to do a double knot (or a square knot to be politically correct) but have found that a single knot is less bulky, less work, and still stays tight on the elastic.

Hint: For some reason it helps to hold the elastic down with your foot as you tie the tulle.

7) Continue tying the strips of tulle around the elastic until there ceases to be any more strips. Tada..hoorah...yippee...you're done!

This is what 5 yds of tulle looks like...if you want a fuller look add more strips of tulle.

After cutting my strips to 15 inches in length, I had leftover tulle. I tied some of the leftover pieces on and it created a shorter layer- if you look closely maybe you can see it. Just an idea of what to do w/your leftover tulle.


Be creative! Use different color combinations/patterns, different lengths, add ribbon, etc!