Tulle Time! Tutus and More

My little girly girl was born into an athletic family. While she can surely hold her own on the field, she does it with ribbons in her hair and typically a tutu around her waist. We have found over the years that tulle is one of the most versatile fabrics. It is both inexpensive and tends to impress the socks off girls. You can make your own tutus for daily dress-up fun or use it as the base of a Halloween costume. Tulle can also be wrapped around a hula hoop to make the perfect hide-a-way for your little girl. In my own bedroom, I have tulle looped across the ceiling for a romantic canopy look.

Tutus
Puffy tutus are fun to slip on a baby for the perfect photo op, the lightweight fabric covers diapers well and adds a girly look even to the baldest of babies. Preschoolers can make-believe all day in a tutu. Older girls can even add a few tulle ruffles over their jeans for a sassy look.

Halloween Costume Ideas
As for Halloween costumes, the possibilities for tutus are endless. Since tulle comes in every color under the sun, plus lots of glittery, shimmery versions, you can make a rainbow tutu for a clown, a basic light pink ballerina tutu, or a black and red number for the vampire lover. If Halloween is already figured out, why not make a green and red tutu for your little Christmas elf, complete with jingle bells!

You will need:

• Stretchy elastic. You can use a stretchy headband for small children.
• Sewing needle and thread
• Tulle, generally you will need at least 2 yards for a child, 4 yards for an adult

1. Cut the tulle into strips. Decide the length of the skirt and then double it to decide how long the strips should be.
2. Make the waistband from the piece of elastic. It should be two inches shorter than the circumference of the recipients waist. Simply measure, cut and sew the ends together.
3. Fold a strip of tulle in half, slip the top of the fold over the elastic then slide the ends through the fold to create a knot, continue until the entire piece of elastic is hidden. Press the knots close together as you go. The more tulle you add the puffier the tutu will be.
4. Add ribbons by tying them between the tulle knots for more color. You can even string jingle bells on the ends of the pieces of ribbon for fun.

Fancy hide-a-way
Every girl needs a secret place to talk to her dolls, read a book or whisper with her best friend. A secret hide-a-way made from tulle is a sweet addition to a bedroom or playroom. Since indoors the finished project is looped over a hook, it can even be moved to an outdoor tree branch on nice days.

You will need

• Hula hoop
• Tulle
• Ribbons

1. Cut wide strips of tulle in much the same way as the tutu. The secret hide-a-way will be hung from the ceiling so the tulle should be a minimum of 8 feet long which makes the finished product approximately 4 feet off the ground. Adjust as necessary.
2. Tie tulle on hoop. The tulle can be tied in regular knots rather than looped so that it hangs nicely.
3. Tie six ribbons securely to the hoop. These six ribbons are gathered at the top and tied together. Screw a hook in the ceiling and hang the hide-a-away.
4. The colors chosen can help determine a theme for the secret hide-a-way; pink and purple for a princess, blue and green for an underwater look, or greens for forest fairy. Add more ribbons to hang down, or use to tie silk flowers or even little stuffed animals.
   
   Left over tulle can be used to make tutus for dolls or tied in the hair. The fabric may lose it's appeal over the years, but if it sparks your little girls imagination, now is the time to purchase a few yards!
   
   

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