Project:  Sparkling up a thrift store skirt then designing a handkerchief skirt to wear with it.

Starlight Parade

After finding a pretty pink and purple skirt at one of my neighborhood thrift stores, I used my sewing machine to attach sequin trim.  Use sharp needles and be prepared to swap in fresh ones!  Attaching the trim was time consuming because there was a lot of hem to bling-ify, but it was pretty straightforward to tack it on with a zig-zag stitch.  Some of the tutorials I reviewed called for a straight stitch, but it was too tricky to keep the sequins lined up under the foot for me to use a straight stitch.  The zig-zag stitch casts a wider net so as long as the stitch made it over some part of the sequin I was happy.  I am seriously considering getting a sequin foot for my sewing machine because I know I will have future projects that call for sequin trim.

The skirt was worn in the Starlight Parade, where my troupe had gone gypsy to blend in with the other dancers.  We were asked to be as shiny as we could because we needed to stand out in the night. I wore lots of junk jewelry because I am notorious for dropping things and do not want to lose any of my good jewelry.  We all wore gold streamer belts and wove glow-in-the-dark necklaces into our hip scarves so we could sparkle even more.

Two and a half miles of walking and dancing later, we still shone, albeit wearily.  Confidentially, it is more exhausting to wait for the sun to go down and the parade to start than it is to walk the parade route, as we had to be in place hours earlier.  The great thing about being part of this parade is that it is the closest I will ever get to being in the Main Street Electrical Parade, and the crowds are awesome!

I was so enamored with my new skirt that I wanted something to go with it.  I found a couple of yards of a sheer fabric at SCRAP not long ago, and it was sitting in my stash waiting to be incorporated into a project.  The colors looked nice together, so I went with it. I used this accent overskirt tutorial from Sheikhani as a jumping off point.  Since I didn’t have enough fabric to make 8 equal sized squares as the pattern calls for, I went with squares of varying size.  Here is an approximation of how I cut my 60″ wide fabric:

Both skirts + coin belt

I also cut a casing for the waistband using black fabric leftover from making the coin belt.  Once all of the pieces were cut out, I used my serger to hem the edges, carrying a shiny pink thread along with the regular thread. I sewed a sequin-like banded trim onto the bottom two edges of each diamond, then I arranged and pinned the pieces along the waistband.  I am glad that I tried it on before sewing it together because the larger diamonds needed to be trimmed down so I wouldn’t trip over them.  After the diamonds were sewn to the waistband, I closed the waistband casing, leaving an opening to thread the elastic.

I am really pleased with the effect of the layered skirts!  These were really easy projects to complete, too.  Sewing the trim onto the thrift store skirt took about an hour, and sewing the handkerchief overskirt took a little over three.  Hooray for new costume pieces!  I am really getting into sewing for belly dance costumes – better make room in my closet for more!

My first solo performance!

A couple of months ago my dance instructor issued a “rookie challenge” for our bi-monthly performance at a neighborhood coffeehouse. The challenge was for any dancer who hadn’t soloed yet to choreograph and perform a two minute piece.  I have been belly dancing off and on since 2006, but this is my first year of performing.  I accepted the challenge then took it one step further and designed my own costume as well.

A quick trip to the thrift store yielded a long purple velvet skirt and velvet patterned blouse in similar colors. The blouse was a terrific score because it already had a ruffle and a shiny jeweled button adornment. I also found chains of plastic jewels that were originally part of a chandelier. I seriously considered hacking the skirt to change how it drapes, but in the end laziness won out and I decided it was fine as it was. The coins came from a scarf I already owned but was falling apart and shedding beads and coins every time I wore it. I also had a stash of black plastic beads.

Before

While making the hip scarf took the most time, the blouse was the tricky part.  I banished the shoulder pads, seam ripped under the ruffle to free it, then cut away all of the fabric below the under bust line after keeping 2 inches for seam allowance.  I serged edges on the ruffles then along the bottom of the blouse before sewing a casing for the elastic. The end result was a lovely crop top with a dangling belly-button covering ruffle.

I cut the hip scarf out of polyester, then finished the edges with my serger.  I used tailor’s chalk to outline where the trim needed to go, took some measurements, then started making the crochet trim.  All of the plastic chandelier jewels came connected to each other with split jump rings, so when I separated the jewel chains I left a single jump ring on each one.  The coins were connected to the jewels using the jump ring, which made assembly super easy. It also meant that I didn’t need to string beads ahead of time.

Row 1: Chain until necessary length reached. Turn.

Row 2-3: Half double crochet for entire row.  Turn.

Row 4: *Half double crochet 3.  Thread a bead on the loop then secure a jewel with a Lark’s Head knot.  Re-start the loop from the most recent stitch.*  Repeat between * until you reach the end of the row.  Bind off.

Close-up detail of trim

I made four rows of trim, then sewed them onto the hip scarf with a zig zag stitch.  It makes a very pretty sound when I dance with it!  I also made a decorative hair clip, but it has gone missing since the performance so I don’t have any pictures of it yet.

The music that I danced to was Hely Meli.  Overall I am incredibly pleased with the costume and my first solo.  I remembered all of my choreography, and by the second round of the verses I was feeling really good.  Looking forward to future performances and costumes!

Belly dance hip scarf / coin belt / costume piece. Whatever you call it, it looks and sounds pretty!

Ready to make your own hip scarf for belly dance? I’m not talking about tacking store bought trim on some fabric.  You won’t weave the fabric or spin the yarn, but you’ll make the “coins” and crochet the trim yourself.

This is a proof of concept project I designed to refine my skills and find stumbling blocks before I make an elaborate hip scarf for my costume. Think of it as making a muslin to test a pattern before sewing a fancy party dress with expensive material.  You can use these techniques to design your own hip scarf.

Knowledge of beaded crochet will be very helpful. The project takes between 10 and 15 hours to complete, but the out of pocket costs are minimal. Consider taking apart thrift shop costume jewelry for beads. Metal coins for belly dance costumes are available for purchase at online bead shops if you want to skip making your own, but the costs add up quickly. I am using this one for dance practice, so it doesn’t need to be fancy. Continue reading 'Belly dance coin belt / hip scarf tutorial'»