How to Make a Halter Tutu Dress
Posted on 03. Oct, 2008 by Trish in Tutorial
Recently I was looking around the web trying to find free instructions on how to make a halter style tutu dress. I wanted to use it to make my daughter’s Halloween costume. I really couldn’t find anything, except a lot of other people looking for the same information! So I decided to post my own tutorial after playing around and figuring out how to do it.
1. First you need to decide how long to make the bottom part of the skirt. Using a measuring tape, measure from the chest where you want the dress to start, down to where you want it to end on the leg. Double that number. Then add one inch to one and a half inches depending on how big the elastic is that you use. (If you are using a thicker elastic, add the 1 1/2 inches. If it’s a thinner elastic, add one inch) This is to allow for the knot.
2. Then you cut your tulle in strips that are as long as the number you got in step one. I like to use the 6 inch rolls of tulle as opposed to the yard of tulle. It’s so much easier, and you can usually find it on sale at your local craft store. Now, for this one, I wanted it really full, and it was my first time doing it, so I ended up using 100 yards of the 6 inch tulle for the red, and part of one 25 yard roll for the green. After doing it like this, I think I didn’t need it quite as full, so I could have used less, but you will want at least 50 yards, if not more! (remember this is using the 6 inch wide rolls, so if you did use the tulle by the yard, you would have to cut it into 6 inch strips, then the length you want it)
3. Then you’ll want to decide how long too make the top layer of tulle, if you decide to use this. I think mine was a little long, but oh well, it was my first try! You’ll do the same thing figure out the length, double it, and add an inch to 1 1/2. Mine was 12 1/2 inches total, just to give you an idea. I think I would shorten it next time.
4. You’ll want to measure around the chest where you want the dress to start to figure out how long to make your elastic. I would take that measurement and subtract one inch from it. The elastic will stretch out as you tie the tulle, so you don’t want it too big. Then either sew the ends of the elastic together to form a circle, or if you don’t have a sewing machine and don’t want to hand sew, I’ve heard that you can staple the ends together. If you did this, I would make sure to put the sharp points out, so it doesn’t irritate the skin. You will be covering this with tulle, but still, just in case.
5. Then place the elastic around something, like a lampshade. I used a CD tower, because I didn’t have any lampshades that were small enough. This makes it so much easier to tie the tulle on.
6. I gathered three layers of the red tulle for each knot, so after it was folded in half, there were 6 layers. I would try it with just two strips, and possibly even just one next time to make it a little less poofy. I only did 2 layers of the green. Now there are a couple of different ways to tie the tulle on. I did a square knot to tie it on, because I wanted to make sure it really stayed. Basically you just thread the tulle under the elastic and figure out where the middle is. Then tie a square knot. Here’s a great guide to tying a square knot. Or you can use this method as an alternate method to the square knot. It’s completely up to you. You’ll want to alternate the long tulle strips and the short ones, so here I tied the red, then the green, etc. I then pulled the red down, so the knot was near the bottom, and the green up, so it had two distinct layers.
7. Make sure you squish the knots together on the elastic, so you can fit more tulle on. You don’t want any gaps where you can see the elastic.
8. Keep alternating the short and the long layers until you have filled the elastic.
9. Then you take a piece of ribbon that is long enough to wrap around the neck and tie in a bow (I just estimated, but you can measure with the measuring tape, and then add an inch to 1 1/2 inches for the knot!) You will tie this on the same way as the tulle, and pull the knot to the top of the elastic, so the ends of the ribbon face up.
10. Voila! You are all done! You can add a bow or a flower at the base of the ribbon if you want by gluing or hand sewing it on. Or you can do this without the short layer of tulle, and then add flowers or ribbon around the chest line. There are lots of different ways you can customize this. You can even add a ribbon or belt at the waistline to make it look like an actual dress. Get creative!
I haven’t quite finished this for my daughter’s Halloween costume, so I will add pictures to my blog when it is all done. You could make the bottom layer of tulle orange and have a pumpkin, or make it in black and add cat ears. Or use any color for a princess. Let your imagination
run wild.
I have also written another post about a different way to create a layered tutu dress. Go check it out!
Please note that these instructions are for private use only! If you would like to use this to make dresses to sell or other commercial use, please contact me first to buy a commercial license! Also, please link back to me if you create your own and show pictures of it online. Give me credit for all my hard work! 
All images and instructions on this site are the copyrighted property of Sweet ‘n’ Sassy Girls. It is illegal to save, copy, alter, or redistribute any images or instructions without my express written permission. All rights reserved.
If you have any questions, or like what you see, feel free to leave me a comment! Oh, and if you really like tutus, you will LOVE these tutu hairbow holders from Bambina Ballerina. Go check them out!
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113 Responses to “How to Make a Halter Tutu Dress”
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Jami
03. Mar, 2012
Thank you so much for posting this!! It is saving my life while I’m making a flower girl dress for my daughter, for my sister’s wedding. I’ll post the results on my blog and make sure and reference your site.
Thanks!!
Hoor
25. Feb, 2012
Making a yellow tutu dress with a golden sash at the waist.. Thnx for sharing ur pattern
Sarah
01. Jan, 2012
I made one and tied the tulle on piece of ribbon so she can grow with it. I lined it in jersey fabric so it would not be so itchy. There are lots of colors of the pre-cut tulle usually in the wedding section.
Anita
29. Dec, 2011
Thanks so much for the tutorial! My twins 2nd b-day is next week & we are having an Elmo party. I wanted to make them Elmo tutus
Wish me luck!
Amanda
24. Oct, 2011
With the dresses do you need to put anything under them? Looks like you could see through them. If so what would you suggest ?
rebecca
18. Oct, 2011
thank you so much for sharing your pattern on how to make this…I just made a black and purple one and glued spiders to it so my two year old could be a witch for halloween and it turned out so beautiful!!
Lora
02. Oct, 2011
If you added some small black beads to the red skirt of this dress, it could be a cute strawberry Halloween costume – and so adorable!
Trish
05. Oct, 2011
Actually I did add some black tear drops onto it and it turned out great! It was the perfect strawberry costume!
sue
25. Sep, 2011
I was looking at the empire waisted tutu dresses and was wondering if you have any ideas on how to. They had a instruction book you can buy to learn how but they want about $20 for it.
Becky
15. Sep, 2011
What would you suggest if you were using a light color to prevent it from being see throw?
Abby
15. Dec, 2011
Slips are sold on Etsy for the lighter colored tutu dresses.
betty
21. Aug, 2011
where do you get your tulle from. I’ve purchased tulle from different locations and they get wrinkled and my daughter could really only use a tutu one time because it looks horrible.
Trish
29. Aug, 2011
Yes, tulle has a tendency to do that. You just have to straighten it out after every use.
Ashli Marts
01. Sep, 2011
Hang your tutu in the bathroom, start a hot shower and shut the door, let the humidity do the work. After a few minutes, I go in and straighten it out. If it still has some wrinkles, leave it in a little longer.
Trish
15. Sep, 2011
Great tip, thanks!