Decorating costumes ideas/advice

[Wiggly]

Hi
I've reasonably recently started belly dancing and am making a skirt and top for myself. I've gone for a fairly modest top, just like a stretchy short sleeved/fitted top and a fairly wide floaty skirt as that seems to be the way most of the other students have gone.
However I would like to add some umph to it in the form of embroidery and sequins (yes this is my young girly dressing up side coming out). I have a good embroidery machine with which to do it but limited designs to use, mainly a reasonable selection of flowers but not much else, would it look totally silly and out of place do you think?
Any other ideas?
I can't seem to get these sequinned motifs that I have read about in England.

 

[belly taz]

you can get the motifs from asian shops if you still cant find any let me know i will buy them and post them to you we have so many here in birmingham cheap too...i make the costums for our dance group

 

[da Sage]

I think metallic thread will make any flower design much more bellydancy!

 

[Aniseteph]

I agree about metallic thread - sounds nice.

Try eBay for sequin appliques, there are loads and postage should be low. Also strung sequins and braids, beaded trim, coins....

Technical note: make sure whatever you do doesn't restrict the stretch too much, before you go round the neck or hem of the top and find you can't get into it anymore! I bet unpicking machine embroidery off a stretchy knit is a pig of a job.

 

[Wiggly]

Decoration thoughts

Hi Aniseteph
Thanks, will have a look, I did try, what search did you put in for sequinned appliques?
I have got some great deals on sequins but didn't get much come up for braid or any thing else.
Yes I am careful with the stretch knit, I had some braid to put on the top at first so might stick to that.:think:

 

[Mouse]

I've bought appliques from ebay before, and there is also a web based store that a friend of mine buys hers from fairly regularly. I know I have the link somewhere and will post it when I find it.

 

[Aniseteph]

Hi Wiggly -try searching for "sequin appliques" in the Crafts section. Or even just sequin - this will find glittery braids and trims, but you do need to restrict it to Crafts or you get loads of clothes! And lots of those sequinny things for card making . People call braids etc. different things so browsing down the subcategories in Crafts might be useful.

Searching worldwide gets loads more, especially in the USA. :dance: If they are not ripping you off on postage it is very reasonable - for me certainly less than a trip to the nearest big town to check out the often disappointing selections. eBay rocks!

 

[Mouse]

My friend was kind enough to send me the link for the applique store again this morning

Angeltrim is a online shop, supply sequin bead applique, ven..

 

[gwinity]

Ebay does indeed rock.

one ebay store I'm quite fond of is Junklady's Finishing Touches. She's got a pretty diverse variety of appliques, trims, braids, buckles etc, with reasonable prices and excellent shipping.

 

[Wiggly]

Thanks everybody, for the links and ideas.
Wiggly:dance:

 

[Reen.Blom]

I like to use sequined threads for trimming! Much easier than to stitch them all one my one! As for floral designes it also depends on the colours of the threads you use!