Help and Opinions please?

[Sohalia]

Hello everyone!
Hope I am posting this in the right spot!
I would like to ask for some opinions and some help. I've made a bra & bet set once before, it was VERY simple though but it left me with a few questions.

First, about a year ago I bought this fabric simply because I fell in love with it (and I had a 50% off coupon :dance: ). I knew from the get go I wanted to make a skirt out of it, but now Im thinking I want to put some of it on the bra cups too. Here are the fabrics:



This one I bought as the accent colour, it's actually a lavender.


(Im sorry the colours may be off, the lighting in my house is terrible!)

So for my first questions, do you think I should put the patterned fabric on both cups or just one? What do you think of adding some sequin/beading to one cup? Im asking for opinions because Im having a hard time thinking of how to make a belt look right with the bra. Im pretty sure I want to make the belt the lavender colour to match the accent colour. But I want to add glam to the belt (cause Im a girl and that's how I do! ) What do you ladies think??


Lastly, I am in need of some help with beaded fringe. I did some looking through the forums and I found some helpful information but I still have a question. What type of string/thread do you use when making your beaded fringe? Also, for a single strand of fringe (like just one vertical line) how do you secure it to the costume? I had SO MUCH trouble with my last costume because the beads would not fit on to a needle so I had to keep unthreading the needle to slide on beads then rethread the needle.

I saw some posts of premade beaded fringe as well, which is great! But so expensive. If I where to go through the sofa cushions to do this option, I again as the question of how to secure it to the costume? Also, can you cut the links into smaller links without it all falling apart?

(For reference I was looking at this: Light Purple Beaded BellyDance Fringe 40" x 9" 40" x 4" | eBay )

Im so sorry if any of this sounds confusing! Sorry also for being so long winded.
Thank you for your help and opinions!! :yay:

 

[walladah]

Hi!
a) it is up to you concerning the fabrics! remember just to make bra and belt match, so that you can use them with different skirts. Personally, i think that when you use two different fabrics you do not need a lot of beading and sequin decoration, you can even omit it at all!
b) there are special needles for beading, very thin, and they are not expensive. In Greece we can find them everywhere, i think that they are not so rare in the US either, as a very good friend of mine makes costumes with beadings.
c) Most people use double cotton thread, even in the most expensive costumes to make beads and sew sequins. Actually, if the thread is very good, you will have never any accident. I have a handmade vintage bedlah and it is made like this, however i have never found similar thread although i searched a lot. It seems that 60s and 70s costume makers had better materials to make the costumes. THen, i decided to use naylon thread, which is a bit more expensive than the cotton one, but it cannot be cut but with a scisors. The bad thing is that i can find in black and white only. Maybe in the US you can find other main colours, like red and blue. Personally, i do not like accidents on stage where bead fall down (i have seen this for famous dancers too) and i also want to wash my costumes after some uses. Naylon thread is perfect for heavy use...

 

[Ariadne]

So for my first questions, do you think I should put the patterned fabric on both cups or just one?

Personally I would put it on both and then use the other fabric to do some kind of accent swag or gather over the top as well as for the straps.

What do you think of adding some sequin/beading to one cup?

If you only put it on one cup then bead on the cup with your accent fabric it could work. You'll want to have a really good idea of what you want it to look like before starting. Try drawing up some patterns and ideas and see if you like anything.

Im asking for opinions because Im having a hard time thinking of how to make a belt look right with the bra. Im pretty sure I want to make the belt the lavender colour to match the accent colour. But I want to add glam to the belt (cause Im a girl and that's how I do! ) What do you ladies think??

Absolutely add glam to the belt. Especially if it's a pattern you can repeat in part on the bra to pull it together.

Lastly, I am in need of some help with beaded fringe. I did some looking through the forums and I found some helpful information but I still have a question. What type of string/thread do you use when making your beaded fringe? Also, for a single strand of fringe (like just one vertical line) how do you secure it to the costume? I had SO MUCH trouble with my last costume because the beads would not fit on to a needle so I had to keep unthreading the needle to slide on beads then rethread the needle.

You need to buy beading needles. They don't cost much and make a huge difference. Personally I use button thread for beading. I know some people recommend pulling the thread through beeswax before using to add strength and make it less likely to tangle. Tie off each and every strand whether you sew it directly to the costume or onto a ribbon you can add to the costume afterward.

I saw some posts of premade beaded fringe as well, which is great! But so expensive. If I where to go through the sofa cushions to do this option, I again as the question of how to secure it to the costume? Also, can you cut the links into smaller links without it all falling apart?

(For reference I was looking at this: Light Purple Beaded BellyDance Fringe 40" x 9" 40" x 4" | eBay )

I have purchased from that exact company. They have excellent customer service. You do get what you pay for though and I found the beads to be uncomfortably sharp on the edges so I'm not sure how long the fringe will last. It helps to add glue to the bottom of each strand as they are knotted there but that doesn't help if the bead cuts the thread while in use. The chain (crotchet?) they are on is rather thick and will need to be covered in some way but you can absolutely cut between strands without it unraveling.

 

[Shanazel]

Breaking away from the pack here I have to say I hate beading needles because they're so flimsy. I use #10 quilting needles with a doubled cotton quilting thread that I run through bees wax then iron to soak the wax into the thread. Wax strengthens the thread and keeps it from tangling.

I also don't use tiny beads- they don't show up from a distance and are tedious to sew. A slightly larger size rarely gets stuck on needles, covers ground faster, and shows up better to an audience.

I secure each strand of fringe to the costume with a knot. Knotting each strand can be tedious but strand insures that one broken strand won't turn into a dozen nraveled strands. I also make a back stitch for every six to eight beads on a flat design.

 

[Sohalia]

I did not know about the beeswax! I have a bunch of soy wax, Does that work as well?

I have never seen these beading needles. I thought they should have something like that, but every store I've been to doesn't seem to carry them. Unless Im just not looking hard enough. I think I'll have to dig around some more. Im glad to hear they actually make needles small enough for this!

The last costume I did I used the cotton thread and larger beads with sequins. I had a lot of problems with the beads. Some where cut large enough to fit on the needle, some where not. This time I was going to try and get more expensive beads and try to make it more "professional" looking. (I use the term loosely because I don't feel I have enough experience in making pro BD costumes to make that claim. I've been sewing for 20 years so I know the skirt will be pro quality though! :lol: )

Thank you all for the tips!! I really appreciate it. I like the idea of using the lavender on one cup with some glitz. I dont usually sketch up an idea for anything I make (as I feel Im terrible at it) but I think for this I'll give it a go.

I'll try to post some pictures when it's closer to being done. Thank you!!

 

[AndreaSTL]

For me to like asymmetrical costumes it has to be apparent that it's intentional. If both cups have patterned fabric but only one is beaded it looks to me like you ran out of time to complete everything. The same if the bra has beads and/or sequins and the belt does not. If the bra has one fabric but the belt has another it looks you had two different costumes and grabbed a piece from each. However, if the cups have different fabrics but both fabrics also appear on the belt it still seems like a set. How's that for a set of arbitrary rules? :lol:

 

[Ariadne]

I have never seen these beading needles. I thought they should have something like that, but every store I've been to doesn't seem to carry them. Unless Im just not looking hard enough. I think I'll have to dig around some more. Im glad to hear they actually make needles small enough for this!

Here's the basic set http://www.robertscrafts.com/defaul...oductID=66577&ItemID=135172&RootCatCode=07000. They make other kinds as well.

I also don't use tiny beads- they don't show up from a distance and are tedious to sew. A slightly larger size rarely gets stuck on needles, covers ground faster, and shows up better to an audience.

You know, I'm going to have to try that next time. :think:

 

[Shanazel]

You'll never go back if you do.

 

[nitewindz]

The trick is special needles for beading, I get my beading supplies from Shopping - Fire Mountain Gems and Beads

I like ariadne's suggestion for using larger beads. She is correct! Small stuff vanishes on stage, in dim lighting, or even just a few feet away. Chunky stuff doesn't disappear and is faster and easier to do.

How to put the fabrics together? Your choices are endless!! I suggest looking at some sites like Dahlal and swap meet forums. Save or bookmark the costumes that catch your eye and inspire you! When you've got a bunch of photos, study them. Look for colors, silouettes and design motifs that pull you in. Use these as inspiration for your design.

I am not good at drawing free hand, so when I had access to Corel Draw I used that to sketch my ideas. And just in case I might forget what that weird squiggle is supposed to be, I include a (painfully) detailed written description.

To make a single strand of fringe, anchor the thread on the inside of the fabric, push it through to the outside. Thread on your beads. Now, skip the last bead, thread the needle through the second to last bead, and go back up through all the other beads. Push the needle through to the wrong side, and pull until the fringe strand is snug but not too tight, and anchor the thread again.

I think it's fun to dress up the end of a single strand with a large decorative bead, or even a bead inside a cage of smaller beads.

Also, I would make a bra and belt, skirt separate.

 

[Sohalia]

To make a single strand of fringe, anchor the thread on the inside of the fabric, push it through to the outside. Thread on your beads. Now, skip the last bead, thread the needle through the second to last bead, and go back up through all the other beads. Push the needle through to the wrong side, and pull until the fringe strand is snug but not too tight, and anchor the thread again.

I think it's fun to dress up the end of a single strand with a large decorative bead, or even a bead inside a cage of smaller beads.

Thank you for this! Im going to have to play around with this on some scrap fabric.


I had seen some costumes with the patterned fabric on the skirt and bra of the costumes before and I loved the look of them. I tried to search around my PC and the web for some more images but the only thing I can find right now are some pics of Didem's costumes and they are not very good pics. But this can give you a better idea of what I had in mind.

 

[Amulya]

How much fabric do you have of each type? That kind of rules what you can do with it (if there is enough to make a skirt etc.)

I guess soy wax would work the same, it also hardens a bit when it gets cold again like bees wax