Can any of you suggest a good pattern for skating dresses? Also, what is the best fabiric to use? It obviuosly needs to be a stretchy fabric, but I don't want to buy something that is too stretchy. I was thinking a spandex type fabric. Any suggestions?

I have used both Kwik Sew and Jalie patterns, I personally prefer Kwik Sew.

Spandex and Lycra are perfect for dresses, also stretch velvet. Look for fabrics that are 4 way stretch. You can get away with a fabric that has good 2 way stretch, but it has to have enough stretch both ways. I find some slinky fabrics have "too much stretch", they get kinda saggy sometimes. But I have also seen nice dresses made out of slinky. I just haven't found a need for it.

Have you ever sewn stretchy fabrics before? If not, buy a little extra and practice using it before you cut out your pattern. If you have a serger, you should have no problems, but it can be tricky using a regular straight stitch machine until you get the hang of it.

HTH!

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BuggieMom
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I've used Jalie but I needed to lower the cut of the pants and they still ended up being pretty high-cut.
I like using lycra material, preferably four-way stretch (this is also the material most patterns call for). There really is no such thing as "too stretch" when it comes to skating dresses. What I like about lycra compared to, say, cotton tricot is that lycra stays compact when you sew it, where as tricot starts stretching out, rippling, getting sucked down into the sewing machine etc etc. However, lycra does cost about 15 euro per metre, where as tricot only costs 1-3 euro...

With a normal sewing machine, try using a faint zig-zag (like with 1-2 millimetre width) instead of plain straight stitch, to allow the fabric to stretch a little at the seams. You'll also need special needles and adjusting the upper- and lower thread pull on your sewing machine to match.

I agree with the panty issue on Jalies...thats why I prefer Kwik Sew! No need to adjust anything there. I just finished a Jalie yesterday, and the difference in cut on the briefs is always surprising. The wedgie factor is pretty high there!

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BuggieMom
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Some people are like a Slinky...not really good for anything,
but you still can't help but smile when you shove them down the stairs....

I made a mock up of a kwik sew pattern and the dress fit fantastic, but the brief barely covered my bottom! It wasn't high cut on the leg, but it was narrow on the backside. I'm glad I did the mock up before cutting nice fabric.

I changed my mind and bought a Jalie pattern instead (the kwik sew dress was nice, but not flattering) thanks for the heads up on the brief there too!

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I've used them all - my personal favorites are the Specialty sportswear ones (www.specialtysportswear.com)
but I wouldn't start with these if you are new to sewing - the directions are not terribly clear. The panties are also huge - at least for my skater. I always use one size smaller for the panty part. They do have a nice variety of styles and skirt options.

Overall, I'd recommend the Kwik Sew ones to start with. They have a good basic pattern, clear instructions and pretty good fit.

I find its not worth my time to work with anything but the best fabrics - they look better and are easier to sew.

If you have the time, doing a mockup in a cheaper fabric is a great idea. Just be aware the fit will be different if the stretch factor is different.

To be honest, I don't sew much at all, but my mil does and has sewn many things before. She's a drama teacher and has made many costumes for plays and also for her kids costumes. She has a regular machine and then a newer machine that has 30 different stitch options. I'm not sure if it is a serger or not. She said she would help me with it. I want to learn so I can make her dresses for her. Hopefully that will cut costs!

Thanks for the suggestions!

Good to know! My daughter is very thin, so high cut panties typically ride up on her more then most, so that is a good thing to know. My mother in law has a nice machine with 30 different stitches. I don't know if it is a serger or not, but if it is, that will be an extra bonus! :-) Thanks!

A narrow backside would work well for my daughter since the girl is a tiny little thing. LOL. She's MAYBE 55 pounds and will be 10 in 4 mos! That is good to keep in mind tho. I don't want her to get a wedgie while skating!

that's probably not a serger, a serger basically only has 1 stitch which is often not even length-width-adjustable, although (especially on 4- and 5-thread sergers) you can have fun modifying the stitch by removing one of the threads or putting a different foot on the machine.

Sergers are also often called overlocks or locks here on the European mainland.

I've VERY new to sewing, but my mil is not. She will help me with this project. What I'd like to do is make her competition dress, but before we do that, I want to make her a practice dress first. The comp isn't until June, so we have time for that one. Anyway, thanks so much!

Thanks!! My other mil(not the one helping me- ha... I have 2 since my dh's parents are divorced) has a serger so I suppose if I start making more dresses for her, I can borrow her serger! Hmmmm. Thanks so much! Visuals are always good for me.

[I looked at these online and they are neat! We'll probably start with the Quick Sew patterns, but I may pick one of the Specialty SPortswear patterns up too. I'll show her(MIL) both and see what she thinks.

I like this pattern!

https://specialtysportswear.com/cart..._id=100000389&

This one with the scoop neck is also cute...


http://www.kwiksew.com/Catalog/cat_detail.cfm?pid=3508

These are also cute...

http://www.kwiksew.com/Catalog/cat_detail.cfm?pid=2733

I made kwiksew 2733 for my daughter (age 11) when she and her brother did a pairs championship competition. It was very cute with a multilayer, 2 colour chiffon skirt. That's one that won't be going in the second hand sale but will stay as a keepsake. I adapted the pattern for different programs over the next few years til she outgrew the pattern sizing.

It was easy to sew on my machine which has a stretch stitch setting (sort of a fake overlock).

One thing to know about Specialty Sportswear is that their skating dress patterns are designed for the stretchiest direction of the fabric to run vertical (most other skating dress patterns, including Kwik Sew, are designed for the stretchiest direction of the fabric to sideways). This may be a factor in fabric selection (if the fabric has a discernible grain, ribbing, or other pattern, it will look different horizontal as opposed to vertical.) I haven't tried Specialty Sportswear, but a friend who sews told me that the sizing runs large.

The Kwik-Sew 3508 pattern is somewhat similar to their 3502 pattern for adults. (So if you wind up ever using the 3508 pattern and like it enough to keep making it, 3502 will work once DD won't fit into the kid sizes.)

There were a few threads this summer about sewing dresses that I found to be helpful:
http://www.skatingforums.com/showthread.php?t=24673
http://www.skatingforums.com/showthread.php?t=23904
plus a thread I started after my first try making one (Kwik Sew pattern[s]):
http://www.skatingforums.com/showthread.php?t=24925

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As an adult skater (and a mom that sews) i get more flexibility out of making dresses with separate panties....(plus the ease of bathroom breaks)

I use a sewing machine with a triple zig zag or stretch stitch and a serger, altho when i first started I just used a regular sewing machine with a zig zag.

If you buy multi-sized patterns, you can "blend" the sizes for a better fit.

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Skate@Delaware
Ah, show skating!!! I do it for the glitter!

S@D - how do you stop the dress from riding up if you have detached panties (since the panties hold everything down)? I make practice skirts with inbuilt briefs, and would love to try a dress with separate briefs, but can't work out what style to use that would not leave the skirt riding up to the waist.

I'm not S@D, but one option is to allow a little more fabric in the crotch of the panties, and then add poppers (snaps) so that they can unpop when necessary.

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