Say,I was wondering if there's anyone here who actually makes their own Competition or Show dresses?

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FSWer

Yeah, I make most of the dresses for myself and my daughter, and sometimes for other skaters at our rink. I'll bet a lot of people on this board do their own sewing.

Sadly, I'm a software engineer... and NOT a dressmaker... for a reason! Heaven knows I can design in my mind but get me anywhere near that sewing machine and !!!

The closest I can say that I've done anything with my dress is for me is stoning my own dress. It was only once and it was not a fun job for me b/c it takes so long and it had the potential to be QUITE messy given that my house is already SO messy!!!

(Speaking of which, thanks for reminding me to start looking for a dress for my FS program... )

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Cheers,
jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!

I've tried sewing my own dress, but I don't have the right type of sewing machine, so it was a disaster! But I do crystal all of my own dresses, and any dresses people want to send me (Good, easy way to make money -- Plus it's fun!!!!). The stoning varies with what people have in their mind and the music that they're skating to.

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"Without a struggle, there can be no progress" ~ Frederick Douglass

I can't even hem my own pants. I don't go anywhere near my skating dresses.

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Happily defying the laws of physics when I skate...and not in a good way

If I could meet ole Axel Paulsen, I would kick him in the teeth

President and Founding member of the I hate Toe-Loops Club

Still a member, but trying to get out of the Pre-bronze peanut gallery.

Visit my skating journal

I sew almost all my skating dresses (and I'm a software development engineer too hehehe)

I just start by trial and error mostly, I had an old sewing machine which broke down and eventually I got a new machine from my parents for one of my birthdays and just well I just sewed and unpicked until I figured out what I was doing (and tried to look at leotards and other tops along the way... its a cumulative effort... )

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Tidesong

Man the only thing I can sew is a button. (I got a grandma that is seriously into that sewing stuff but it definitely doesn't interest me) Otherwise, I would be making serious bank off of all these skaters getting ready for competitions. My grandma tailors my costumes.


BlackManSkating

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Proud to be one of the few black men out on the ice

Goals
Pass my Silver Moves Test
Finish Choreography for Silver Program
Land a Clean Double Toe and Double Lutz
Work on Double Axel and Rockers
Speed up back Camel

HA HA!!! Maybe I should specify that I'm actually a software quality assurance engineer. I get to torture all you poor development souls with lots of nice juicy BUGS for 'ya!!! MUHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!

Speaking of which, gotta get back to work so I can afford that skating dress I'm eyeing...

Cheers,
jazzpants, who wishes that we software QA engineers makes the type of "serious bank" (borrowing the term from BMS) that the software development engineers does. We're still seriously underpaid anywhere from 5-10K annual salary in my neck of the woods! )

What???! Are we gonna get a GIF this time?

Tsk tsk tsk... you think I'm gonna give you more blackmail material???

Seriously, there is already a picture of me in a skating dress from Adult Sectionals in 2006 at Oakland on the web. You didn't see it? If you didn't, I definitely won't tell 'ya where it is. MUHAHAHAHAHA!!! You're gonna have to come to watch me make my Bronze FS debut at Skate SF later this year to see the dress (and me in it!!!)

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Cheers,
jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!

I'll be sure to bring my camera Seriously, I won't post your picture without your permission. Everybody, let Jazz know you want pics!

OMG!!! (Oh, geez! I'll PM you the link to my skating dress picture... but AFTER Skate SF!!!)

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Cheers,
jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!

I design and sew all my skating dresses and costumes for competition. I started with a basic pattern from specialtysportswear on the internet, and a regular sewing machine. When my first dress came out well, I bought a serger machine and couple more patterns. Then I adjusted the patterns to fit me by some trail and error (making a nice collection of practice dresses). Now I use tissue paper to trace over my basic pattern that is adjusted to fit me perfectly, and design different skirts, sleeves, necklines, and other changes. I even make matching warm up jackets for my competition dresses. The stretch fabrics are quite forgiving, so you don't have to be that great a seamstress. However, I am a veterinarian, and my surgical skills help my sewing!

ooooh QA hehehe well umm the pay over here isn't that great, unlike in the US...

sexyskates: Yeah I totally hear from my surgeon friend that well surgery isn't that far off from sewing lol... and but you have a serger!!! I want one of those things one day when I can afford it ... for now the zigzag stitch is my good friend.

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Tidesong

http://www.customskatewear.com/gallery.php
This is who makes ours !! I couldnt sew if I had to. just not my talent !She does a great job, and isnt expensive !

I have a serger - we call them overlockers here. And even before I had one, I used to make my skating dresses years ago. I make my daughter's costumes, and last year made my own toreador outfit for an artistic comp.

I love making skating costumes, they are so much fun and challenging. And the decorating, whether it be fabric paint or crystals. Sort of adds to the whole fun of the lead up to a competition for me.

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Karen

I skate - therefore I am

I make all my own dresses. I also sew for a dance troupe and our local skating shows...it's really fun!

Julie

My mom made all of my dresses and practice skirts growing up. She also had a custom skating dress design business. It was always alot of fun to design my dresses because I could get exactly what I wanted and I knew it would fit. We would even dye fabric if we couldn't find the color I was looking for. When I was a teenager, mom would make the dress and then I would do the beading/stoning on it myself.

As an adult, I buy my dresses off the rack but I do work at pro shop and do a lot of the dress buying so I tend to like what we carry.

I make some of my dresses and when I don't feel like sewing, I buy my dresses.

I now have all of my dresses made by my good friend, fellow adult skater and owner of Flowerdaze Skating Apparel, Leslie Flowerday

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I've got mad salchow disease!

I do, although I expect my mother will make some as well in the future (she's better than I am at sewing - she sews 2000-dollar competition dresses for her dancing and, by chance, she's a software developer engineer too!!! What is that with all the sewing software developer engineers?!)
Here's the dress I'm working on (the neck will run V-type in the end)
http://img66.imageshack.us/img66/9532/imag0007jw1.jpg

My sewing machine I got in exchange for a pie 10 years ago. It's a heavy metal construction from the world war II era, it only does straight and zigzag, but I wouldn't trade it for the newest of the newest. I tried, totally couldn't work with a new sewing machine - it kept rippling the stretchy materials and it nearly galloped off the table).

I've not really been able to find dresses off the rack that fit me well. I have lost 45+ pounds since I started, but started with KwikSew making XLs. Now, my figure has changed enough to mix sizes--I can wear the large, but still need the XL around the waist. I've also tried Jalie and they fit pretty well. I have a Specialty Sportswear, but haven't tried it yet. One of these days when I have more time.

I have a Serger, and just got my first new sewing machine in 19+ years--I splurged on a Husqvarna. I haven't really played with it yet, but am getting ready to.

So, how do you sew stretchy material without a serger? elastic thread? zig zag stitch? Most of what I sew calls for non-stretchy, so I can't justify the cost of buying a serger for myself, but I would LOVE to be able to sew my own skating outfits

please, share your secret from your pre-serger days!

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When asked what his "secret" to success was, Wayne Gretsky said: "Skate to where the puck is going and not to where it has been."
Is the figure skating version of this: Skate as if you're doing an axel and not just learning how to hop?

My sewing machine had a sort of overlock stitch on it. It went 2 straight and one across, sort of of like

_ _\\_ _\\_ _\\_ _

This gives the overcasting of the edge as well as a stretch stitch. Worked very well on lycra for me.

Now if only I can work out how to sew zips into stretchy fabric without it all stretching and rippling. Any ideas on that one?

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Karen

I skate - therefore I am

Zigzag works perfect. Take the 5 mm (widest) zigzag for the edges and the narrow (1-2 mm) zigzag for the seams. Then, set the length of the stitch to slightly higher than you normally would and stretch the material out as you're sewing. You're setting the length higher so the transporter has more power, because it'll need to counter-force your pulling the material towards you to stretch it out.
Basically the same way you stitch in rubber bands, except not as extreme.

Actually my bootcovers and stuff like that which never lives for a long time, I only sew with one broad zigzag stitch, I don't even bother to do the seams. Lycra isn't THAT easily falling apart.

Here's my photo-illustrated guide to making bootcovers: http://www.geocities.com/sessy_liz/b...ootcovers.html
you can sorta see the zigzag stitch in 2 of the photos.


And of course, you need a stretchy-material needle.