My youngest daughter is turning one in a couple of months (where has the time gone?…they grow up so fast). To celebrate this milestone I want to do a little photo shoot in the backyard. As a click happy mother, taking photos of my girls is always a wonderful diversion. I literally have thousands of photos from the last four years – thank god for external hard drives!

I’ve decided that a tutu wearing one year old would be adorable with a few balloons and other props. Of course I could always buy one, but as there are so many tutorials available on Pinterest and elsewhere on how to make a tutu, why would I?

Making tutus is ridiculously easy. I have the distinct feeling that I will be making these for many years to come, in a variety of colours and lengths. I also made one for the almost four year old cause as a little princess she insisted and besides it’s only fair.

I purchased 6 metres (m) of tulle. For my youngest I chose 1m white, 1m ivory and 1m pale pink and for my eldest; 2m of pale pink and 1m hot pink. I also bought some elastic for waistbands. I’ve heard that you can buy tulle on small rolls which would reduce the amount of cutting required. If I end up making more tutus, I’ll buy some online.

I cut tulle lengths of 10cm by 1m for all the tulle. It doesn’t have to be perfect or straight, as you can’t notice the imperfections when it’s finished. I then cut in half the 1m lengths (50cm) to make a shorter length tutu. You can make the lengths longer if you want, though as my youngest needs to get around easily on her knees, a longer tutu would mean trouble.

I measured both of my daughter’s tummy circumference and reduced the length by 2in/5cm. The elastic will stretch when you add the tulle, so you need to remove the excess beforehand, otherwise your tutu will be too big.

I sewed the elastic together on the sewing machine, which took no time at all. It doesn’t matter how, as long as it is secure.

I placed the elastic on my thigh to hold it in place while I added the tulle. I’ve seen cardboard or even chairs used as well.

Select three tulle lengths and make a loop. Then with the ends thread it through the loop to form a simple knot. Tighten and start on the next one. Bunch the tulle up as you go along, move the elastic around and continue until all the elastic is covered. Voilà!

If making one for an adult (and why wouldn’t you – I might make one for me to do the cleaning in 😉), 1m lengths is probably needed. That means that you’ll need at least twice the amount of tulle. And as you also have to account for a larger waistline…especially in my case, probably three times the tulle will be needed (i.e. 9m).

Too cute! I promise to post some pictures from the photo shoot but I have to wait until it gets a bit warmer and it isn’t raining as much.