Thread: Anyone have tips on cutting a 1 piece belt into 2?

I have difficulty making 1 piece belts fit my bum/hips. so, I was wondering if there was a way to cut a 1 piece into 2 in order to assist in fitting the bum/hip area. also, I have little experience in sewing, except for hooks & such, but I always have ideas, but nervous to do anything.

any tips? so I could avoid pontential issues, like bead loss. thanks.

There's really no way around a little bit of bead loss. Just lop the thing in two where it makes sense and then re-bead what falls off and is loose. You might want to re-line it so you can have nice finished edges where you made the seperation.

Prior to cutting I would secure all the beads at least 1" in both directions. Otherwise as you work with the base pieces you will notice ongoing bead loss - in addition to the ones you lose when you cut the base. Not difficult, just a bit of time. It will certainly save you lots of time later.

Ask the Belly Dance Costume Goddess: Altering a Purchased Belt

This may have some helpful tips, but it's not specifically about making them into two piece belts.

Remember that the belt must be big enough to have an overlap on each side. It already has one overlap where you hook the ends, but now on the other ends, where you will reattach them, you need at least 2 inches or so.
I assume you want to cut the belt to be able to reattach the 2 pieces in an angle to fit you better.
- Unstitch the lining where you would cut it.
- Immediately after you cut the pieces start reattaching, fixing the beads. then try on the two pieces with a slant where they attach.
- Make sure the front piece goes on top of the back, and not the other way around. This way it's prettier.
- Make sure when you cut the pieces, the front and back are either equal, or the front is shorter than the back. If there is a curve, V shape, or anything other than a straight belt make sure that the front and back pieces will be symmetrical.
- Restitch the lining. You might need to move the hooks a bit.
It's really not that hard and shouldn't take you long, but the first time can be scary :)

The elastic trick I showed you didn't work?

Fabric Glue!!

Take the layers apart as much as you can. Run a thin bead of glue along your cutting line. Smear the bead flat into a "ribbon" and let it dry. Then cut down through the middle of the dry, glue ribbon (yeah it's hard on scissors). Both sides of the cut edge should be secure.

I am not sure what your particular fitting issue is, but I'm guessing the problem is a gap at the top. To fix this, reattach the sides at an angle. The front and back will overlap a lot at the top and a little at the bottom. Fitting the two pieces to your body is much, much easier with a friend helping! Pin, pin, pin everything.

After you've reshaped the belt and you are totally satisfied it fits, you'll probably want to remove the excess beaded material from seam allowances. To do this, run a tiny bit of fabric glue very close to the seam, but still well inside the seam allowance. Then trim away the excess, and reassemble the layers.

so enlighten us, are you going to re-do the angle where they come together? is it too loose? too tight? knowing that could help some.

I made mine two-piece to start, then added grommet holes to the end of each belt piece, so that I had adjustability. But belt piece shape still needs to be considered so it fits you.

Originally Posted by Shaula

The elastic trick I showed you didn't work?

well, I don't have the costume yet, I've been looking at a few and I'm wondering if the 1 piece belt will be an issue, so I figured maybe I could just cut into 2 ,r:; I think way too much! The elastic trick usually does work, I haven't sewn it into any new ones yet, I have to remember the stitch ,r:;

I'm a little crazy this week, SaNoorah - sorry I didn't reply to your email, I was trying to get Dave's schedule ... we can work this into a lesson if you like. It's tricky, but not hard.

xoxo