Thread: best method for shotening a costume?

I have a costume made with lycra fabric and I need to shorten the length from the bottom by about an inch and half. There is no beading on the bottom where I need to shorten it so that part is no problem. However I am such a shortie that if possible I would like to alter it in such a way that the lenght can be let down in case I eventually decide to sell the costume to another dancer.

What is the best method for doing this? Or is it even possible?

If it is a straight skirt, it should be possible to put a large hem in it. Depending on how much wear and tear the garment gets, someone else might or might not be able to take the hem down later. Hems can get stubbornly ground-in dirt, or even fraying and visible wear where they come in contact with the ground, which may not be easily corrected when the next dancer takes the stitching out and relaxes the fold. Even if this happens, it might still be possible to add new decorations to cover the damage or to embellish it with a ruffle or feathers, but it can be difficult to reverse engineer such changes in ways that look integrated sensibly into the design (as opposed to looking like kludge-y afterthoughts).

If the skirt has a curved hem, it will be more difficult to turn up that much, because the outer edge will have to be reduced to fit into its new, narrower circumference, and that's difficult to do without visible lumping/puckering, especially on a soft fabric whose movement would be affected by a big, bunchy hem. Another thought is that if the skirt has prominent slits, a large hem can be visible to the audience, so that may be a look you don't like. My suggestion would be either bite the bullet and shorten it with the hope you can find another person your height or smaller if you resell, or dance in shoes with a heel when you wear that costume to preserve the existing length.

How is the skirt constructed and decorated? I actually prefer to take skirts up at either the waist or just above the knee- above the knee is usually easier since so many skirts have beading at the waist (okay, hip)
You can take in a tuck, but honestly, there are plenty of us short dancers out here- I'd say adjust it so YOU can enjoy it fully now & worry about finding a short buyer later.

hmm....an inch and half isn't too bad, short is relative how "short" are you? I agree there are short dancers out here and depending on the skirt, I take mine up from the top if I can, or from the bottom. However, I agree with Tourbeau about the possible "dirt line". I've gotten the dirt line on "real life" pants so I'd imagine it can happen to costumes. If you absolutley LOVE the costume I say hem it.

You may want to post a picture of the skirt, that way we may be able to assist better.