Learn how to design a professional belly dance skirt from start to finish! Mao walks you through her simple design process—from sketch to final result. Discover how to make placement decisions, build layers, and add finishing touches that transform your vision into a stunning, stage-ready skirt! Read more →
Is your dance skirt looking a little plain? It might just need one of these 3 simple fixes. From flounce ruffles that add gorgeous movement, to cutouts that give your skirt a designer edge, to layering textures for depth and richness — these are beginner-friendly upgrades that make a huge difference. Read more →
Discover 12 easy DIY holiday gifts for dancers! These beginner-friendly projects look amazing and take under an hour to make. Perfect for friends or yourself. Read more →
Discover 10 skirt patterns you can sew today! From circle skirts to mermaid and tiered skirts, every style is built from 3 simple constructions. This video explains each pattern step-by-step with tutorials, perfect for DIY outfits or belly dance costumes. Learn skirt design basics and create stunning handmade skirts. Read more →
4 different types of belly dance mermaid skirts, how they are constructed, and which one YOU should choose. Read more →
Do you have a skirt that could use a little makeover? You can easily transform a simple skirt into an exciting ruffle skirt if you know how to add a ruffle to a skirt! The original skirt is from my 3-panel mermaid skirt tutorial, and I decided to add ruffles to upgrade it. In this video, you’ll see how to… Read more →
In Part 1 of this 3-panel mermaid skirt series, I showed you how to make your own pattern for this 3-panel belly dance mermaid skirt. If you missed it, start from there 🙂 In this tutorial, I’ll show you how to cut the fabric, and assemble all pieces together. Let’s get started! Click here to sign up for the Sparkly… Read more →
I shared this 5-panel mermaid skirt tutorial years ago, and it has been one of the most popular tutorials at Sparkly Belly. And since I published it, so many of you have requested a simpler, 3-panel mermaid skirt. Thank you! So today I’m thrilled to share with you my 3-panel mermaid skirt over the next 2 posts, more straightforward than… Read more →
This month I’ve decided to make a 2-piece mermaid costume! It’s perfect for a fun summer belly dance performance, but it’s also great for parties, festivals and halloween 😀 In this tutorial, I’ll show you how to make this really pretty, floating seashell bra top. Let’s get started! Click here to sign up for the Sparkly Belly newsletter and get… Read more →
I like belly dance costumes that have decorations sewn onto the skirt. 🙂 For this type of skirt, you don’t have to wear a separate belt, which can be more comfortable for some of you. At least for me – less opportunity for costume malfunction 😉 But how do you sew decorations to the stretch waistband of… Read more →