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Bellydance Costuming 101: The Bra
 
This is a tutorial on how to turn a store-bought bra into a beautifully beaded bellydance essential.
 
 
I recommend before starting any design project that you create an annotated sketch of your idea to keep you on track and on budget.  
Often, my designs often come about after spying some fabulous fabric and such was the case with this project.  I selected a semi-sheer desert colored stripe with a bit of slink to it.  Because of this, it was necessary to find a bra in a complimentary color.  If you are using an opaque fabric the base color may not matter.
To begin, I purchased an underwire bra with a seamless molded cup.  The light pink color was a good match for the fabric I had selected.  Personally, I prefer the support and security of a halter style.  If you do too, make sure the cup can be manipulated to accommodate new straps without puckering or protruding awkwardly.  
Once you know the bra fits appropriately you will begin to deconstruct the straps and sides.  Here, I simply snipped the existing straps off and very carefully cut away the mesh support on the sides of the bra.  I left the triangle in the center intact but you could also separate the cups at this point if you wanted to reattach them with just decorative trimming in a more swimsuit-styled fashion.
The finished step should look something like this. 
At this point, make sure you also have some kind of transparent drying fabric glue (washable would be ideal) and a way to smear it around.  I selected Liquid Stitch and a simple foam brush.
Because I used a stripe, I had to make sure to line up the stripes in a direction that would be complementary. With solid or forgivable patterned fabrics, simply make sure you have enough to cover each cup plus a few inches all around.  This will be trimmed later.
Once you know your pieces fit and your bra is prepped, you can begin to put a generous layer of fabric glue on the outside of one cup.  Smear it around so you have a solid layer.  
After a solid layer of glue has been achieved, lay your fabric over the cup and smooth it down evenly, trying not to warp the grain of the fabric too much.  There will be some overlap as you attempt to cover the curves of the cup.
To ease this overlap, make a dart where the underwire stops near the armpit. 
Pin this in place to be glued or stitched later. 
Once you have secured the fabric over the cup and figured out your overlapping dart, trim the excess to within about an inch to an inch and a half around the cup.
It should look something like this now.  Go ahead and do the other side in the same manner, repeating the above steps.  I recommend setting the bra aside to dry overnight before attempting to work with it again. 
Your bra should be a little stiff now from the glue, but if you have selected a bra with adequate internal foam or padding you will not notice when dancing.  (Wear and use will also help ease the stiffness of the cups.)  Now you should hand stitch that extra inch or so of fabric to the inside of the bra.  
It should look like this on the inside.  You'll have to ease the fabric around the straps. There's no need to make the inside pretty-no one will see it and you can cover it up by hand stitching a complimentary lining should you so desire.
Now, your bra should look something like this: clean around the edges, smooth over the cups, secure on the front and back.  To cover the connecting piece in the middle, use a triangular scrap of matching fabric, fold the edges over and hand stitch it in place.
No you can begin to decorate the outside.  I started with fringe on the bottom, then a layer of individually stitched coins and used a manufactured beaded ribbon for the top layer.  When sewing coins on individually, be sure to use a bead (or several) in between the coin and fabric layer so that it moves easily.  Also be sure to use a very sturdy quilting thread and knot each coin individually so that if something breaks you don't have a whole mess of beads and coins to replace.  
Be patient with applying the trim and replace your needles often - they have to get through fabric, glue, fabric, padding, and more fabric.  

Almost finished: Just one layer of sequined gold trim is needed to hide the ribbon for the manufactured trim.  Now, you should consider your halter and covering the straps.  This will be tricky as you must stretch the elastic sides at the same time as you stitch a covering trim to them.  Start by putting the bra on and measuring from the start of the side to the clasp on the back - that's how long your trim piece should be.  Then stitch the cup side on with a secure knot.  Stretch the clasp side to meet the length of your measured trim.  Knot that end as well.  Then go back and fill in with a straight stitch, keeping the elastic taught along the way.  Though I made this particular bra so that it could not be adjusted, I highly recommend attaching trim in a halter style that uses a hook and eye or that can tie securely behind your neck so that it can be adjusted over time.  If you were granted an ample bosom, wider straps are likely to be more comfortable. 
Here is the finished product.  You can see the gold sequined trim prevents the elastic sides from curling back to their original shape and the halterneck stretches from one armpit, along the side of the bra, behind the neck and to the other armpit.  I ended up finishing the very center of the bra with long dangling tassels of beads and a decorative metal plate that I had removed from some necklace or belt.  To make unique and interesting costumes, don't overlook antique baubles, brooches, metal belts, belt buckles, dresser drawer decorations, etc, as sources for one-of-a-kind adornments.