Dyed Crinoline

The initial vision of my dress included a colored sash; now that I have the dress and the sash is such a muted, earthy tone I wanted to find some other way to add a pop of color. I was quickly inspired by brides who had dyed the crinoline under their dress: not only is it unexpected, but it's a fun way to surprise people while spinning on the dance floor or picking up the skirt.

If done right, the color won't show through the dress, and will only appear when it pops out underneath.

My dress definitely needs a crinoline to fill out the skirt properly, however they are ridiculously overpriced (as with most things in the bridal industry!) To purchase one new I was looking at $45.00 or more, which is not something I could justify considering that I could *potentially* destroy it (and/or the washing machine, other clothing, etc.) in the dye process. Not only that, but my lingerie budget for the wedding needs to go towards a good strapless bustier.

A few years ago I had purchased several dress patterns from a local fabric store that was closing, and among those I had a pattern for a bridal crinoline that was part of an evening wear collection.

I went shopping for fabric, and purchased 6 yards of ivory dress lining ($2.00 / yard on clearance at JoAnns), and 10 yards of light green sparkle tulle ($.89 cents/yard). I purchased thread ($1.75) and bias tape for the drawstring ($1.25) The total cost, including the pattern (which was $1.00 several years ago), totaled about $24.00. Some of the lining and thread will be used in other projects for the wedding, further lowering the actual cost of my colorful slip!

The pattern I had only gave instructions for an un-lined, tulle-free slip. Since that defeated the point of having green tulle, I had to get creative. One option was to cut two of the crinoline pattern, sew them together, and put the tulle in between the two layers. However, not wanting the same pleated skirt lining the crinoline, I pulled a generic skirt from another pattern to make the lining out of. This way, the interior of the slip fits like a regular 3-panel skirt (so that the tulle adds the bulk, not the fabric) and the exterior is pleated to make room for the tulle.

I began by tracing and cutting the pieces of both patterns, including an extra yoke (1st / top tier) of the crinoline pattern to sew to the lining.

I sewed the lining together first, attaching the lining portion of the yoke to the top. The lining pattern had to be modified slightly to fit properly with the crinoline pattern.

The third (bottom) tier of the crinoline had so much fabric! I almost shortened this, thinking it was way too much, but once I started sewing it became obvious that doing so would have been a mistake.

Adding pleats to each tier was the most time-consuming part of the project. I could have done smaller pleats, but again i wanted the fullness to come from the tulle - not the fabric.

Once both the exterior and the lining of the crinoline were constructed, I sewed them together at the top (waistline). I then closed the back of each piece, sewing the seam only 3/4 up from the hem. I finished the remaining 1/4 to the top by inverting the raw edges of each and sewing them together as one piece.

Almost there! I put the drawstring into the top, and sewed a straight line underneath it to seal it into a pocket. The only thing left to do was to sew in the tulle!


The tulle was a bit of a task as well, since keeping it folded and straight was somewhat difficult.

On it's own, it looks so full! However the weight of my dress compacts it.


The green doesn't even show through the lining fabric, which is great because then I know for sure that it won't show through the dress.

To the left: before the hem. To the right, after the hemming and addition of a bit more tulle.














To the right: the dress with the crinoline underneath. It fills it out just enough to keep the skirt from falling flat, but doesn't get too poofy which is exactly what I was going for! It also balances out the bottom vs. the top, and smooths out the waist/hip area (my dress needs to be cleaned and pressed, so you can't tell by looking at this picture!).

Another added benefit of the crinoline is that is will help the train and the bustle lay properly, which it would not have before.

My only concern is that the added fabric will be hot - this I know and accept. I would rather a little extra fabric than a frumpy skirt! :)