Tango-ize your clothes!
It is fun to embellish tango clothes with sparkly things like buttons, pins, sequins and other things and to edit clothes to make them more tango-able.
Here are some of the places to go for sparkly bits to sew on tango clothes:
M&J Button and Trim
1008 Sixth Ave. btwn 37th & 38th Sts: Expensive but they have everything you can imagine in buttons and trim, and it isn't really expensive if you are just buying one button, right? (I challenge you to go in this place and buy just one button, hahaha)
P&S Fabrics
360 Broadway between Franklin & Leonard sts): When you need the basics in black or white sequined trim for super cheap, this is the place. They also have the basic rhinestone strands for cheaper too, and fabric by the yard.
Drugstores or cheap jewelry places, especially cheap jewelry for kids
These are GREAT places for finding sparkly things for cheap. You can take them apart and put them on your clothes. For example, if you find a cool sparkly barrette, just take off the barrette part and sew it on your outfit. They often come in cool shapes perfect for sewing right at the center of the chest in front, or if you make a V out of the back of your dress, to sew right at the base of the V in the small of your back.
_______________________________________________________________________
Tango clothing tricks
Buy a tight, straight skirt that goes just below the knees, take out the seam on the right side (and sometimes also the left side) and sew it into a slit. For that matter, you can just cut a slit anywhere (in most fabrics) and sew it.
Turn regular straps into halter straps so they don't fall off your shoulders as you are dancing. I do this with almost all strap tops and dresses because I never want to worry about the dress falling off while I'm dancing. Just cut the strap at the back of the dress, then either tie or sew it behind your neck.
Note: You can do the same thing with bras. I've converted many bras for this purpose.
Lower the back of dresses. With many dresses, after you turn them into halters, you can lower the back by cutting it in a V or U shape and sewing it.
Change the front of a dress from a U into a V. I like the V shape line for myself better than the U shape so if I have a dress I really like but it is a U front, I just take approximately 1-2 inches in the center and pleat them together and sew it. This creates a V or a heart shape. It is nice to add something sparkly there too, although don't make it too big or it will press into your chest if you are dancing close embrace.
Make a flattering tuck right under the butt in your dress so that the dress curves with your curves more. To do this, do the same as the above for changing the front of a dress from a U into a V but do it right under your butt, except with vertical pleats instead of horizontal. Decide where the tuck should go while you are wearing the dress and safety pin it, then take it off and sew it.
Replace the straps on a dress or top with different fabric. I especially like to replace thin straps (which sometimes press into the flesh just above the breasts and looks bad) with wide fabric, either netting or lace. I scrunch the fabric a little and put small pleats in, extending the ends from just under the armpits to the center of the chest.
One of my favorite tricks….for a dress that is too short for tango, wear another skirt underneath it to make it seem like it is part of the dress. Here is a good site for finding a very affordable "underneath" skirt: www.ekclothing.com
Another option is to wear a vintage slip (they usually have lace around the bottom) underneath a short dress. Here is the best website I’ve found for vintage slips: www.vintageslips4u.com
Even though the ordering process is a bit convoluted on that site, the slips are really lovely. Beware that vintage clothing is sized much smaller than sizes today. A vintage large is more like a current medium.
Here are some of the places to go for sparkly bits to sew on tango clothes:
M&J Button and Trim
1008 Sixth Ave. btwn 37th & 38th Sts: Expensive but they have everything you can imagine in buttons and trim, and it isn't really expensive if you are just buying one button, right? (I challenge you to go in this place and buy just one button, hahaha)
P&S Fabrics
360 Broadway between Franklin & Leonard sts): When you need the basics in black or white sequined trim for super cheap, this is the place. They also have the basic rhinestone strands for cheaper too, and fabric by the yard.
Drugstores or cheap jewelry places, especially cheap jewelry for kids
These are GREAT places for finding sparkly things for cheap. You can take them apart and put them on your clothes. For example, if you find a cool sparkly barrette, just take off the barrette part and sew it on your outfit. They often come in cool shapes perfect for sewing right at the center of the chest in front, or if you make a V out of the back of your dress, to sew right at the base of the V in the small of your back.
_______________________________________________________________________
Tango clothing tricks
Buy a tight, straight skirt that goes just below the knees, take out the seam on the right side (and sometimes also the left side) and sew it into a slit. For that matter, you can just cut a slit anywhere (in most fabrics) and sew it.
Turn regular straps into halter straps so they don't fall off your shoulders as you are dancing. I do this with almost all strap tops and dresses because I never want to worry about the dress falling off while I'm dancing. Just cut the strap at the back of the dress, then either tie or sew it behind your neck.
Note: You can do the same thing with bras. I've converted many bras for this purpose.
Lower the back of dresses. With many dresses, after you turn them into halters, you can lower the back by cutting it in a V or U shape and sewing it.
Change the front of a dress from a U into a V. I like the V shape line for myself better than the U shape so if I have a dress I really like but it is a U front, I just take approximately 1-2 inches in the center and pleat them together and sew it. This creates a V or a heart shape. It is nice to add something sparkly there too, although don't make it too big or it will press into your chest if you are dancing close embrace.
Make a flattering tuck right under the butt in your dress so that the dress curves with your curves more. To do this, do the same as the above for changing the front of a dress from a U into a V but do it right under your butt, except with vertical pleats instead of horizontal. Decide where the tuck should go while you are wearing the dress and safety pin it, then take it off and sew it.
Replace the straps on a dress or top with different fabric. I especially like to replace thin straps (which sometimes press into the flesh just above the breasts and looks bad) with wide fabric, either netting or lace. I scrunch the fabric a little and put small pleats in, extending the ends from just under the armpits to the center of the chest.
One of my favorite tricks….for a dress that is too short for tango, wear another skirt underneath it to make it seem like it is part of the dress. Here is a good site for finding a very affordable "underneath" skirt: www.ekclothing.com
Another option is to wear a vintage slip (they usually have lace around the bottom) underneath a short dress. Here is the best website I’ve found for vintage slips: www.vintageslips4u.com
Even though the ordering process is a bit convoluted on that site, the slips are really lovely. Beware that vintage clothing is sized much smaller than sizes today. A vintage large is more like a current medium.
