Nancy's Silk Skirt Gets a New Lease on Life

Seven years ago, Nancy brought me a wonderful silk georgette skirt.  She wanted it used to create and ballroom costume and we decided that costume could be both a rhythm gown and a smooth dress, by making the skirt removable.  It was her first ballroom costume collaboration and the results were good!  This is the rhythm dress we created, and the skirt pulled on underneath the dress to convert it to a ballgown.

I wish I had taken a photo of the skirt alone, before I incorporated it into Nancy's new ball gown, but I did not manage to do that.  I did take a quick shot of the embellished leotard with the skirt before it was assembled into the new gown, so you can see the relationship in the graphics.

AND I can show you the skirt in its new configuration!



In both cases, the embellishment details for the gowns were suggested by the graphic design in the skirt.  The first was a simpler, brighter, bronze level result,  and the new one is, for me, a WOW! 

My partner Michele and I debated and sampled several different processes to recreate the graphic on Nancy's new French Vanilla leotard base.  We knew we wanted the lines to be defined in the same way as they were on the skirt and then embellished with jet stones and flatback pearls.  After testing appliqued strips of black fabric, and the meticulous application of black permanent fabric marker, we decided that the latter had the most similar visual effect to that of the skirt.  After careful design and planning, and much pre-washing of the red lycra to avoid any post process color bleeding, we were very plesed with our results!

This is certainly the gown of a more advanced and more experienced dancer, one who knows she will be seen, even in black.  And a more elegant and serious look than the original.  When she picked up her gown, she brought in a Light Siam choker style necklace and bangles I had made for another costume of hers, and they looked perfect!

I am really wishing I could be at the Arthur Murray Showcase this weekend to see Nancy, Christy, and also Linda, who has a new Gently Used Rhythm Gown dance, but I will be at MN Star Ball on the other end of town.  I hope you will make it to one event or the other, and I hope anyone at the Arthur Murray showcase with a digital camera might send me a few images to keep me posted on what I am missing!  Good luck to you, my lovely ladies!

A Bouquet of Roses for Tracy

This gown was actually begun in 2011, when our client Tracy was headed for the Ohio Star Ball.  Unfortunately, life intervened, and Tracy put the gown on hold for several months while finding a new job.  When she phoned to let us know we could begin again, we were thrilled, both for Tracy, and because this was a gown we were excited to make!

Tracy is a super-organized woman, and when she brings me her inspiration images, they are always in page protectors and  she usually has clear ideas about what she wants.  See???

When I look a this array, I see, shades of pink, floral imagery, and prints, but my eye keeps returning to the upper left image of the cut-metal bowl.  I loved how the graphic repeated and how it referenced "rose" without being specifically detailed.  I also really liked the visual importance of the negative space in recognizing the image.  Tracy is is feminine woman, and although she liked the floral imagery, she did not want silk flowers or anything three-dimensional, or even a print.  She was also interested in clean lines, simple shapes and lots of sparkle  I think there was also a buckled leather cuff with chain that she brought in.  So all these ideas poured into the creative hopper, and out came rhinestoned belts and buckles and a figure-ground reversal floral pattern imagery, to be created in rhinestones on the gown bodice.

I experimented with the graphic in the bowl, but didn't like how it expanded and contracted, so I found another using Google images from Sweet Clip Art that I thought was perfect.  I got permission from the artist who created it, who was very charming and wanted to see what I did with her image when I was finished.

I  blew it up.  I contracted it.  And then I designed vines to go with it, and a rose bud.  The darn bud reminded me of the Hallmark logo a bit, but I found, turned sideways, it was less offensive and so used it careful only on angles.

I find the back very pleasing with it's pretty drape to balance the gentleman's hand on the dancer's left side and provide a bit of softness and movement.  I also like the placement of buckles, two at the front opposite sides, and the one center back.

We also had lots of fun creating the bangle bracelets for this gown, using many different patterns and ideas.

I'm pleased with the end result and I hope Tracy will be too.  She wore it at Minnesota Madness last weekend and I was thrilled to see it (and Tracy!) in action.  It's sophisticated and beautiful, as is she!

New Listings for August!

I am back at work and anxious to show you what we made last spring at Made for Movement.  I'm collecting images and stories, and if you have anything to share with me from Twin Cities Open 2012, please do! 

We are happy to show you two new Gently Used listings in the harder to come by size range of 14-18.  If you or someone you know is interested in either of these beauties, fair warning, larger sizes sell fast!

First we have a beautiful sheath style Rhythm gown in slimming Sapphire blue, with lots of lush detailing.  Swirly leaves slash diagonally across the neckline and beneath the bust of this sleek gown, and continue onto sleeve and shoulder.
The leaves are outlined in  Swarovski Crystal AB and filled with Chrysolite, Olivene, Emerald, Peridot, Aquamarine, Sapphire and Blue Zircon.  The supple dance crepe body is covered with Cobalt, and as with all Made for Movement gowns, a lycra body suit provides support and structure underneath. Delicate flesh mesh left sleeve supports your arm and glimmers with ss16 Topaz AB. The gown is finished with two layers of rayon fringe for lots of great movement and nicely displayed leg action.

This gown includes a simple pair of leaf motif earrings.

Asking price is $1600.

Also just listed is this Monet print ballgown, currently configured with a diagonal georgette sash and substantial left side float.  It features a slim, dropped waist bodice of print stretch mesh over soft and stretchy angelskin, embellished with matching Swarovski ss20 crystals.

A soft georgette two layer skirt, with a double circle volume, is the same print over solid soft turquoise, and provides rich, full movement.

The back has a delicate cowl and the shoulders and hip are embellished with organza leaves, edged in Crystal AB.  This gown comes with three georgette flower hair clips, and a pair of delicate rosette earrings.

The gown originally had a banner of crystal AB dew kissed fabric roses, and these could replace the front drape, if a sleeker look if desired.

Visit us at our website, www.made4movement.com to check out these and more Gently Used listings!

Karen's Magical Hologram Sequin Cloth

Karen visited my studio with her friend Jeannie, at the design meeting for Jeannie's velvet Tropical Paradise gown.

While Jeannie and I worked, Karen fell in love with a swatch of fabric. Not just any piece of fabric, and I wish, wish, WISH!, I could show you this fabric in person, because no photograph will ever do it justice.

Karen's fabric is a stretch mesh, covered with hologram effect turquoise sequins. The holographic diffraction on these tiny sequins works in the same way as the miniscule spiraling ridges on a CD.  So image thousands of teensy turquoise CD's, about 1/4 inch in diameter, sewn onto cloth and you have the general idea of the amazing magic of Karen's fabric.

This is not a fabric for all body types. It magnifies and amplifies body shape. Fortunately, Karen is trim and
fit, and can afford to have her lovely curves highlighted. This fabric must also be cut and fit carefully to lie smoothly on the body with the fewest possible seams.

Karen is a past Mrs. Minnesota, who created her own pageant gown and is a capable seamstress herself.  She had looked at silhouettes and knew approximately what shape she wanted her gown to take.  I agreed that her idea was a good one, and refined it a bit for her.  She chose a asymmetrical bodice, with a soft (and shiny!) full skirt, to enable it to hold it's own against the dazzle of the sequin cloth.  Since there was no prefect matching color for the turquoise of the sequin cloth, especially given that it changed colors itself, Karen found an electric green georgette, and we layered the two fabrics to get an nice match, as well as providing visual interest for the skirt in movement. 

Given the all-over glimmer of the fabric, we decided to define and embellish the edge of the bodice with texure and color, rather than more sparkle, and chose two colors of acrylic cabochons that again, blended to make a perfect hue.  Karen agreed to do the embellishment of her gown, once it was finished, and did a great job of applying the acrylic cabs.

Karen wanted co-ordinating jewelry, and we wanted it to stand out as different from the border embellishments, so we chose to use both some of the large cabochons and Crystal AB Swarovski as an accent, and again, Karen did her own embellishment application. 

 And finally, here are a few shots of Karen from her performance, with teacher James Woods, at the Snowball, January 2012.

Ember's Icy Skyline

Ember is an accomplished woman, with a busy life as the Chief Advancement Officer with Lutheran Social Service of Minnesota. Known for her work as a broadcast political analyst, she is also an attorney, former Minnesota state senator, former radio personality, and enjoys acting in local community theatre productions. 

After some years away from competitive ballroom dance, she visited my studio last fall to ask my professional opinion of several gently used gowns she was considering buying for use in a local "Dancing with the Celebrities" charitable event. I gave her my thoughts and we artfully adjusted her choice (a Made for Movement gown) to fit. She looked great in the gown. and dazzled the crowd at her event with her winning performance.  Here you see her with her Dancer's Studio teacher Chris Kempainen, (also wearing a Made for Movement ballroom suit) holding their trophies.

She must also have been having a good time, because she decided to return to competitive dance and asked me to design a custom rhythm gown for her for the Snow Ball, which I was glad to do. 

As her career would suggest, Ember is a conservative woman, at home in tailored suits and not really interested in ruffles or overly-feminine details on her clothing.  As a dancer, she has both good performance skills, and long, attractive lines to display.  Ember wanted a gown that would be reflective of her stately elegance, and also her joyfulness at her return to dancing.

We wanted her gown to have simple, sleek lines, and be all one color.  Ember chose fuchsia, (a very popular choice in the last year) and it certainly is a joyful color.  We wanted her rhythm look to flatter her body and be tasteful and appropriate to her age.  We chose a longer, soft skirt with nice movement, but not fussy frills or ruffles, and sleeves to connect her slim arms to her body and emphasize her long lines. 

Ember is dancing here with her dance professional and teacher, the wonderful Scott Anderson, who is also the organizer of the Twin Cites Open. Ever an aware guy on the floor, he noticed me with my camera, and moved closer, so my photos are a little better than usual here!  Ember has a lovely hourglass figure with a very small waist and we planned to reveal her waist while de-emphasizing her bust and hip with diagonal design lines, meticulously placed in fittings to flatter and define.

Although her skirt is long, we used a diagonal hemline to allow us to see her legs and knees in action.

When it came to embellishment, in keeping with Ember's dislike of the overdone and fussy, I let her look through a collection of prom dresses. She found one with details she liked, and I used those details as inspiration for the rhinestone application, as you can see here.

I applied the stoning to the top of the bodice, and my partner Michele did the hip line.  I thought (perhaps influenced maybe by working on this gown in January) that the detail looked like icicles on a roof.  Like the story of the blind men and the elephant, Michele thought it was a lovely representation of a winter night time city skyline.  I'm fond of the cuff detail as well.

Ember was a joy to work with, and we look forward to seeing her again, when she is ready for her next custom gown.

A Word About Ed

WOW!  That is the word that best describes what I saw when I watched my client Ed dance at the Snow Ball.  I could use some other words.  Like fast, powerful, controlled, and expressive, but this is supposed to be a blog about costumes.

I really need to spend more energy featuring the men of Made for Movement.  Since they almost always wear black, and are intended to provide both a physical and visual frame for the ladies they partner, it's very easy to let them slip away in to the background.  But they really look great.

We like to try to help all of our clients, men included, find a powerful competitive image for themselves that flatters and emphasizes their movement and body, but also reveals something of their personal character.  Ed works in the banking industry, and we wanted to hint at that with his double breasted, immaculate, and conservative look.  We chose a matte black gabardine and beautiful matte satin tuxedo facing with satin buttons for this sleeveless jacket, and Made for Movement tailor Michele did a great job with it.

Our sleeveless jackets are very popular with our gentlemen.  We make ballroom suits as well, and they are an engineering feat, allowing the dancer to raise his arms while the shoulders of the suit  stay neatly down and flat.  But for American style smooth dancing especially, the sleeveless jacket provides the illusion of a full suit, while offering our clients the freedom of movement and coolness of a vest.

Ed's beautiful partner is his teacher Julie, a National Nine Dance Champion, and the person deserving some credit for my opening WOW! But Ed can take a bow as well, since teachers cannot dance for anyone, and Ed is clearly doing his part. Julie is also a Made for Movement client.  Her gown was re-done this summer, a renewal project to give a gown made several years ago a new lease on life.  We added the color to a gown that was originally white and re-furbished and replaced some jewelry and the results are splendid.

Please do not miss Julie and the rest of the Beyond Ballroom Dance Company, February 3-5th at the Cowles Center.  We are working on costumes for two of their new pieces this week and are really looking forward to the event.   We hope to see you there!

Congratulations to both Ed and Julie, on a successful Snow Ball.

Celebrating 25 Years!

Made for Movement was born 25 years ago this month, in 1987, and a little celebrating is in order.


We have had 4 different locations, and by my estimate, created nearly 1000 costumes for Twin Cities competitive ballroom dancers in those years.  I believe I have managed to make the things I love the most; 3 dimensional design, beautiful fabrics, all things sparkly, and dance, into a perfect career.


As I finish the last of three new gowns for the Snowball this weekend, I wanted to look back a little, and look ahead as well.

First, let's look ahead.  Of greatest importance, I want you to know that we are raising our rates this year.  Each year, the cost of rhinestones, fabric and notions goes up, but Made for Movement has charged the same hourly rate for our labor since 2005!  After seven years of holding the line, it's time for an increase.  But for all of you who book with us by the 15th of January, for any project for any time this year,  we will honor our 2005 rate.  So stop by our display at the Snowball and make sure your projects for this year are on our schedule to take advantage of this offer.  To give you an example of the savings you can get by scheduling NOW,  I just finished a new gown at a cost of $2050.  At our new rate, this same gown will cost $2300, so book your costume needs for 2012 by the 15th of January, and save!

Now for a quick look back!  In 2011, we made 22 new gowns, dressed 15 men in either Latin, Smooth or Standard attire, and sold 12 Gently Used gowns, plus did several "renewal" projects, (a new skirt, a new sleeve, a new look for an older gown) working at our usual project-a-week pace.




The average new, custom-designed Latin or Rhythm Gown cost about $2000 and the average ballgown cost was $2450, which makes us a huge bargain by industry standards, and this will still be true when our new rate is in place.

For those of you looking for an exceptional price on a beautifully made gown, I just got a couple of new Gently Used listings, and they are being cleaned and readied for the rack on Friday, so, VISIT US AT THE SNOWBALL!










OH!  And here's a little sneak peek at a detail on a new gown that I am loving.  I can't wait to see it (and it's lovely and talented owner) dance!