Dance shorts are great to add to your belly dance wardrobe, and they blend in best when they match your costumes!
So in this tutorial, I’ll show you 3 ways to decorate dance shorts so they stay comfortable and stretchy and look pretty. Let’s get started!
Click here to check out the Zeina Skirt with Built-in Shorts!
3 Ways to Decorate Dance Shorts
1. How to Glue on Rhinestones
Let’s start with the very basic option. Here, I’m going to decorate a pair of shorts only with rhinestones.
To do this, you need:
Rhinestones
Rhinestone picker (if you have)
Rhinestone glue – I recommend Gem-Tac
A piece of cardboard – A plain piece of cardboard is fine, but it’s even better if you cover it with plastic wrap
So first, decide where and how you want to decorate your shorts. These shorts will only be visible in these areas, so I’m going to focus on these areas.
Insert the cardboard, and stretch the shorts a little. You can place clips like this to make sure it doesn’t move.
Then using a little bit of glue at a time, start placing rhinestones. By stretching the fabric, we can prevent the stones from popping off when you stretch the shorts later.
And move the cardboard as you work through the area. The cardboard not only helps the fabric stretch but prevents the fabric from sticking to the other side. If you wrap the cardboard with plastic wrap, the fabric will come off more easily.
Continue decorating as you like, and these rhinestone shorts are complete!
2. How to Sew on Appliques
Sewing on appliques is a great way to add interesting designs to your shorts!
To do this, you need:
Appliques of your choice – I purchased these appliques from this shop.
Matching color thread – match the color of the thread to your appliques.
A piece of cardboard
Just like we did earlier, insert the cardboard into your shorts and stretch the fabric. Again, this is important because this ensures the fabric remains stretchy after we sew on appliques that don’t stretch.
Decide where to place your appliques, and place pins.
Take your double threaded needle, do a whip stitch along the outline of your applique. Keep your stitches short and diagonal, which will help the fabric keep its stretch.
Do this for all your appliques, and these shorts are complete!
3. How to Make Faux Thigh Belts
For this pair, I wanted to try making a thigh belt design. To do this, you need:
Stretch tape – I’m using 1.5cm (5/8in) wide stretch tape here. You can make a tape by cutting a strip from stretch fabric as well. Just make sure it’s as stretchy as your shorts.
Matching color thread
On your shorts, place the tape where you like. I placed mine about 5cm below the crotch seam, but I measured from the hem to keep the measurement consistent. And place pins. Be careful not to pull the tape. Just lay it on the fabric.
Take it to your sewing machine, and do a narrow zigzag stitch along the edges of the tape.
And now we have faux thigh belts on the shorts!
Generally, horizontal designs show well on dance shorts. If you place a tape vertically, you’ll very likely get folds on the shorts as you dance in them, so the design won’t show nicely. So I recommend horizontal designs like these thigh belts.
I’ve added an applique on each side of the shorts and decorated the rest with rhinestones. These appliques are from this shop, and same as ones I used to make the matching lace belt!
So there you have 3 ways to decorate dance shorts you have or make. Mix and match these methods and create an awesome pair for your next performance!
Want to Make Your Own Dance Shorts?
And if you want to learn how to make shorts that fit you well, I have great news!
You can learn to make these exact shorts, based on your own measurements, in my brand new Zeina skirt with built-in shorts premium course!
In this course, you can learn to create these beautiful skirts with built-in shorts. These shorts are very comfortable, and keep the skirts in place no matter how much you shimmy!
The best part is, these shorts are detachable, so you can wear them on their own, you can wash them easily, and swap shorts to get new looks in seconds!
The course will launch next week, and I’m so excited! If you’re curious, learn more below:
Learn more about these Zeina skirts with built-in shorts here!
Hope you liked this dance shorts decoration tutorial, and if you did, please share this tutorial with your dancer friends!
And again, check out the Zeina skirt with built-in shorts at SparklyBelly.com/shorts.
Thanks for reading, and keep sparkling!
P.S. Pin this image on your shorts idea board!
Like what you read? Want to make more costuming bits yourself?
Learn more and sign up for my free email course, Belly Dance Costume Making 101 here!