How to Make a Hawaiian Grass Skirt

Are you looking for a DIY Hawaiian grass skirt?

Well, this is the tutorial you are looking for. I will give you a step by step instruction on how to make a grass skirt to complete your Hawaiian costume.

This is DIY hula grass skirt is for Bella’s Ballet /Dance class for summer. I didn’t know that they also have Hawaiian dance. But that is a good thing. It is like hitting two birds with one stone. At least she’ll learn two different dances this summer. So, when we talk about Hawaiian dance, it won’t be complete without a hula grass skirt, flower crowns and all the floral accessories.

When I learned that they’re doing a Hula dance, I was excited to get started with making the Hawaiian grass skirt at home and the flower crowns. But I thought of taking photos of the process so I can show you how to do it. It’s actually easy to make.

A grass skirt could  be made from synthetic grass-like string like the plastic twine that I used for Bella’s grass skirt. Others use tulle, rafia, ribbons or even paper. But for me, the best material for a grass skirt is the plastic twine. It looks nice when the user sways her hips. Actually, if the skirt is really full, it would sway with minor movements.

So, today, I will show you how to make a grass skirt through pictures. I’m telling you, this is so easy! You’d surely feel good after making one.

What You Need:
Plastic Twine (different colors if desired)
Garter ( I used 5/16″ garter for mine)
Scissors
…and plenty of patience and time! lol

What to Do:

1. First, you have to measure around the waist of your daughter or whoever is going to wear it. You have to measure just along or below the belly button. I had a pink garter and so I used it for this. Remember that a garter is stretchable. So, see to it that you stretch a little around the waist and then leave a few inches for allowance. Then, gather your plastic twine.

2. Measure the length of the skirt. The length of your twine is twice the length from the belly button to the ankle. It is done this way because you need fold it into two when tying it on the garter. Cut your twine with that length. Example: Length from waist to ankle is 18″, you would cut a twine with that is 36″. Take note that you will still knot it the top, so add a little allowance too. Like you can make it around 37″ inches. For this skirt, I measured it a little above the ankle.

3. Now get your garter. Do not sew or knot the garter together yet. Start tying the twine. Fold your string in half creating a loop at the top. Then bring the twine into the loop. You call this the  Larkshead Knot. Watch here for a video of how to do the knot: Lark’s Head Knot Video.

4.  Now add some more strings and place them side by side. Make sure that you tie them close to each other.

5. So, this is how the grass skirt looks like after tying plenty of twines. Your grass skirt is about to finish.

6.  When done, try measuring the skirt again around the user then sew the garter or tie a knot.

7. Then here is the result. You already have a Hawaiian grass skirt. That was easy! So for my daughter’s skirt, I used two colors. You can be creative with your skirt colors.

8. But it doesn’t end there. You have to shred the twine. There are two ways to do it. You can shred it manually by hand as shown.

Or you can use a comb in shredding. What I don’t like about using a comb is that, some twines are torn and are left in the comb. So, you have to do it carefully. But you will be able to finish shredding quickly using a comb.

For this skirt, I used both methods but I shredded by hand on most parts. You will can see in the above image the difference of the shredded part and the non-shredded twines. The shredded ones are at the top of the skirt.

When you are done shredding, this is how your grass skirt will look like.

You can be creative with the colors too. And don’t forget to decorate it. Add tassels, flowers and whatever you can think of. This is just the basic how-to of a grass skirt. Decorating depends on you.

I decorated the grass skirt with beads, flowers and I added tassels too.

To complete the look, I used one of Bella’s top for her two-piece swimwear and I glued some plastic flowers on it. I also made her a necklace, bracelets and anklets made from beads and plastic flowers. And she is also wearing a floral headdress that I made.

Here’s Bella with the other Hawaiian dancers during her Ballet-Hawaiian summer class. Too bad she wasn’t smiling that time!

The all look pretty, right? It’s definitely worth all the hard work! But if you don’t do DIY costumes, you can buy ready-made ones.

If you are in need of a costume for yourself and other family members, be sure to check out CouponAnnie.com to save big with the latest costume coupons and promo codes.

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