Putting on Wiggles of the West IS a lot of work, but it is just so much fun, when the actual event starts.  I have probably said this before, ww plan the contest all year.  We are now in year Eleven now, hard to believe, and things sort of fall into place without a lot of worrying.  

However we were thrown a curve on our Bonus Day.  The Set Up Crew set up the whole ballroom for the contest, instead of  the smaller area we had reserved.  They let us have it for the same price and it worked out beautifully!!!  The band and the scheduled dancers got to perform on the stage during the Hafla.  It was like a night club.  Everyone loved it, so the Bags are going to do it again next year.  We also had three workshops on Thursday instead of our normal two, during the day. taught my new "Hip Fit" workshop - making a Costume Belt - first thing in the morning (not the best time, so I took it to be fair to the other teachers).  I had three attendees who had never made a costume, nor did they sew - that is a first!  Saahira taught "Stage Presence: Be the Dancer" next to a slightly larger group than I had.  The third workshop was taught by our dear friend Jim Boz, we had never tried three workshops before, but he was willing to gamble with us.  He had a huge turn out!  Considering it was Thursday afternoon it was GREAT!  Jim taught "Hip Articulations & Isolations for Accents & Drum Solos".  What a fabulous workshop!  We will definitely have him teach again.


Thursday night Mediterranean Raqs Band took the stage like they owned it and wowed us all.  Saqra even acted as MC.  Our dancers were: Katrina, Yasmina La Rouche, Rose & Valerie, Roxanne, Starr, Nahlah and her troupe (including her 9 month pregnant daughter), and Natira.  And of course lots of open floor time for all of us to kick up our heels.  Actually having the bigger room was perfect, because we had such a huge turn out.  The Hafla is really catching on and growing!!

    I’m going to cover one bra for demonstration, because basically I do it the same way every time.  I chose the Cabaret bra, because the lighter fabric will show up better in photos.  Buy a bra that fits comfortably, fit is the most important part.  Buy one that is big enough, but not a size bigger, as you may have heard before.  With my draping method there is no reason to buy larger.  You will need a bra that supports itself, by this I mean that the cups will stand up on their own.  You do not need a cup so hard, that when you knock on it, it sounds like a helmet.  Comfort is my big thing.  Straps and fasteners are nothing to worry about, because we will replace them.


1.  If there is lace on the bra or a cute bow, cut it off, it is usually just tacked on.  If lace connects the cups, reinforce it.  I generally reinforce with felt, but since the cover fabric is lightweight I chose to reinforce with interfacing.


2.  Cut off the straps and the hook & eye areas.  We will be replacing those later.  Now cut a square of fabric large enough to easily cover the bra cup.  Don’t be stingy, more is always better than trying to piece something together.

 
3.  Now start pinning.  One pin at the point of the cup to hold the fabric centered.  Next a pin on each of the 4 compass points.  Now starting at the top and pin along the edge of the cup, the top edge must be smooth.  Work your way around the inside of the cup edge pinning. (See Photo below)  If the fabric is soft you can work the cover fabric so you have one large dart on the bottom or the side and sometimes both.  With this fabric it worked out to have 3 darts.  Keep the fabric smooth, but do not stretch it in anyway.  Stretching it will make the cups smaller and flatter.


4.  Next pin on the outside edge of the under wire.  I prefer under wire bras for best support.  Turn the fabric over the edge of the top and pin again.  Turn the fabric over the edge of the bottom and pin again.  Now you are ready to start stitching in place. 
5.  Hand sew using small stitches on the top so they barely show, if possible, leaving the longer traveling stitches for the underside.  Don’t worry about these showing, because you will be lining the bra cups.  Do not pull stitches too tight.  If you pull too tight you will make the cups smaller and flatter.


6.  Both cups are now covered and stitched down.  Take a squarish scrap of the cover fabric fold the sides under and pin it in place to cover the center part and stitch into place.


7.  Take a piece of paper (I used copy paper) and lay your bra side panel on it.  Mark the width of the side as it connects to the cup.  Draw the slant of the bra.  Now stretch the side as far as you can, mark it.  Now connect your marks to form a pattern for the side panel.  Add about 1/2 inch to the sides for your sewing allowance.  You now have a pattern for the side panel casing.  By keeping the original side panel intact you will give yourself both breathing room and more support.


8.  If your fabric is soft, cut four sides.  If the fabric might be damaged by sweat or be scratchy against your skin, cut two of the top fabric and two of a lining fabric.  Make sure to cut one pair with your pattern up and one pair with your pattern down to accommodate the different two sides.  The connection point is slightly longer on the bottom side of the bra, so you need one set for each side, left & right.
9.  Sew the sides together, right sides together, on the sewing machine.  Turn the right sides out.  Top-stitch close to the edge for extra strength.
10.  If you haven’t cut the hook and eye sections off, cut them off now.  Take interfacing or felt and sew it onto the cut ends of the side pieces on the sewing machine.  Go back and forth on the elastic edge and the felt/interfacing so the are strongly connected.


11.  Now feed the side into the side casing, making sure the new end goes all the way to the end of the casing.  Pin the interfacing/felt in place through all the layers, this is where you will attach your new stronger hook and eye later.  Bring the wide edge up to the bra and pin it in place on top side.  Hand stitch this to the bra covering and the bra.  Now turn it over and sew the facing side to the bra edge.


12.  Making the Straps:  I use belting twill tape (which I also sell on my web site and at workshops — sorry small plug), because it will support any weight added to the bra during the embellishing.  For larger sizes I use 1 inch wide twill tape, because it will not cut into your shoulders.  For smaller sizes I cut the twill tape in half or 3/4 or you can buy it that size.  Measure how long they need to be front to back.  I do not recommend a Halter Style neckline.  It puts too much pressure on your neck vertebrae.  It is especially bad for large breasted women or a bra that has a lot of embellishment.  Standard Straps go from front to back and attach close to the hook and eye area, so they do not slip off your shoulders.  Cross-over Back straps give the illusion of a halter neckline, but cross over in the back for the proper support.  Cross-over Straps need to be longer.
13.  Lay your twill tape on your fabric and cut a long rectangle wide enough to overlap on the back side of the strap.  Fold the first side over to almost the edge and pin in place.  Fold the second half over the other side, this will give you a smooth front side.  Tuck under about 1/4 inch of fabric to make a finished seam and protect from raveling.  Hand stitch the fabric in place.


14.  Attach the straps to the front by placing them where the old straps were and behind the cup.  Hand stitch in place.  Don’t skimp on these stitches, they are your support structure.


15.  You are now done with the covering and ready to embellish!!!