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We know that planning for an upcoming season can be a challenging yet exciting time!  When it comes to your team's dance costumes, there are many questions. Where do you start?  What information do you need!  Luckily it's pretty simple.  All you need to get started with designing a dance costume are these four things: budget, time frame, quantity, and concept.  Read on to learn more!!

Prescott High School selling cotton candy to fundraise for their dance team

When it comes to dance costume budget tips, the best advice we can offer is to contribute more to your team's budget with fundraising!  It’s a great way to help pay for your team’s expenses, and a little goes a long way.

Have your team work together to plan and run their fundraising efforts for ultimate team bonding! Plus, there are always a few great life lessons along the way like teamwork, customer service, and budgeting.  Here are 18 fundraising ideas for your dance team's next event.

Whether you have a tight budget or are in a time crunch... planning for your team's dance costume isn't easy! To make the costume process a little easier and more cost effective, consider upcycling an old costume! One of the best ways to save money is to use something you already have.  

Using last year's costume doesn't mean you have to sacrifice a fresh look either!  There are easy ways you can make simple changes to your old costume to create a whole new look! 

Many custom dance costume companies are willing to alter your old costumes for you, or you could DIY. All your old costume needs is a little TLC, time, and proper garment care and it'll be just like new!

Here are a few ideas on how you could upcycle your dance costume:

We know that costume planning can be overwhelming! You want to find the perfect look for your team while still staying within budget. Sometimes staying within budget means you have to sacrifice finding a look that’s unique for your team, right? Wrong! Don’t sacrifice your style! Instead, find ways you can create your own look with existing styles by simply changing the fabric color!

Rhinestones helped take this Raelyn dance costume to the next level! 

The easiest way to transform a costume?  With Rhinestones!  Stones can add the perfect finishing touch and take a simple costume from boring to stunning!  

This labor intensive embellishment, can often be the most expensive part of your dance costume or skating dress if left to the professionals.  But it is also the easiest to do yourself!!  If you are interested in saving a few dollars, check out our step-by-step instructional video below! 

Last week we took a look at how to rhinestone using Hotfix stones, which have the glue pre-applied to the back.  This week we'll take a look at rhinestoning a costume using flat back stones, which require the application of glue separately.   Follow this tutorial, and you'll get the hang of it in no time! 

How to Rhinestone a Dance Costume or Skate Dress: Flat Back Method 

The Octavia Half Skirt before and after the perfect finishing touch - rhinestones!

Rhinestones: an essential ingredient for most dance costumes and skating dresses! They're a great way to add a little crowd-pleasing sparkle, create a little extra presence on the stage, and help your performers feel great!  But on the flip side, it can be costly to completely bling out your costume.  The best way to save a few dollars when it comes to rhinestoning?  Do it yourself!  Check out this step-by-step instructional video below, and you'll be a blinging machine in no time!  

This tutorial looks at  how to rhinestone using Hotfix stones, which have the glue pre-applied to the back.  For flat back stones which requires application of glue separately, check out part two of this series: How to Rhinestone a Costume - Flat Back Method!  

How to Rhinestone a Dance Costume or Skate Dress: Hotfix Method

How many lives can your dance or skate costume live?  Plenty, if you play it right!  Wearing the same costume 2 years in a row is an excellent way to save money, but have you ever thought of selling your team's digs to another group?  

The University of St. Thomas Dance Team (USTDT) did just that with their 2013-2014 jazz costume, which then went on to be sold again!  After wearing their Jazz costume at UDA Nationals, USTDT sold thier costume to Chaska Dance Team who wore it for a year.  Then, Chaska passed it on to Duluth Denefeld Dance Team, who became the third team to wear this trend setting outfit, taking it all the way to the Minnesota State Dance Team Championships in 2016.  What a testiment to quality and conservation (though we don't really want to get a whiff of those babies!).  

Are you as ready as we are to kick off the next season? We know this time often begins with camp - a whole chunk of time dedicated to team bonding and bringing everyone together! It's the first time you get to show off your team to the world, so style and passion are a must! And camp tops have become an essential for sporting team spirit. So, how can you get the most out of your campwear investment, especially when budgets are always tight? Here are a few tips that prove a little extra planning and time could potentially save yourself some money and stress later! Read on to see how to make the most out of your dance camp apparel:

It’s that quiet time of year for high school dance and skate teams right now … competitions have drawn to a close, but next year’s team hasn’t been formed yet. And while it’s the perfect time to take a much needed break from the season’s hectic activities and practice schedules, it’s also the perfect time to start planning for next year! We know, we know, “early bird gets the worm”, blah, blah, blah.

But,  planning ahead is the best way to save money and stress on your next custom dance costume or skate dress! And better yet, you don't even need your team roster to get started!

Here are a few good reasons why planning ahead can benefit your team:

We’re in spring cleaning mode on the blog this month, and we’re talking about garment care! We know washing costume is not the most scintillating topic - but bear with us! Proper costume care it is perhaps the most important thing your can do to increase the longevity of your dance and skate wear!

Looking to reuse your costume next year, or resell it to meet your fundraising goals?  Here are 5 essential tips straight from our laundry department experts, that'll keep your costumes in top shape for years to come: