The Credit

“There is no limit to the amount of good you can do, 
if you don't care who gets the credit.”― Ronald Reagan

NOTE: I wrote this post last year about this time but never published it.  I just re-read it and decided I NEED to publish it- maybe someone else is experiencing this too.  Also, the agonizing decision I made then has proven to be the right one and the individual selected has succeeded beyond both of our expectations.  She's fabulous and I'm so honored to know her.  Others have joined us along the way as well and the whole thing has been a positive experience.

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I am a big-picture ideas person and the bigger the idea, the more I like it!  This means that I am oft the instigator of fun or creative things, projects, programs, groups etc. When you are the starter of things, it's easy to get attached to them and think of them as being your "baby" because, in some ways, they really are. Giving birth to a new idea that can do good for a lot of people requires dedication in the face of doubt, belief that it's both worthy and possible as well as the ability to convince others of these "facts".  Everyone pretty much knows that.

What everyone DOESN'T know or forgets (including me) is what Ronald Reagan so eloquently points out in the above quote.  Credit is the stumbling block upon which many a great idea, friendship and personal satisfaction tumbles.  Even when we think "credit" doesn't matter to us, it usually does to some degree or another.  I wish I could say I didn't care about it but credit validates my ideas and causes me to be more daring in coming up with new stuff.  It makes me feel good about myself. I like credit, much to my shame. However, learning to let go of the need for it is pretty important to my development as a person and thus I'm trying.

I'm working on a project now that I've been mentally planning for a decade, just waiting for the right time and opportunity.  I've turned it over and over in my mind, honing the concept, thinking through the stumbling blocks, laying the foundation, gathering support and preparing for the right time to launch it. In doing that, I've come to the realization that what it will really need is the right "face" (person/personality) on it to help send this idea off into the world where it can make a difference. I've patiently waited for that "right" person to come along because I've learned through the development of big ideas in the past that they always seem to, just when you need them.

Today I met a wonderful woman who is sweet, beautiful, talented, outgoing, passionate and smart.  She already loves this 'baby' so that's a good sign! I think she is the one piece that was missing and she will be the 'face' of the group.  And while I knew for certain she is the right person, that knowledge caused a tinge of envy deep down inside. She will pretty much get the credit for my ideas and all my years of planning will be for her potential.

Don't get me wrong- she isn't TAKING the credit, she'll be EARNING it through her own abilities and talents but it has to be her rather than me in order to make the whole project succeed. Her beauty and bright personality will create exactly the right draw to pull in others and make them feel great about being there. If she's as savvy as I think she is, she can parlay this into something much bigger for herself in the future- possibly even obtaining some of my own goals, (so dear to me that they're a secret I don't share)  in my stead.  That little part of me that loves credit was screaming inside today even as I knew that handing off the baby is the only way to help it grow to it's potential- and the baby HAS to be more important than it's Mother.

My skill has always been to make the opportunities and if the idea itself isn't worth MORE than my desire to be seen as the person who had it, then it's not important enough to spend the time on nor worthy of the effort to achieve it. I know that is true logically but my emotions can be slow to catch up.

My own sister is such a great example of letting go of the need for individual credit.  She is a brilliant writer whose words and ideas have graced national magazines and newspapers.  Her "soundbites" have played on every major news network and at the highest levels of government.  And not once has her name been attached to her words- someone else who is a better visual "messenger" has the benefit of her voice and skills- though she is well-paid to provide them.

I asked her today if it bothered her that she cannot have the credit for her work and she recited the Regan quote to me (which is on a plaque on her desk).  And it's true.  She has succeeded far beyond anything she ever expected, anything she could ever have done on her own, because she was willing to do her part behind the scenes and understood where she fit into the process.  She's done a lot of good BECAUSE she was willing to forgo the credit.

In my own far less important way, it's my turn now to do that.  To step back from this thing that I've invested so much time and emotion in and allow it to sink or swim- and to support someone else in the leadership role who will receive the credit when it succeeds famously!  It is enough that I get to continue to be involved and nurture it from a position behind the scenes.  It doesn't FEEL like enough right now but it will be!

I'm so happy she's willing to step up and play the role that needs filling but it's hard to let go and trust someone else to love it like I do. I suspect I will continue to feel a small pang of envy here and there but I know it's the right thing in the larger scheme of things and I'm perennially doomed to always see the larger scheme of things which pretty much brings us full circle to the beginning of this post!

Blogger Guilt

I used to love this blog.  I want to love it still but there are only so many hours in a day and that means I need to spend my time living in those hours rather than blogging about it.  I feel a tremendous amount of guilt as I really want to chronicle my children's lives for them here.  And yet I haven't written in weeks.

The above photo of the ENTIRE Nielson Clan was taken last summer yet it's never made an appearance on the blog yet EVEN THOUGH it represents a major accomplishment!  Look at all the people have come from my parents!  I haven't updated photos of the kids- they're years older than they appear in my side bar.

I haven't written about Bethany's latest win in the Region Reflections Contest. I should post a photo of her sculpture but I think it's on my work machine.  Yet another obstacle to blogging- my photos are all over the place on 4 different machines and I can never find the one I want, when I want it.

I haven't talked about Logan's amazing music progression in drums or the band he's started with his friends.  Pretty cute to listen to a small herd of 7th Grade boys practicing in the basement.  Who knows? Maybe "Party Llama" (the current preferred name) will actually play a real party at some point.

I haven't mentioned how the Spanish Immersion Program has been really great for my daughter's math skills. They learn math with Spanish instructions but are tested on the State testing in English. We recently got her scores and of the 11 areas of math tested, she got a perfect score in 5 of them! Seriously, she scored 100% proficiency! Greg is pretty sure she gets that math brain from him (and he's probably right)!

I AM blogging- just not really for our family.  I maintain the Club blog for work and it's been A LOT of work! At this point, most of the projects featured are my own that I do on my own time and at my own expense. I'm hoping to change that because doing DIY tutorials while photographing writing about all of it is a darn lot of work! No wonder there are so many bloggers in that genre' who pour whatever they earn blogging back into new projects!  I write the posts on work time but everything else is just extra.  I will reassess if that is worth it soon.  It takes all the mojo I USED to pour into my family blog.

This "Mom Blog" was started for my kids to chronicle their progress in life and instead it's just sort of squatting on the Internet, rusting.  Sigh.  I'm not sure when it will change.  I may not be writing about every little moment but, rest assured, I am out there living those moments with them!  Perhaps that will have to be good enough.  A spontaneous evening out is not predicated on good fodder for the blog- it's just a fun evening out with no concern about getting great quality photos to gum it up.  It simply is what it is, and that will just have to be enough for now!

Word of the Year Report

Okay, okay, so it's "Word of the Year" (WOTY) time again.  I have participated in this annual event (with varying degrees of success) for a couple of years now.  For 2012, my WOTY was "Stewardship".  I picked it because I wanted to take better care of what I've already been blessed with.

It was a really stupid word choice for me.  I've been pretty lousy at it in all honesty.  In fact, I think in most areas where this word applies to my life I am actually in WORSE shape than when I chose this clearly unmotivating word!  The only place I remotely achieved this goal was in establishing a savings account and direct depositing money to it every pay period.  Money which I just completely spent on Christmas (though in fairness that was the major reason for the account) so, as of this writing, I'm starting over there too. Sigh.  I supposed I'm not the best steward out there of my own resources.

I'm not going to beat myself up over it but rather look at WHY it didn't work for me.  In 2010 I selected "DARE!!!" (with the 3 exclamation points after it to denote the famed 'Triple Dog Dare') for my WOTY and I seriously kicked butt that year.  I pushed myself in ways I didn't know I could and accomplished some long-desired goals that were important to me. I ended that year proud and happy!

"DARE!!!" is motivating, edgy and just a bit scary- like a leather-clad biker chick on a Harley.  Oh- and don't Google "leather-clad biker chick" thinking you'll find a usable creative commons photo to make this post less boring.  You won't find any boring or G-rated photos with those search terms!

"Stewardship" is like being scolded by your Granny driving an AMC Matador (possibly the ugliest car ever designed).  You can google the Matador all you like- you'll not find any scantily-clad chicks posing on one anywhere on the internet!

I think I failed at my "Word of the Year" goal because, seriously, who wants to be an AMC Matador?

If you're only going to pick ONE word to live by for the entire year, it should probably be something that you WANT to do but need extra motivation (DARE!!!) rather than what you think you SHOULD be doing (Stewardship) then selecting a word that you hope will motivate you TO do it.  Make sense? In 2011, I chose "Cultivate" and had mixed success.  It was more motivating than "Stewardship" but was more of a baby-steps kind of progress.

"Dream no small dreams for they have not power to move the hearts of men"- Johann Wolfgang Con Goethe 

I firmly believe the above quote.  I've seen it in action and I've seen how *I* am motivated by the big, crazy dreams rather than simple, attainable goals. So, in that vein, I think the 2013 Word of the Year will be:

 "Aspire"

Not as bold as DARE!!! (because one can only handle just so much of that without driving everyone crazy) but not as OLD as Stewardship either!  There are many things I ASPIRE to do to better- things I want to learn, places I want to push myself, opportunities I want to CREATE (it's much easier to create opportunities than it is to find them).  Hopefully I won't totally FAIL at it.  I have a few ideas in the works already for this year which will hopefully help me grow and challenge myself.  We'll see how it goes!

On the Fringe

Sometimes I wonder if I'm the only person who feels like they live the social part of their life just on the fringe?  I don't really feel like an outcast or anything, I know a gazillion people, I'm outgoing and friendly and most people who know me would probably be surprised to know that I feel "fringe-y". I just seem to be the person on the edge of any social group with only one foot really inside the lines.  I ALMOST fit in with all the various groups I run with- but not quite.

I don't quite fit with the Mom group at the school.  I'm too likely to express an opinion too strongly or, worse, not have the right opinion about things. Heck, I'm the Mom who flipped off another Mom in the school parking lot (in my defense, she DID try to kill me with her mini-van).  I'm the Mom who failed at the annual "Decorate the Teacher's Door" day for my children's teachers.  Stupid me thought it was supposed to be something my kids created to show gratitude for their teachers. The posters we submitted were 3rd Grade level art. Imagine my horror when I got to school and found out it was actually one of those competitive Mom events!  Freaking scrapbook Moms (and yes, I used to be a scrapbook Mom too so you'd have expected better from me)!

The way MOST of the doors looked.  Clearly, these were made by the Moms who understand elementary school culture and expectations.

Our 'Contribution' made entirely by my 3rd Grader with almost no help from Mom. Clearly I don't understand elementary school politics or I would have know this was a "Competitive Mom Event".  Mom Fail!

Sometimes my boldness comes in handy, like when they tried to eliminate the Immersion program without talking with the parents. Too assertive is handy when they need someone willing to  "get her witch on"  but a turn off at most other times. I'm not careful enough in how I present myself sometimes or I don't tread carefully enough and I unintentionally hurt feelings when I don't mean to. That puts me on the fringe- no one likes to hang with a chick who can be unintentionally intimidating or overly pushy or socially clueless.

Given my tendency toward opinionated boldness, you'd think that I fit in fantastically with my political friends. I ALMOST do.  However, if I'm being honest, I'm sort of the slow-flying goose trying to keep up with a flock of swans.  I'm politically interested and have a lot of skills that play well in that arena- I just don't have the same passion or love the :fight" for change or, at a minimum, good government. I *like* to be involved, I just don't live and breathe it.  I also have a really hard time working hard for someone I believe in then being on the losing end.  Losing sucks! 

I worked on this Senate campaign in a couple of different roles, all of which were pretty intense. We lost by a few percentage points.


I've given up entirely on fitting in at Church.  There are wonderful women who have reached out and embraced me but I feel so incredibly conspicuous and awkward there. That's all I'll say about that or I'll go from mere "fringe" to full-on "social leper".

I also run around just a bit in the creative and blogger circles.  The women I associate with there just blow my mind with their talents and skills. I know I have some skills and talents but not all the RIGHT skills and talents to really succeed there- I'm just kinda almost successful with all of that. I'm sort of on the edge of that community with one foot in and one foot out, not really sure if I should try and step in the circle or just let it ride.

I am no longer a Stay-At-Home Mom so I've lost some friends as a result of that- not because anyone has "dumped" me or treated me badly but rather because time is so limited now, it changes the dynamic.  I'm not a full-time working Mom with a high powered job so I don't fit with that group either.  I have a really awesome job that I love, but it's a "Mom job" and not at all the same career trajectory I was on in my pre-kid life. I'm totally good with that- it's worth it to do something I love that allows me to still be here for the kids when they are home from school, but it does put me in the middle of nowhere in the SAHM/WOHM wars.  I guess that's a plus! I've loved being BOTH kinds of Mom (and each choice had it's benefits and drawbacks). I don't want to chose sides!

Through some of the community stuff I've done mostly when I was a SAHM and other things I'm involved with now, I have had cause to serve with the "social elite" from time to time.  I've always been treated well by these folks but there is never any question that I am not one of them nor will I ever be. That's actually one place where the "fringe" suits me just fine!

Let's not even go there with the thin, pretty, stylish, work-out Moms because I can't even ATTEMPT to run in that circle- though I did get to go "boob shopping" once with one of my hot-mama friends.  We picked a nice, full "C" and had fun trying on the ginormous silicone sizes for giggles too! I alternately loathe and admire those who put in the time and effort required to maintain a great figure post-child bearing.

At the end of the day, I guess it's good to be fringe because it means I get to associate with a lot of interesting people that wouldn't be in my "circles" at all if I were only sticking with my comfort zone.  I sometimes wish I had closer relationships with girlfriends but, to be fair, I have 4 sisters to fill that role for me and no one will EVER "get" you like family! I can say I wish I had closer relationships with female friends but, if I'm being honest, I don't really open myself to that- partly because I have my sisters and partly because I tend to chose people I think need my fixing (not fair to me and especially to them- but that's one of the bad traits I'm trying to fix in MYSELF now that I'm 40).

 It would seem that my circle of sisters is the ONE place I'm not fringe- they're just as weird, opinionated, oversharing and awkward as I am!

The upside of all these pretty fringe circles is that I have the change to know A LOT of people.  There is not a service, bit of knowledge or skill I would ever in this lifetime need to call upon that at least one of the women in my "circles" doesn't have or couldn't locate.  I love that! I also gravitate to women who are strong and passionate and willing to pursue the ideas and activities that motivate them EVEN WHEN it's hard.  That means they're pretty busy too. They inspire me in a way that wouldn't exist otherwise.  I don't care WHAT it is they are passionate about, running, politics, creating etc., I just love being around the people who are invested in "getting it done".

When I started this post, I was having a bit of a "pity party" because I don't have one of those tight-knit friend groups (cliques if you want to call it that) where you get together for Bunco and gossip.  However, through the course of cataloging all my fringy-ness I realized instead that I have a rich network of amazing women who grace my life and build me up when I need it.  I hope I return that same assistance to them.

I was recently interviewed for an article about "The Importance of Learning To Network for Moms".  And I suppose that is truly what I have- an awesome network of people for whom I get to claim "coolness by association".  I guess the fringe is not so bad afterall!

Fresh Greens Wreath

I recently shared how to create a fresh greens wreath for FREE using stuff from your yard!  It only takes about 10 minutes to gather the cuttings and 10-20 minutes to assemble- and ANYONE can do it, no floral arranging skills required!



Want to save some money while still being festive this season?  Check out the complete tutorial over on the Home & Garden Club blog (where all my blogging energy is going these days!)

How to Make A Fresh Greens Wreath Tutorial

Practice Thanksgiving

Yesterday we held our annual "Practice Thanksgiving".  It was a simple affair with my folks and my sister Megan and her family.  I tried a couple of new recipes I found on Pinterest and I wish to thank the bloggers who posted the recipes- I suspect those bloggers don't get thanked quite so much now that Pinterest gets all the credit!

Specifically, I want to thank Emily and Jamie at "Everyday Art" for the Sour Cream Lemon Pie recipe! I combined their recipe with the "Unshrinkable Tart Shell" from Smitten Kitchen and created some pretty little tartlettes that I totally failed to photograph (too much time away from blogging to remember that kind of thing now!)  I will only be doing a few of the desserts this year (gotta let others have some fun too and all of my sisters are good cooks).

We got a good 12" of snow over the weekend and it felt so good to just hunker down with my family.  Anna performed in the Primary Program at church while Logan and Bethany savored the fact that they are now too old to have to do it anymore.  My parents are troopers because they sat through attended 3 Primary Programs (an annual event in our church where the kids sing the songs they've learned and put on a Christ-centered program for the congregation). 3!!!!

I was so busy putting the meal on that I failed to take a lot of photos. I did get the ONE out-of-focus shot above of my Mom feeding my Dad his dinner because the twins would NOT let Grandpa put them down! Megan's set of baby twins reminds me of what it was like when I had my own set of baby twins. I think my life is loud and crazy now but whenever the little ladies are here I'm suddenly reminded of how much easier, physically at least, life is now!

The photo is precious to me even though it's fuzzy because it doesn't require any trick of the camera to see the loving relationship the babies have built with my folks already. Like all little children, the babies adore my Dad who is the kindest, gentlest man ever.  He's the kind of Daddy every girl should have and so few ever get to experience.  It's because of his beautiful example of HOW to be a great person, father and Husband that all 5 of his daughters found the perfect match for them and we're all still married.  We knew what to look for in a man and marriage because we lived it in our home growing up.    That is just one of the many, many things I am grateful for this year!

How to Make A Full-Length Pettiskirt

My obsession with making homemade Halloween costumes for my kids is well-documented on this blog.  However, we're nearing the end of Mom-made fancy costumes as I only have one Elementary School student left who will all-too-soon outgrow her love of all things Princess.  That thought must have been floating in the back of my mind when I saw the mind-blowing Christian Siriano dress in a commercial for Taylor Swift's perfume (which, by the way, does not smell particularly good).  Ah, but the dress from the "Project Runway" Protege' was speaking my language and I knew I had to make it- well, an el cheapo version of it anyway!

So, despite swearing off pettiskirt making after sewing them for an entire ballroom dance team, I brushed off the bad memories and got started.  If you want to attempt this, first read my original pettiskirt tutorials HERE and HERE.  That will acquaint you with the basics- I'll just be adding some new tips and construction techniques in this post which will assume you already understand the basics in the two previous posts.  I also tend to do a lot of LONG descriptions in an attempt to answer the questions before they happen.

And while that may make it seem like this project is hard- it's not.  If you have basic sewing skills you can do this.  The skirt below took me 6 hours to make. Not too bad given that there is 300 lineal yards of fabric in the skirt. If it is your first time making a pettiskirt, plan for more hours.  It's easy once you get the hang of it but first you have to get the hang of it! The Christian Siriano one above on Taylor Swift must have at least 1,000 yards of ruffles and fluff. Sigh!  Luckily, this type of fabric is inexpensive if you know where to get it- and I do!

Materials:
(this will make a girls Size 12 skirt-roughly)

2- 3" wide x 90 yard long rolls of nylon chiffon from AFC-Express.
1- 6" wide (use 7-8" wide for teens or 4-5" wide for younger children) x 60 yard roll of nylon chiffon.
3- yards matching lining fabric (go with the very lightweight, cheap stuff)- use this for an opaque underskirt
OR
3-yards nylon chiffon fabric by the yard from AFC-Express.
     Sidenote: use this alternate if opaqueness doesn't matter in your application- I'm sure there is no opaque
      layer in the designer original and that he has used more layers than I did on the bottom- I'll explain that
      later. I wanted an opaque layer since it is made for a child and we aren't going for sexy.
2" wide waistband elastic
1/3 yard matching satin fabric.
1- 1,100 yard spool of matching thread and yes, I used the whole spool.
1 yard satin ribbon

If you order $100 or more from AFC-Express, the shipping is free. You MUST use "nylon chiffon" aka "15 denier nylon" or "sheer tricot" (those are the different names for it) because it is soft, lightweight, has fabulous float and will NOT fray!  You cannot make this with fabric from the mainstream stores and you especially CAN NOT make it with Tulle- it will be trashed and scratchy in no time.  Besides, using the rolls of fabric cuts the time required to make this AT LEAST in half and results in very few seams through the tiers.

The amount of nylon chiffon needed for this skirt is about $45 worth.  I spent another $12 on the lining fabric, $3 on the Satin and $5 on notions.  Total estimated cost for the above skirt is $65.  Retail value is somewhere in the $200-$300 range?  Not bad for 6 hours of work.

The Christian Siriano number has to be at least $5,000 but you could DIY one pretty darn close (with more layers than the skirt shown here) for a couple hundred bucks- the sewing can be tedious but it's not complex.  And since the wait list for the designer dress is LONG, you may as well try your hand at making your own!

Definitions Review:

Ruffle Fluff- The 3" wide fabric which is ruffled down the center then sewn to the bottom layer of each tier.

Tier- Each of the LEVELS in the skirt- in the example skirt above there are 5 tiers of 6" tall fabric.

Layer- Each tier will have at least 2 layers of 6" tall tiers w/ ruffle fluff.

Confusing?  Just keep reading.

Construction:

Step 1- Making the "Ruffle Fluff"

I have learned a few things since the original pettiskirt tutorials.  One of the most important things is that you don't HAVE to have a ruffle foot (though it's still recommended) for your machine to make the gathered ruffle fluff and gathered tiers.

Nylon Chiffon roll cued up for sewing into "ruffle fluff".

To make ruffle fluff, thread your nylon chiffon roll through a dowel (or in this case brother's drum stick) and place it on a basket (even better if you can run the stick through some holes to secure it in place). This will allow the fabric to freely flow through the machine.

TIP: The fabric from the rolls seems to want to curve or roll a bit.  You'll want to make sure the curve is on the underside to keep it from rolling.  You will notice quickly if you have it the opposite way as the fabric will try to curve in toward the foot.

Set your sewing machine to the LONGEST stitch length and the HIGHEST tension when gathering.  This will cause the lightweight fabric to gather as it passes through.

Run the fabric through your fingers and hold it a bit taut then use the other hand to GUIDE (not pull) the fabric as it exits the machine. You will ruffle it down the middle of the fabric as shown above. Luckily my needleplate is 3" wide so it helps me keep everything straight through the machine.

If your thread breaks or something goes amiss, don't stress. Just backstitch over the break and start again.  I can ruffle a 90 yard roll in about 20 minutes.  The downside of doing this without a ruffle foot as that the gathers won't be quite as perfect but it's hardly noticeable on the end product.  If you have a ruffle foot, follow the instructions in the earlier tutorials.  Make both rolls of ruffle fluff and you'll have an immense pile- don't lose the ends in it. Not that I would know about that...

Step 2- Sew the ruffle fluff to the tiers.

Since we're working with nylon chiffon rolls (love that there is no fabric cutting involved!), you'll want to attach the ruffle fluff to the 6" wide roll next.  To do this, set up the 6" (or 8" or 4"- whatever you decided to use for the size you want to make your skirt) on the dowel just as we did for the ruffle fluff.

Above photo from previous tutorial but the technique is the same.

Sew the MIDDLE of the ruffle fluff to one edge of the tier fabric.  I had just a little of the 180 yards of ruffle fluff left after attaching it to the 60 yard roll of 6" wide tier fabric.

Step 3- Gather top edge of tier fabric 

I did this simply by running the whole 60 yard piece of ruffled tier fabric through the machine, gathering the top edge just as I did the ruffle fluff.

Step 4- Cut lining fabric to length. Gather.
either the opaque polyester lining OR the sheer nylon chiffon from the standard yardage purchased.  To simplify, we will call this the "lining fabric" whether you've chosen to use the opaque or sheer versions. The lining fabric is lightweight enough that it should also gather through the machine just as the sheer nylon chiffon did.

I gathered each of the ruffled tier fabric layers and the lining separately rather than as one so as to make the skirt fuller- the gathers are in slightly different places thus making it puff more.  Sort of like the difference between combed hair and teased hair!

Step 5- Sew lining fabric ends together. Add ruffled tiers.

Create a circle by sewing the two lining ends of the bottom layer together, finish the edges with a zig zag stitch or use a serger if you have one.  Start sewing the ruffled tier fabric to the lining fabric.  When you've come full circle, go around a second time sewing on top of the first layer.  When you finish the second time, that tier is done.  Now, if you're trying to do it up designer style like the Siriano dress, you'll need to circle the wagons a couple more times.  Possibly going around 6-8 times on the bottom tier- and yes, that could take up a whole roll of 6" wide nylon chiffon and 2 whole rolls of ruffle fluff.  If you're making a wedding or couture gown, go for it. Otherwise, the 2 times around will be fine!  Just cut the tier fabric off when you reach the end- the open end will never be noticed in all the fluff.

Step 6- Attach lower tier to upper tier

This is where we really deviate from the first tutorials because we want there to be ruffle fluff and "float" on EVERY layer of the skirt, not just the bottom level.  Attach the bottom layer you created above to the UNGATHERED bottom edge of the LINING FABRIC for the tier above it.

Step 7- Repeat!

Repeat steps 5 and 6 moving up one tier each time.  Ideally, each tier will be half the length of the one below it but I only loosely followed that guideline on this skirt and generally just with the bottom portion.

Step 8- Waistband

Complete the waistband step as shown in the main tutorial- HERE.  On this skirt, I didn't want a bunch of satin at the top so I cut the waistband satin 5" wide but otherwise made it the same way the other tutorial shows.

I have probably left out some important information so PLEASE ask if you are confused so I can fix the tutorial to better explain the point of concern.  Have fun!
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The skirt was transformed into the base for our "Glinda the Good Witch" costume. We also sewed a top (made my own pattern which was a pain) that is NOT attached to the skirt so we didn't permanently alter anything.

Anna's big sister and cousin came up with a brilliant (and cheap) way to make Glinda's crown with HOT GLUE.  I'll let her do her own tutorial on that as this post is already too long!

And a few more photos because my baby girl looks and feels like a princess (as well she should!)