Rapunzel (Tangled) DIY Sewing Tutorial

For my daughter's 3rd birthday, she was in love with Tangled so we decided to throw her a Tangled birthday party. To go with the party, I made her a Rapunzel dress for her birthday present. It is definitely the best costume I've made so far. She absolutely loved it.

I used Simplicity pattern 2065.

This pattern is perfect, but I like to keep the costumes looking similar to the original, so the light pink and purple weren't going to work. Plus, I figure those light colors will be quickly stained with how my kids play in their costumes. I went to downtown LA fabric district to get the supplies. I spent around $30 on everything. I choose a plum brocade for the underskirt and a matching lilac brocade for the bodice.

It was tricky finding a matching plum satin to use for the overskirt and sleeves. The one I used wasn't the easiest material to sew, but I made it work. It was a lighter weight than some others that I saw. This dress was fairly heavy once finished so I'm happy this fabric wasn't too heavy. I followed the pattern as directed.

I took these photos after the dress was complete, but the grommets didn't hold. I had to hand sew over the grommets to hold them in place. I haven't used grommets that often so I'm not sure if there is a better quality I could have purchased, but the ones I sewed were very strong.

I loved this light pink against the plum purple. I started with the middle ribbon and went outward. I didn't pin it that much at first and that was a mistake. It worked out better when I used a lot of pins. I remember in sewing class, my teacher really emphasized pinning. I sort of blew this off and lightly pinned on most projects. After many annoying mistakes, I've realized pinning is key. I now take the time to pin and it makes a huge difference in cleaner stitches.

I love this danty, cotton trim. I actually purchased this for $0.25 a yard in downtown LA! I attached it by hand since it needed extra attention and sleeve is delicate too.

These sleeves are beautiful and the material isn't scratchy. I think this dress could look amazing with the sheer sleeve and be a little more play friendly.

Here is the skirt liner attached to the mesh:

I was going to embroider the fabric but ended up buying iron-on pieces for the overskirt. They didn't stay on the satin material really well so a few pieces I had to stitch down. I found these at Joanne's and definitely a pricey addition. But, they looked great.

I found the trim in Joanne's $1 trim bin and got 2 packages.

The hair took a while to cut all that yarn! But it looked fantastic and was very sturdy. She loved having the yarn wig. We also had a purchased wig but she wouldn't wear it and it got "Tangled" really fast! This Rapunzel dress was definitely a hit.