Hello everyone,
I know a lot of posts go up about how expensive this hobby I etc etc and I've always just thought that it is something you sign up for when you start freestyle. I have recently looked at get a costume made for my eldest daughter with a price limit of £850 which in any other form of dance would get you a top of the range costume. Many designers turned me away as they didn't want to do the job, we finally found a small designer who was willing to make the suit and we have just been asked for an extra £200 as for material costs. My husband and I are appaled at the amount these businesses are wanting to pay. So I am now wondering what is everyone else's limits? How much are people really paying for designers to think they can ask these prices
Julie x

Hi

I know lots of people who go to Vicky Barkess for their costumes and have paid £700 and upwards for their inter/champ costumes, and others who pay £800 + from Stoned

£850 is a perfectly reasonable price to pay from a top designer , i can't see why they'd have a problem with it !

Kelly x

if you told the designer the cap was £850 then they should not be asking for more!! in my eyes £850 is more than enough for a suit I have never paid that and i have my daughters made and in my eyes I get better service and quality in 2 years I have only ever lost 5 stones off suits yes !!! so never understand how people after every comp say they are restoning!!rant over

either ask for money back as you gave them budget or get them to stick to it p.s pm me designer im nosey lol

wow...im really surprised,a designer would turn you away if your were willing to pay £850.00..
thats budget seems plenty enough,and they should take your budget,and work with it..
good luck with costumes in the future.
tracyx

I always go to the same designer as i absolutely love their costumes, the customer service is fab and they are fantastic value for money.
I have never paid more than £500 for a fully stoned costume which i think is excellent value compared to what i see others paying. My daughter is still small and i do expect to pay more as she gets older but no where in the region of what some are paying.
As long as people are willing to pay very high amounts for costumes prices will continue to increase. Im aware alot of time and effort goes into making costumes and stones are very expensive but there are only so many stones you can fit onto a cozzi lol
At the end if the day its our choise who we go to get a costume made so if you shop around there are some reasonable well known cozzi designers out there who are excellent value for money
sinead x

I have been to vicky barkess before with that price guide and got some beautifull suits ...

You should call vicky barkess next time she works to YOUR budget! And your garenteed to get a great service !!

£850 should be no problem for a top designer! You would get some beautiful suits with that budget xxx

As others are saying, £850.00 should get you a fantastic costume.
I do not see how a designer can turn round and say you have to pay another £200 especially if you have agreed the price at the beginning and s/he is aware of your budget. Now that I would be angry about!!

I agree £850 is more than enough to pay a top designer & to request a further £200 for material seems abit extreme, but I suppose if people are willing to pay more then the prices will just continue to rise...I would stay stick to your budget and shop around.

Louise X

Hi

I have always gone to Dancewear Design and I have never paid over £500 for a suit, they are absolutely covered in stones and the quality is exceptional, they always seem to bring out your childs character too in their costumes, i absolutely love them, we have had so many compliments over the years too about her DWD suits, the amount of stones is unbelievable she always looks like a little glitter ball xxxx

Nic xxx

hello,

my daughter is only an u6 dancer so not in the expensive region yet! i personally dont go to big named designers as id like to keep it as cheap as possible whilst my daughter is still young..i always get my daughters costumes made by a local designer in my home town! my daughters red slow costume (profile pic) is of excellent quality and was a bargain compared to what named designers are charging and would probably continue to use the same designer through-out my daughters dancing period! excellent customer service!

i think you have to feel comfortable with your designer and like the others have said £850 should more than be enough for a decent costume! in your situation i'd be asking of why the extra £200 after you'd already agreed a price within your first consultaion and told them what your maximum budget was..if your not happy then id look around and find another designer! x

Hi Julie,
If I was you I'd defiantly go elsewhere, the designer you have gone to is obviously trying their look which is discusting!
There are plenty of designers out there now which do just as beautiful costumes at a cheaper price. Some costumes I've seen from little known designers are even nicer than the big well known ones.
Hope all goes well with finding the right designer at the right price.
Kim xxx

Hi Julie,
If I was you I'd defiantly go elsewhere, the designer you have gone to is obviously trying their look which is discusting!
There are plenty of designers out there now which do just as beautiful costumes at a cheaper price. Some costumes I've seen from little known designers are even nicer than the big well known ones.
Hope all goes well with finding the right designer at the right price.
Kim xxx

I have been designing and producing costumes for world class Figure Skaters, Gymnasts and Dancers for 17 years! My cossies have been used at olympics and in TV programs.. and I have never charged anything like that price!

Years ago swarovski stones pushed up the price of costume making, however these days there areso many other stones avilable on the market that are fantastically priced, therefore costume can be made for less. I personally only use top quality stones on costumes not using many stones, those with thousands of stones I often (with the customers agreement) use a mix of different stones. I have before shown a customers a top brand stone and a cheaper stone and asked them if they could identify the more expensive and 9 out of 10 times they cant.

No DOUBT there are many, many hours of work that go into the design and production of Dance costumes but I do personally feel that things have got very very silly, especially in the UK.

I know that costumes I have designed and produced for USA and CANADA have sold second hand on EBAY to UK customers for more than I originally charged for the costume NEW!.. Now thats Madness, and while people continue to pay the prices will continue to rise.

My daughter has just started to disco dance and having a look around at cozzies on lots of websites I have decided I can make my own I can sew a bit just need more practice!! I think £200 for material is rubbish even top quality lycra is no more than £40 a metre and you would probably only need 2mt. As for the stones if you want top quality brand name all over I would mix some cheaper in with it. But I think £850 should buy you a top quality cozzie and if they are not willing to stick to your budget take your ideas to someone else, a good designer will work to what you want because they want repeat business and for you to tell everybody who made it and how good they were, that won't happen if they go over your budget and make you feel bad.
paula
x