If you’ve ever watched or participated in a Turkey Trot (Thanksgiving Day run) before, you may have noticed that not all of the runners wear regular running clothes. There are drumstick beanies, Pilgrim hats, Santa suits and all manner of Halloween costumes. And always lots of tutus.

I’m not sure when wearing a tutu to run races became a thing, but it seems particularly popular in themed races like Turkey Trots. And since I support wearing a tutu in any situation, I thought Thanksgiving was as good a time as any to try out my first running tutu.

I went for a turkey-themed tutu, because, well, duh. Thanksgiving.

I thought it would be fun to have the tutu brown in the front and red, orange and yellow in the back, like turkey feathers. But it could also be cute with alternating colors all the way around. Or you could do totally different colors for a different theme — this method requires no sewing and is pretty simple to make. The tulle was very inexpensive (and on sale) at Jo Ann Fabric.

We’re running in downtown Detroit, which promises to be a warm and tropical 20 degrees, so I’ll have to wear this tutu over lots of layers of clothing. I will post a photo after the race, but I hope y’all will be trotting in a nicer climate!

Make your own turkey tutu!
You’ll need:

• Elastic (enough to go around your waist or hips and some extra to tie it on)
• Brown tulle, red tulle, yellow tulle and orange tulle (I bought 6.5 yards of brown and 2.25 yards each of red, yellow and orange. That’s enough for a medium-large tutu with a tiny bit left over for a hair band. You’ll need about 10 yards total for a small tutu and more than 13 yards for an XL)
• Scissors
  
• A ruler or measuring tape

To make: Cut a piece of elastic that goes around your waist or hips (wherever you want to wear the tutu) with some extra for tying. Set aside.

Lay out the brown tulle. Mine was folded in half (top to bottom, not width-wise) already from the way it was sold, and I folded it in half a few more times so it would be easier to cut straight-ish lines. Measure and cut out roughly 7-inch strips. Continue until you’ve cut all the brown tulle into long/tall, 7-inch-wide strips.

Lay out the red tulle and cut similar 7-inch-wide strips. Continue with the other colors of tulle.

Hold the elastic up to your waist (wherever you plan to wear it) and mark where you want the front (brown) half to start and the back (multicolored) half to start. I did mine so it tied on the side, but you can do yours however you want.

Tie the elastic around the back of a chair or fasten it somewhere to keep it in place. Take a brown strip of tulle, already folded in half once from the store, and (unless you want a really long tutu) fold it in half again. Hold the strip so the U-shaped loop part is facing up, against the elastic, and the ends are pointing down. Pull the ends up behind the elastic and through the loop, then tighten to make a knot. (See pictures above if this description doesn’t make sense)

Continue with the rest of the brown tulle (or until you get to the place where you marked for the brown to end). Don’t worry too much if the elastic gets stretched or twisted a bit, but try to untwist it occasionally if it gets too crazy.

Next, fold and tie on the colored tulle strips, alternating by color. I used the pattern of yellow, orange, red.

Once you’re close to where you planned the end to be, hold up the tutu again to make sure the length and size are correct. Finish tying on the tulle, then tie the tutu closed with the extra elastic, and/or use a safety pin.

Enjoy your run! And let me know if you have any questions!