Made for the Spotlight
Photos by: JOHN BURNS
Robin Moody has loved sewing since she was a young girl. Dreaming of being a clothing designer, she would sketch copies of newspaper clothing ads. As a mom, she made outfits for her babies and imagined she would take up quilting when she retired.
But now that her 30-year career in the corporate world is behind her, Moody’s retirement ambition has evolved into something a bit more sparkly. Moody is the owner and designer behind Emerald City Dancewear. Since launching in December 2017, she has made well over 1,000 costumes and dancewear outfits. In addition to her devout local following, dancers from all over the country have used Emerald City Dancewear to steal the spotlight through Moody’s Etsy store.
Moody’s designs not only free dancers from the fear of wardrobe malfunctions, they have also earned several awards from national competitions.
So, how does an aspiring quilter become a costume-designer extraordinaire? It happened somewhat accidentally. Moody’s first pieces were for her granddaughters who needed costumes for competitive dance. She started out trying to embellish dancewear she purchased from stores. But Moody, who considers herself conservative, found the coverage lacking.
“I wanted to make sure they felt good in what they were wearing,” Moody said. “But I also wanted to make sure their butt cheeks didn’t come out.”
Using fabric from active wear she bought from thrift stores, Moody created dancewear that achieved both full coverage and star power. It didn’t take long for others to admire Moody’s work. Soon, she was taking orders from parents, as well as local studios who recruited her to create group costumes.
About two years later, Moody made her business official. Turning to her love of “The Wizard of Oz” for inspiration, she named her business after the sparkly shoes that stole her heart as a girl.
Behind the Stitches
The world of dance gives Moody plenty of opportunities to be creative. When clients come to her with pictures of costumes they want recreated, Moody’s challenge is to make sure the piece is original and on budget.
“I try to come up with something that will capture the look without costing as much,” Moody said. “I don’t like to copy things. I want them to be unique.”
Many clients provide Moody with their child’s performance song, but she said her inspiration rarely comes from the music. Instead, she tries to get a feel for what her clients like, whether it’s the particular drape of a sleeve or how a skirt flows. She then sketches a design to put it all together. While the pieces she makes for her granddaughters are on the conservative side, Moody doesn’t limit her clients to the same point of view.
“Some people are much more comfortable with their daughters showing more skin,” Moody said. “I want to be respectful of their personal preferences.”
But regardless of coverage, fit is of utmost importance to Moody, who considers it a failure if dancers need alterations.
“I get nervous over that,” Moody said. “I don’t want to be the person that causes them anxiety on stage because something doesn’t stay fastened.”
Moody finds the best way to test fit is to have her granddaughters wear her prototypes in class.
“Mannequins don’t represent the shape of any child,” she said. “So, I ask them, ‘Is it comfortable? Does it ride up? Is something showing that shouldn’t be?’”
Keeping Up with the Queue
One thing Moody has to keep an eye on is growing too much. This past season, Moody created around 200 solo costumes, as well as 15 different styles of group costumes for local dance studios in Topeka and Kansas City. Moody gets help from her daughter, Tasha Gordon, who helps with sewing and manages customer service. Her husband, William, who goes by WT, also pitches in by cutting out patterns and embellishing.
“It’s not exactly what he wanted to do in his retirement,” Moody said. “But he is very meticulous when it comes to putting on rhinestones.”
During her busy season, Moody works from 7 in the morning until 9 at night. Although supposedly retired, when she wants to take time off, she knows how to slow things down. While Etsy offers the option to put her shop in vacation mode, Moody avoids doing that, since going completely off the radar would drive down her exposure. Instead, she increases her turnaround time from two weeks to five weeks, which helps curb demand.
A Busy Sort of Leisure
One thing is for sure: Moody is busier in retirement than she was during her career. But she doesn’t mind.
“I hear a lot of ‘You don’t have to do this,’” Moody said. “My husband and I are perfectly able to live the way we want to live without Emerald City Dancewear, but I know I’d miss it if I stopped.”
Another motivator for Moody is her granddaughters. Using the profits from her business, she helps pay for them to take part in competitive dance, a hobby with a considerable price tag.
But more than funding their dance careers, Moody first and foremost wants to be an example to her grandkids.
“If there’s something they want to do, it doesn’t have to be traditional,” Moody said. “No idea is not worth looking at.”
That message goes back to the joy she feels after finally pursuing her true passion.
“I’m so much closer to doing what I wanted to do as a young kid,” Moody said. “It’s nice to be able to see kids look so pretty, be confident and feel good in what they’re wearing.”
