After the picks: costume sizing and ordering without the chaos

October 16, 2026 · 7 min read · by James, half-owner of a dance studio

A few weeks ago we wrote about getting costume picks out of the spreadsheet. That covered choosing costumes. This post covers what comes after: sizing every dancer, building the order, and figuring out what it all actually cost.

At our studio, this part used to be a long table with a column per costume and a row per dancer, plus a second spreadsheet for the order, plus a folder of invoices. We built the pieces below over October, mostly in response to things our office and other studios ran into mid-season.

Sizing: one page for every dancer

Costume Sizing lists every dancer who needs a size, grouped by costume or by dancer. Each row comes with a suggested size, based on, in order:

The same company's size from another costume. If she's a Medium Child in one Weissman costume, she's probably a Medium Child in the next one.
Her usual size, for studios that don't measure everyone.
Her measurements against the company's size chart.

Earlier sizes show right on the row, including sizes from before the studio used Presently. You can import last year's sizes from a spreadsheet, matched to dancers by name or student ID. You can save one row, one dancer, or the whole page.

Two small things saved a surprising amount of time. Accessories like patches can be marked "No size needed," so every dancer gets "One size" and the item still reaches the order. And for companies without a real size chart (yes, some costume pieces come from Amazon), you can type a size like "Medium" right into the dropdown and pick it for the next dancer.

Ordering: what to buy, by company

The Costume Ordering sheet turns sizes into quantities: company, then costume, then size, with the dancers' names next to each size so you can double-check before you order. Each costume shows its photo and a link to the company's product page. Enter what one piece costs in each size, and the sheet adds up subtotals per costume and per company.

When you place the order, check off the costumes and mark them ordered together, with the order date, ship date, and order number. Most of the time you don't have the order number until checkout is finished, so there's a button to check every order that's still missing one and add it to all of them at once. If some sizes ship on a different date, they can have their own. Sizes added after you order show up as still to order, so the dancer who joined in November doesn't fall through the cracks.

Studios that order by teacher can group the sheet by instructor, and marking a costume ordered from one teacher's group only orders that teacher's classes.

Order totals: what it actually cost

The unit prices on the sheet are what you expected to pay. The invoice is what you paid. Order Totals lists each order by company and order number, with places to enter the billed subtotal, shipping, sales tax, and discounts. You get totals per company and for the season, which is the number you need when you're deciding what to charge families next year.

A costume book for teachers

Once costumes are approved, teachers want to show their class what they'll be wearing. The instructor portal now has a Costume Book: one big picture per approved costume with the class name, day, and time (and which dancers it's for, if it isn't the whole class). Tap a picture to see it full screen, then use the arrows to step through the book. It's the easiest part of costume season, and the kids love it.

What we got wrong along the way

Our first sizing page saved as soon as you picked from the dropdown, which was fast until someone scrolled and changed a size by accident. Now changes wait for Save. We also copied a dancer's size to her other costumes from the same company, which is helpful with a real size chart, until it copied "One size" from a patch onto an apron that needed a real size. That copy no longer happens for One size.

What to look for