Q&A for How to Make a Ballgown

You could use silk, satin, or taffeta.

If you have the measurements, there is another option. You need to buy some cheep tracing paper and draw the pattern out on it (using rulers). That way you can lay your homemade pattern out on the fabric for tracing and cutting. You do at least need a homemade pattern sheet to use as a template for cutting out the fabric pieces. And a good eye for the right sizing.

It depends. This is going to take a long time if you are new at this. If you sew a lot or are a professional however, this probably won't take you more than a day or two.

You will have to add a number of layers of fluffy net fabric inside. Holding them together at the waist or the top and sewing it in place releases the lower end to fluff up.

If the girl is about 5 feet tall, if you cut well for the sleeve or leave it sleeveless, you might need at least four yards of fabric. The lower flare takes up one yard each for both the front and the back.

One way to get long flare right is by making the cut even wider in the last 5 inches. Add more volume than usual, like 4-5 inches more than its natural flare, and sew it. The extra bit won't seem out of shape. It will have a decent look with the rest of the flare. Also, keep some extra fabric rolled up in the hem. If you roll the hem twice and sew it and then again roll it a third time and sew it in, you will know that the length is more than required. If it seems shorter somehow, all you will have to do is open the last roll.

Either works. Sewing it by hand would certainly be harder and may not give the same result, depending on your skill.