Every bride has a unique body shape. So, buying your wedding gown is just the beginning, as any gown you buy off-the-rack will require a few tweaks, to make it look as though it was made just for you. Once you buy your gown, you have to go through the difficult task of altering the dress, so it fits you perfectly.
As your wedding dress is a complicated and fitted garment, you will often need more than just one alteration session to get it right. So, it is essential to buy your gown sooner than later, and fix your appointments early, so your gown is ready in time for your wedding. Here are some tips to help you make the task easier.
Buy a dress in the optimal size
Wedding dresses come in a range of sizes, and you should buy one that fits you closely. This will help you attain your perfect fit with minimum changes. Every change you make will cost money. So, find one that fits you best and you will have to spend less.
To do so, first refer to the measurement charts of the collection, and choose the size that matches your measurements. Also compare with dresses in sizes just bigger and smaller, so you can see which of these suit your height, bust, hip and waist measurements best.
Even if you plan to lose weight before your wedding, don’t make the mistake of ordering a gown that is smaller than your current size. Taking in a gown is easier than adding inches to it. Don’t risk struggling with a too-tight bodice, should you be unable to shed those extra pounds on time.
Pay attention to the parts you want to retain
When a dress is altered, parts of it may have to be taken off. Say, the reason you love your chosen dress is for the contrast of its dainty wide scalloped hemline with the plain skirt, but the dress is too long for you. After the alteration, if the hemline is moved up and the motifs flow from your knees instead of at your calves, you lose the feature you loved the most. So, choose a gown that is measured for your frame, to ensure that the dress will finally look like you intended it to.
Take all your accessories along and request custom changes
If you want the gown sized right, make sure you attend your alteration sessions in shoes with the same heel height and similar innerwear to what you will be wearing on your wedding day. Buy your wedding shoes before your first fitting, so you can wear it when you try your wedding dress.
If you feel the strapless design you chose is too difficult to handle, and you feel like you’ll be tugging at it all day, you can ask your seamstress to add straps or detachable sleeves. However, do this only if you feel uncomfortable even after the bust fitting is done.
Similarly, you can take off layers from a skirt that feels too bulky or have the neckline or back dipped further, if you choose to. A good seamstress can help you customize your dress to look just like you want it to.
Whether you want to buy the right wedding gown, or need a good alteration service, visit Best for Bride for the right solution.
So much can be altered these day. Back when I was married, I had to choose a new design because of the available sizes and then have it altered to fit “better”. Even though it did not fit perfectly, the day was perfect and I still love the dress to this day!
Great tips! Thank you for posting these, they are a real help!
It was really nice how you said that when it comes to choosing a wedding dress, it’s best to pay attention to the minor details that I liked and make sure to point it out before the alteration so as to not lose them. I know that my sister loves the flowery design of the dress right below the knees, but she’s complaining that it’s too long. It might be best that I inform her about this before she leaves it for an alteration so that she can still enjoy the feature that she likes the most even after the modification. Thank you!
You are absolutely right 🙂
You make a really good point here!
I like how you pointed out that you should remember the parts you want to keep as you may lose it after alterations. My sister is about to get married in a few weeks and she mentioned to have her bridal gown altered as it is too long for her. I’ll be sure to remind her the paying attention to her fave part of the dress before proceeding with the alteration.