Change

If you have read much on my site you may have come to understand that there are 2 types of alterations: for fit and for design change. Altering for fit is not usually complicated as long as the size change is not more than one or 2 sizes. But to alter for design change is a horse of a different color. There are many things that can be done to a garment but some things are either very complicated or hurt the structural integrity of the gown. It's really best to pick a gown (as it is to pick a groom) that has all the basic elements you want instead of trying to change it. Here I will try to explain the complications some brides have run into in making the dress they bought into the gown of their dreams.

I am currently living in Italy and need a dress to be altered. This is a hard task as I don't know how to speak Italian and can only go with my fiance's mother to get the dress altered which means that everything must be explained from me, to my fiance, to his mother and then to the dress maker and back again.

The dress that I will have with me soon (after it arrives via post from my mother in Australia) is a very plain vintage 1950s/1960s gown that my mother purchased from a second hand store in Australia when she heard the news from Italy that I was getting married.

5. The dress currently has a neckline that runs right around the base of the neck and the shoulders of the dress go from the base of the neck to the edge of the shoulder - I desparately want to change the neckline to a Sabrina/bateau neckline as the dress loses it appeal without it.

I was wondering if it is possible for the neckline to be altered to a bateau/Sabrina neckline and whether this could compromise the structure of the dress and the way it falls drastically. Although keeping in mind that the dress is very snug around my waist and therefore the structure of the skirt should stay in place.

Thank you so much for your time, I hope to hear from you soon!

I would need to see you in the dress before I would attempt to quote a price but this type of design change can not always be done. Part of what most people don't see is that in the Sabrina/bateau neckline, the center is actually higher than a normal neckline. Since you can't put back fabric that has already been cut from the neckline you normally can not make a true Sabrina/bateau neckline. It can be done in a mock fashion that might look ok to you though by extending the neck line out to the shoulder area. I have no idea what they will charge you in Italy for such an operation.

added May 2008

hello...im really glad that i found your website. I really need your helpful advice for my wedding dress. I order it off ebay and when it arrived the dress was too long. How can i shorten the length in front of my dress up to about 4 inches. I want my waist and hip to look slim but the dress looks really loose around that area. How can i tighen up the hip area?? Also, do you recommend me to wear a 3 Bone Hoop Skirt Bridal Taffeta Bridal Petticoat Wedding Gown Slip underneath my dress.

Give me all the helpful advice that you can. Thank you so much!! here is a picture of my dress.

I would need to see the dress to tell for sure but I think this is the type of design that I would hem from the waist. The seam under the bodice is opened and the skirt is pulled up to the correct length and resewn.

This is not the style of dress that makes for slim hips but if there are side seams in the skirt they can be taken in to make the hip area smaller, but you can not make it very slim with this design. The more you take in the more of the train will creep around the side and pull funny. You can alter for size but you often can not change the design of a gown.

If you want the look of a bigger skirt, you can wear a hoop. It's up to you. You can not do this if you are going to take in the hip area. It will look very funny to have a slim hip and the skirt suddenly jutting out to the fullness needed for the hoop somewhere around the knees. To have the hoop look good you have to have the skirt start getting full from the waist. You really need to choose one or the other.

Hi Leanna,

Thank you for your informative website! I have a quick question about changing corset lacing. I have a Maggie Sottero dress with a corset back. The lacing that came with the dress is about 3/8" or so, but I have seen some Sottero dresses with thicker lacing (3/4" maybe?) and I like that look better. My dress also does not have a modesty panel, and I would prefer the thicker lacing to show less skin.

Here's a photo of the type of lacing I would like:
http://i6.photobucket.com/albums/y208/bengc1/bride12/lot204_3093i.jpg

I contemplated buying ribbon from the craft store, but worry it won't be stiff enough and that it might bunch up and not lay flat. Any suggestions?

Thanks, Jen

Any lacing will bunch if you don't take the time to thread it carefully. I have used ribbon often. It's not as stiff as fabric, but it can look just like the picture you sent if you thread it carefully. You can also make a modesty panel. They aren't part of the dress back anyway. They are just tacked on one side.

Hi, there!

I came upon your website by accident, and it's given me hope that something can be done for my ideal wedding dress. I've found a dress, but it's just a regular, strapless dress. I LOVE the dress and I love how I feel in it, but initially I was really hoping to find a dress with a sweetheart neckline. Can I have someone successfully alter the neckline to convert it to a sweetheart neckline? The bridal salon seems to think that this seems to be a strange request, so I was hoping for a second opinion!

Thanks for your help! Kelly

My best friend is getting married and she wanted a sweetheart neckline too. I can understand your desire for it really does show off cleavage well. My friend found several nice gowns but her fiancee liked one that had the regular straight neckline - - - So I am going to sweetheart it for her. Since this is a design change you need to think of how it effects the other elements of the bodice. I plan to add wire to the neckline seam to stabilize it once I have cut the dip. I don't want her flopping out.

I would need to see a picture of your gown (on you if possible) to see if there are any other aspects of your gown's design that may be effected.

Thanks for all the great tips on your site. I have found several lovely dresses that I am deciding between, but these are all zip-back dresses and I had hoped to find a lace-up/corset back dress as I am worried about having a perfect fit on the day. I do not diet (and I love the advice you give about that), but I have always had fluctuating weight/body fat and I am worried that with a zip-up back, then unless I have the final fitting the day before I would not be sure of having a perfect fit for my dress. I ma having a destination wedding so it is not really an option for me to have a fitting right before the wedding, to say nothing of the additional stress that would cause everyone.

I've seen your photos of too-small gowns that have been converted to make them fit, but do you find it is possible to convert a gown that already fits perfectly into a lace-up back in order to secure a great fit on the day? Or do you find that altering a gown in this way doesn't necessarily improve the fit? I'm wondering whether if the gown already fits perfectly, it might compromise the structure of the gown to make such a change.

To have the lacings you need to make room for them. So, if a gown already fits well, some space needs to be removed from the back to accommodate the lacings. If there is decoration right up next to the zipper some of it will be lost. You may not like the loose of lace flowers and beading and the pattern might be interrupted in a funny way.

I have worked with brides who have trouble with weight fluctuations, but I have never had one with a one day flux problem. The lacings do give you more flexibility in the fit and they are pretty too. It makes perfect sense to me that you are thinking this way. It would be so much easier if you keep looking for a gown that is already designed for lacings. Keep in mind the elements of the gowns you have found and keep looking. I am sure you will find one.

Can a strapless dress be made to have sleeves without looking completely ridiculous? Obviously, there would be seams around where the strapless dress ends, but is there a way to make that look OK? I have one strapless in mind, but would like it to have the top of another dress that has sleeves. I have searched high and low and cannot find the best of both worlds already made in a dress.

Thank you, Heidi

Adding sleeves is hard to make look good. It takes a lot of work. The hardest part is matching the fabric of the sleeve to the fabric of the gown you have. If you can order fabric from the store where you got the gown you have a chance of getting a good match. If you can't match the fabric type and color exactly it will look very odd. It's better to pick something that is totally different so it looks like it was meant to be that way.

Hi,

I found your website and question and answer question section while researching questions about wedding dress alterations. I had a few questions and would appreciate your help in answering them, if you have the time. The first question is: Can you add layers to a dress to make it more full? I ordered my dress, and when it came in, it just doesn't feel full enough. I'm wondering if I should wear a multi-layered slip, or is there something else to be done? Also, is there any way to add length to the dress once it has been ordered? If you could help me out with any of these questions, I'd greatly appreciate it!

Thank you, Jeanette

You can add layers, but it's much easier to simply buy a multi-layered slip.

Adding length is sometimes hard to do. The trick is to make it look like the added part was meant to be there. I'd have to see the gown to give you specific ideas.

Hi leanna,
I stumbled acroos your website and had a question about changing the skirt of my wedding dress. I have a natural waist dress with a tulle skirt and satin trim along the bottom. It is an aline and I know I already need to have it hemmed about 4in. Both the satin underlay and tulle over the satin. What I was wondering if it is possible and would it be quite a lot more money to have them change my dress to more of a trumpet fitted style? I will attach some pictures of my dress. Thanks for the help!

Sincerely, Kayla

Yes, this can be done. Because there are many layers and each has to be taken in separately, yes, it could be very expensive.

I bought my gown from a bridal warehouse and absolutely love it! It is a scoop neck (tank top style) neckline and back. It has a lace overlay with beading. While I love the dress I was thinking I would like it even more if I changed the neckline to a sweetheart and made the back a V by shortening the zipper. . The lady at the bridal salon seemed to think this could be done. How much risk do you think I am taking to change the neckline?

This can be done and I have done it a few times. You need to be careful how deep you make the "V". The deeper you take it the more the sides are going to buckle outward. You can put some kind of stabilizing thing along the sides if this happens. The risk you are taking is in the knowledge and skills of your alteration lady. I can't vouch for that because I do not know her.

Leanna,

I really love your site and the corset information has been a big help to me.

I made my own gown. Now my sewing skills are not fabulous, but they are apparently good enough (GO ME!). I was very nervous to attempt this without my mom here to help (she was a fabulous seamstress) but I know she was here guiding my hands.

I am nearing 80% completion and finishing fast. My question is this, I am attaching a picture of my gown. I suck at zippers! I was considering a corset style back because it would help eliminate some of the smaller alterations I might have to make. Will it work on this gown? I made some changes to the gown. I did not add the lace panel at the waist, instead I am adding a ribbon in my wedding colour (navy blue) which will form a V from the front to the back, attaching just under the bust in the front down to the bottom of where the butt bouquet is in the back (this is where I would have the corset stop).

Thank you, April

Most corset backs have been in strapless gowns but I see no reason why you can't do one here. I think it will look very pretty.

Hi, I got the dress of my dreams, it is strapless with a sheer overlay and some beading. It fits almost perfectly, except in the bodice it looks puckered because the lining w/boning is separate from the dress and it seems to be tighter so when the dress is on it is wrinkling the dress under the sheer. I have an appointment with an alterations lady. Do you think this can be fixed??

I'd need to see it on you to give you a good answer, but the real question isn't, "can this be fixed", rather, "does the person I'm going to know how to fix it". If it can be fixed, it's liable to be a tricky operation.

I run a bridal shop and had a girl recently place an order for a gown that she fell in love with. I placed the order with our supplier and found out that the dress had been discontinued, they had not sent us a list of discontinued items. I explained the problem to the bride and she is being very understanding, the problem is now she can’t get her dream dress. I even called the supplier who checked their computer records for another shop anywhere in the world that may carry this dress in white in the size needed – No luck, no one in the world carries this sample dress in the right size in white.

The dress I have here in the store is the right size however we have it in Ivory and she is adamant that it has to be White. Do you have any suggestions as to a way to have the dress “bleached” white? Or do you know if there are any businesses that offer a service like that? I have called the local cleaners but they are not willing to do it and I really want to see this girl get the dress of her dreams!

The basic problem here is the fabric in most gowns is polyester. Polyester does not bleach or die. Trying to do so will only ruin the fabric.

It may not be easy, but I'm sure you can find her a similar gown in white that she can love just as well. After all, it's only the gown - it's not the fiancee. It's ok to fall in love with another one.

I purchased a ball gown and would like to take the back out if it. It is made out of 100% polyester and someone here told me it bridal satin. It is too small around the bust area, it is double lined, and I need about another 2 inches for it to fit comfortably. I was thinking about taking the back out completely and having a low back line, to avoid having to even worry about the zipper.

I'd need to see the dress on you to really give you a good answer but I can tell you that if the dress was not designed to have an open back you will run into problems with gaping where you are scooping the back neckline. That said, this could be a good solution to your problem. You will need an experienced Alteration Specialist who understands the complications of such an operation, but it should turn out beautifully.

Dear Leanna,
I recently bought a dress for my October wedding in a discount store which sells sample dresses from a big bridal salon in my area. The gown looked to be in a very good condition when I bought it, but since bringing it home I noticed some imperfections that weren't obvious: on one sleeve (which is short and entirely made of netting with embroidery/beading on it), there are two small holes in the netting, and the embroidery looks like it had fallen off and was reattached rather carelessly. On the back, there used to be embroidery on both sides of the zipper. One side had fallen off, so I took off the other side in order to make it symmetrical, but now there are stitch marks where it used to be. The hem is dusty and the material is slightly frayed at the bottom. I haven't had it altered yet, so my questions for you are:

1) Do you think they'll be able to fix the netting on the sleeve? It's some kind of delicate hexagonal netting.

2) Is there any way to improve the look of the stitch marks on the back? The material is 60% silk, 40% acetate.

3) It needs to be hemmed a little, and I'd like them to remove some of the train too, so that the slightly damaged material doesn't show. Is that more difficult/expensive to do than just hemming in the front? The train is somewhere between sweep and chapel length.

4) How costly do you think the alterations would be? I'm starting to regret having bought a sample dress, although it's just the style that I wanted and I'd never be able to afford it new.

5) It would be nice to dry clean it after the alterations, but I'm hesitant since the embroidery and beading is very delicate, and it's silk. What's the best way to pick a dry cleaner's?

Thanks for your site, it's full of useful information, and sorry for the long letter.

1) No, the only way to fix holes in netting is to replace the netting. Trying to repair the holes looks simply awful. You can add some embroidered lace pieces over the holes if you can find some that look like what is already there. Sometimes I have scavenged some lace from elsewhere on the dress where it's less needed, like under the arm or in a tuck or seam.

3) Hemming around the whole dress is more expensive than the normal wedding hem that is only in the front. It's not more difficult, it's just a lot more work taking more time which will mean more expense.

4) This depends on the pricing on your area which I have no way to determine. For me the all-around hem would not be less then $200. Replacing the sleeves could run over $200 too.

5) Ask friends. I have yet to find a dry cleaners in my area who I can recommend with confidence. It's quite annoying.

My suggestion would be - Since you did not see these flaws until much later, odds are your guests at your wedding will not see them either. By the time they get noticed it will be near the end of the day and gowns get very dirty and often damaged by the end of the wedding day, so no one will give it a second thought as long as you don't tell them. The imperfections you are seeing will not show in your pictures either.

Thank you so much for your answer! After reading it, I was wondering if there was a clever way to prevent the holes in the netting from "running" (except stitching)? I'm not really concerned about the holes themselves (they're small), but it looks like one of them could spread. I believe the material is English netting.

Netting does not generally run. But just in case it is the type that does, get some fray check from your local fabric or craft store. It's a type of glue that dries soft and should not interfere with the stretchiness of the netting. It should not discolor the netting, but text it on a seam on the inside of the sleeve first. You can use clear nail polish like we used to do in school when our panty hose ran,but it dried hard and may get scratchy.

Thanks -- this is just the kind of solution I was looking for. And thanks for making me feel good about my dress again! I'm sure everybody tells you this -- but I wish I could have my alterations done with you, you so obviously enjoy your work.

Hi,

I was wondering if it is difficult to get a seamstress to alter the back of my wedding dress to a tie-up corset style because I love the dress but I have always dreamed of one that has a corset back which is currently not the situation.

Thanks, Katherine

It's not ultra difficult, but there are some things you need to think about.

Does the gown bodice fit you well now? - I usually do this type of alteration for ladies whose gowns are much too small. It's better than trying to sew inserts into the seams to make the dress larger. So, if your gown fit fine you will be needing to make room for the lacing area. If there is much decoration in the back, making space in the zipper area might mean loosing some of it. You might be able to take in the side seams to make the space without destroying any design elements.

You will need to have fabric for the modesty panel. Some brides have a full panel under the whole area and some have it just for the waist down, so skin shows between the lacings on the back. It depends on if you have to wear a bra or if you can go without one.

I have a picture of a gown I did this on at: http://www.leanna.com/Bridal/Impossible.htm

Hi
I came across your website and had a question for you.
I'm looking at several stores for a wedding gown. i finally found one store that has a dress i like that can be altered the way i want it. the only thing is that the store does not do alterations. instead, the owner will recommend a tailor whom she has worked with before. so once i buy the dress, the store is out of the picture and now if i need alterations i have to go to the tailor - do you think this is safe? or should i stick with a place that has a seamstress onsite?
Thank you

There are advantages and problems with both situations.

I choose to work totally separate from a salon because it gives me the freedom to do for my brides as I see fit without having to be concerned about the needs of the salon. I can take as long as I want to talk with a bride about her needs without worrying about the time limits the salon puts on appointments. I can do what she's wishes to her dress without being told I have to conform to rules the salon dictates to me about what they think are "proper" alterations.

The question of safety runs both ways. Just because a lady works in a salon does not mean she is any more talented or capable of working on these precious gowns. Odds are she won't last long there is she is not, but you still don't get any guarantees.

The one thing you need to know is that once you pay for the gown the salon is not responsible for anything that happens. You don't get any special consideration for an in-house lady making a mistake on your gown. Using an outside lady doesn't necessarily get you someone more capable or any extra guarantees.

What you can do is educate yourself about these things so you can ask lots of questions to the ladies you interview for working on your gown. Read all the stuff on my site and look for other sites too. Since your salon does not have alterations you have to go outside. Interview the "tailor" she recommends and find out how long they have had this relationship. Most tailors don't do wedding gowns so I'd be a little suspicious of this right off.

I am always here if you have more questions.

Thanks so much for your response! I really appreciate it!
I've been search everywhere for dresses with sleeves and most bridal stores do not have any so most of the places have a seamstress on site and they'll add sleeves on to a dress I like. This makes me wary b/c I don't know how it's going to come out.

The dress that I'm looking is manufactured by Casablanca and the store will give me requirements and measurements to the manufacturer to design the dress that I want. The store owner showed me a picture of something similar done for another bride. They say the dress should come in to fit my measurements and will have sleeves created by the manufacturer.

I would really need alterations only if I drop a size or needed certain fitting adjustments.

I'm really just sad with all this wedding shopping especially since a lot of the dresses are strapless...I think I've been to at least 10 shops now and it's very hard for me to imagine the dress with sleeves, so when they say the manufacturer will do it - do you think I have to be wary of anything?

Thanks so much!

Always be wary of anything they say. They said, "the dress should come in to fit my measurements" - that does not mean it is guaranteed to be that way and most likely will not fit perfectly. If the sleeves end up not being to your liking, you will have to pay extra to change them. The pictures do make me think they are trying to do what you want, but you just don't know for sure. Since they have done this before they might be a better bet, but it's still a bet.

You are not alone in your displeasure of the styles this year. I don't know what's gotten into the bridal industry that it thinks every one wants strapless. There used to be more variety in styles.

That said, as long as you are making an informed decision I don't see where you can much loose letting them try to make the sleeves. You may need to have them adjusted a little but they may also come in just right. There is a large possibility they will come out just right too, so I think it's a good bet.

Hi! I have found a wedding gown I absolutely LOVE except for the fact that I want it to be strapless. It has small straps. I am curious if it is possible to turn a dress that has small straps into a strapless dress. Is this possible? Here is the link to the dress photos:

http://www.marysbridal.com/bridal/6359.htm

If this is possible, would this be a major cost to have altered? Thanks so much for your help and time!!!!

Melissa

I Just Want to Change . . .

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