How to alter a wedding dress yourself is a question many brides ask themselves. Whether you want to change the style of your dress, make it shorter or longer, alter the look of a corset back, remove sleeves or make some other changes to suit your taste and personality, there is no reason for not realizing your dreams.
More and more brides decide to create their own wedding dresses from scratch or adapt an existing one to suit their tastes and needs, but very often they do not know how to start. So here are tips on ways you can alter a wedding dress yourself:
Changing the neckline
Your first step should definitely be choosing a modest neckline that leaves something to the imagination – this will help men keep their thoughts nice and polite during those early morning hours.
If you want to make a drastic change, altering the neckline of your dress is one of the best ways to go about it. You can remove sleeves from a sweetheart dress or make it strapless. Generally speaking, this will require some sowing skills and if you’re not very good at them – taking your dress to a seamstress might be a better option.
Choosing a different color for your wedding dress
Both going blonde or going with another hair color altogether can be considered as major changes that should be well thought through before doing them – especially when you plan on dyeing your hair way back just before the wedding day. Why so? Because there is no such thing as the perfect moment to dye your hair. Trust me, I know what I am talking about.
So if you want to have some fun with colors and create a unique wedding style for yourself, it is worth considering getting the dress of your dreams in a different color than white. But bear in mind that while some colors are easier to pull off than others, changing the color of your dress will also change its silhouette which can be seen as either good or bad depending on the circumstances.
Wedding Dress Alterations – The Perfect Fit
As far as alterations go, nothing really beats making sure that your dress fits perfectly on you. If it doesn’t fit well, any attempt to alter it further will not look half-decent at best. Don’t even think about going for a tight fit because this might make you look pregnant rather than glamorous.
The main thing to do in order to achieve the perfect fit is to get an exact replica of your dress made by a seamstress. This way you can be sure that all alterations will be accurate and precise, not risking looking like Frankenstein’s bride on your big day.
Make the Dress Shorter
This option comes down to personal preference – some brides prefer wedding dresses that reach their ankles while others are okay with making theirs knee-length or even above the knees. What counts here is what looks best on you and what compliments your body structure the most – maybe wearing long robes makes you feel uncomfortable? Maybe it’s utterly inappropriate where you come from?
Whatever you choose to do, just remember that the hem of your gown should be fixed at least 3-4 inches above floor level in order not to step on it when walking. Just carefully measure how long is needed and hire a seamstress. However, make sure she knows what type of shoes you will wear with your dress so there won’t be any nasty surprises on the big day!
Changing the color of your wedding dress might also change its silhouette which can be seen as either good or bad depending on circumstances.
Shortening sleeves on a wedding dress
Tiny cap sleeves are quite popular for summer weddings these days but if they don’t match your visual preferences or wedding theme, bear in mind that this alteration is not too difficult to do. And the good news is that it will be pretty much impossible to notice by your guests because of your long veil and gloves, not to mention all the accessories you are likely to wear with your wedding dress.
Just sew a button at the topmost part of the length where you want to cut it off or put in some lovely lace inserts so that they can hide unaltered parts at the bottom. Just make sure your cuffs don’t become too loose when shortening them, otherwise, if you’re unlucky they might drop to floor level exactly when people’s attention is drawn towards you during a walk down the aisle!
Your wedding shoes should always match properly with your wedding dress no matter how daring its design may be.
I want to alter my wedding dress because it’s too big for me. What do you recommend?
If your dress is made of thick fabric, you can easily add some darts to the area where it says in order to make it look more appropriate for you. Darts look nice when done properly and they are easy to sew. However, if your gown has an extremely thin or flimsy fabric, this alteration is likely to damage the structure of the dress significantly which leaves you with no choice but to go for a complete makeover.
The top of my wedding dress is too low cut for me. What are my options?
If your wedding gown has a square neckline or it’s otherwise quite simple, you might want to consider replacing it with a different style altogether. However, if its lines are complicated and it’s heavily beaded, your best option is to take off the beads from this area and restitch them in an adjusted position. If that sounds labor-intensive for you, don’t even try to change the neckline yourself – instead hire a professional seamstress who will not only save you lots of time but also guarantee great results!
Will my wedding dress look awkward if I make changes to it?
Changing my wedding dress would mean changing its silhouette drastically which can look awkward under some circumstances. How do I know if this alteration is worth the effort?
The answer depends on the tastes and preferences of both you and your spouse. If you think it would make a nice surprise for him/her, go ahead with the change as long as it’s done properly which means consulting a seamstress who knows what she’s doing! On the other hand, if neither you nor your partner has any idea about interesting wedding dress designs or how to alter the original one from scratch – stick to keeping its silhouette just as it is. After all, good taste is a good thing in most cases!