I have found a dress I like online at a good price, but it’s a size 14 and I’m a 10 or 12, and hoping to drop a little weight before my wedding in the spring. Will it negate the savings to have it altered that much? Does anyone know a good tailor in Edinburgh?
Weddin Planners and Tips
Search Post
Members Recently Search Terms
Popular Search Terms
Weddin Planners and Tips
Pages
Googling for Wedding Stuff
It could definitely negate the savings to have it altered that much. Talk to different tailors about their pricing.
Unless you’re saving hundreds of dollars, the alteration would probably not be worth the cost.
And depending on the style of the dress, it may be very complicated and you might like the results.
Good luck.
People do it all the time and it’s definitely easier/cheaper to have one taken in than let out. And from what I understand too, wedding dresses run smaller than normal clothes – eg. if you’re a size 10 normally, you may be a size 14 when it comes to wedding dresses. And I would be a little concerned with buying online without trying on to make sure the dress is flattering and what you really want.
I would be worried about ordering a dress online only because you can’t really take dresses out that much. You can absolutely have it altered down, and if you really love it and know a good taylor, that’s great. Wedding dress sizes are completely different from regular clothes. At the time of my wedding, I was an 8 or 10 in regular clothes, but my wedding dress was a 14!!!! Their measurements are completely off. I would go call the manufacturer with your measurements and see if it works.
Good Luck!!
Proceed with caution!
Consider the word – ALTERation. Depending on the style of dress, your alterations could ALTER the overall look, feel and fit of the dress.
If the dress is already 1 or 2 sizes bigger than you need, plus you plan to lose additional weight before the wedding, you may wind up with alterations that don’t provide the most flattering cut anymore. Remember, designers and dressmakers fit the entire dress so it has a particular look. All of the measurements are made to scale. If you alter the dress too much you will be destroying that vision.
Keep an eye out. You have months to go before the wedding. I’m sure you’ll find something else that’s better suited.
amazing creation is exactly right!
I would call a couple of alteration shops to find out pricing. I know a lot of bridal shops charge out the ass for alterations ($150 just to sow on 2 buttons to make a bustle, come on!). It may end up being just as much, if not more than buying a another dress in your actual size.
It really depends on the style. For example, if it is a lace up gown, as many of the popular dresses seem to be these days, the dress will accommodate a range of sizes without any alterations. On the other hand, if extensive cutting and taking in are required you will need to get a range of cost from local dress shops to determine what your actual savings will or will not be.
When I bought my wedding gown, the consultant told me gowns can reliably be altered one size up and one size down. She estimated “normal” tailoring at about $150 (US), but if they have to rip apart the dress and restructure it to go down 3 sizes, you can imagine it could cost much more.
Also, everyone says that you need a wedding dress a couple sizes larger than your normal size, but when I tried them on, I wear my same size as normal (size 8). The point being you need to try it on!
If you can, go to someplace that carries this dress, or at least this designer and try it on. Also be 100% sure of the return policy should you not like it in person. I scoped out tons of dresses on line and found that almost all of them looked & fit differently in the store. Had I bought one of the dresses I originally had my heart set on, I would have been seriously dissapointed!
i had my dress taken in about three sizes and it was still beautiful, but the neck was kind of big on me still and looking back on it, i think i would have purchased one in my size so that it fit everywhere.
This is what I did for my dress BUT there’s a couple things you need to do before you buy. First, go to a bridal salon and try on the dress in person to make sure it’s the dream dress you really want. Next, print out pics of the dress online, and of you in the dress from the salon (if you want) and take it to a tailor with the fabric information (what kind of fabric) to get his/her opinion. My tailor told me that not all dresses look good altered past a couple sizes, but some will look fine after alterations because of the style and pattern.
Here’s the thing, most people have to get alterations on their dresses anyways, and you may not spend much more than you would. I was told that unless I magically got a perfect fit, I would still have had to have mine taken in on the sides so it wasn’t any more expensive. If you’re not a tall woman, you’ll have to have it altered, and that costs the same regardless of the size.
Also, buying online can be risky but it depends on who you buy from. If it’s from ebay, look at the feedback that person has received and check out their return policy in case the dress isn’t in good condition. If it’s from someone else, be careful that you have options for a refund if it’s not what the seller says it is.
BUT I think it’s a great idea if the sale online is much cheaper. I have a beautiful $1800 dress that only cost me $450 and alterations were the same price.
Hope this helps!
Echoing what others have said, you need to consider how drastically the dress needs to be altered and how hard those alterations will be. As a rule, the more fabric, the more complicated the alterations. Also, some fabrics are much harder or easier to alter than others. Keep in mind that alterations are expensive, and that ‘how expensive’ is directly proportional to the level of difficulty. In other words, the cost of the dress plus the cost of the alterations could easily be more than the cost of a more expensive dress that fits you.
YES!!
Depends on the style and size difference. Take a seamstress with you to look at it and she’ll be able to tell you. And don’t buy a dress any more than 1 size different or hope to lose weight. The weight loss may never come and you’re left with a dress that can’t be altered.
Of course you can! I ordered mine online, and my bust area is too big, so I’m having it taken down. Remember, especially if you’re buying online, that you can always go down, but you can’t make it bigger!! It’s very difficult for someone to find matching material, etc. So always go over in size when buying online.