Tailor Made

It's very likely that either you or members of your bridal party will need alterations of some kind to ensure a knock-out fit on the big day.

Bridesmaid K's dress from Frocks arrived with no alterations needed. Frocks doesn't have an in-house alterations department and refers clients to two local tailors.

Kerrisdale Custom Tailors
2082 West 41st Ave Vancouver

The Designer's Fit Alterations
142-4255 Arbutus St Vancouver

My Mom had her alterations done at Lisa's Bridal Salon in New Westminster which offers fairly reasonable prices from their in-house department, although more expensive than Bryan's Bride. Overall, we weren't very impressed with the experience at Lisa's Bridal, as Mom's dress arrived not fitting as it was promised and the salesperson made a lot of alterations promises that turned out to be impossible. The dress looks great and Mom will look gorgeous in it, but getting the fit right took three separate visits over the course of 5 weeks at a cost equal to the purchase price of the dress!

Bridesmaid J purchased her dress from Bryan's Bride and is scheduled for alterations two and a half weeks before the wedding. Bridesmaid K will also be making an appearance at her appointment so that both of their dresses can be hemmed to the same length (an important point that I didn't even consider).

Since my dress is from Bryan's Bride and has been carefully stored there for over 6 months (!), we decided to use their alterations department to attach my crystal sash, create a bustle and take in the sides for a custom fit. Their seamstress Olga is obviously very experienced and talented, as she created and pinned my elaborate bustle in about 2 minutes! We couldn't belive how reasonable the alterations pricing was given how much work is involved.

Even if your dress fits perfectly, you'll likely need to have a bustle added to gather up your train for the reception. There are two bustle types:

American, where the train is gathered over top of the dress

or French, with the train gathered underneath the dress

Your seamstress will have an expert opinion on which type is the most flattering for your style of dress. Be sure that your bustle is secure enough to support the weight of your train as you don't want it to break during the evening! I think the French bustle is more secure since it uses a series of ribbons to tie up the train, compared to buttons or hooks for the American bustle.

I'm super excited to return about a week before the wedding for my final fitting and finally take home my dress :) When you attend your last fitting, have one of your bridesmaids there so she can learn how to help you put on your dress and tie the bustle. And remember to take a picture of the finished bustle or corset lacing (if you have one) as an extra guide for your ladies!