Alteration question - Pic included

bridetobe9995 · December 2014

Hi, all! Over the weekend I bought my dream dress at a sample sale (photo attached). However.. The dress is way too big for me. It is a size 12 Stella York and I am a street size 4. The ladies at the bridal store said their seamstress should be able to take in, but my anxiety is kicking in and I'm worried the dress will not be able to be taken down to my size. Have any of you had success with major size alterations? Any feedback is appreciated!

misshart00 · December 2014

I've got to be honest. That dress is going to be hard to take in 4 dress sizes without seriously compromising what it looks like. With the way the bodice is shaped and the lace appliqués, it's going to require a lot of rebuilding the entire dress. It can be done, but expect it to cost a lot.

bridetobe9995 · December 2014

It was my understanding that bridal sizes can run very small to street sizes.. so I was hoping it would really only need to be taken down about 2 sizes. Fingers crossed?!

vulpiepop · December 2014

Several members of my family and my FMIL were seamstresses. From my understanding from when I was asking about a dress too big for me, they can comfortably take a dress down 2 sizes but more than that requires a good bit of extra work just to make the dress presentable. I imagine it would be much more expensive. As PP stated, it can be done but it won't be cheap.

misshart00 · December 2014

bridetobe9995 said:
It was my understanding that bridal sizes can run very small to street sizes.. so I was hoping it would really only need to be taken down about 2 sizes. Fingers crossed?!

Then it come down to are you sure you measure a size 8 within Stella York guidelines?

atlastmrsg · December 2014

Just depends on designer. I'm street size 6, bridal shop ordered my gown in a 12 I think? Anyway, it was big on me, but able to be taken in. They ordered according to my largest measurement and planned to tailor to the rest. It was a PITA--5 fittings later--and they did a crap job on the alterations. If your shop seems like they're not on top of the alterations, go somewhere better where an expert tailor can figure it out.

Part of buying a sample is assessing whether the cost of cleaning it, repairing it, altering it, etc. is still going to save you money. Hopefully you thought this through or got an estimate on the alterations. I've heard of wedding gown alterations costing as much as $800.

bridetobe9995 · December 2014

The dress is in PERFECT condition. It had only been on the rack for a few days before I purchased it. So I won't need any repair/cleaning costs. The shop estimated alterations within my budget... I'm just hoping to hear some success stories with similar alterations so I know the shop wasn't just trying to make a sale.

[Deleted User] · December 2014

I'm a street size 4/6 and the wedding dresses that fit me were bridal 8/10 so I would assume that, like you said, the required alterations would involve taking down the dress two sizes.

While it's probably not a problem take down the dress two sizes, it will be difficult because of the lace. I would inquire about the seamstress's experience if I were you. A good seamstress can do wonders. My seamstress was able to work in some lace to bring the VERY low v-neck of my lace wedding dress (without simply shortening the straps as this would have changed the position of the bust). It's now completely impossible to notice that it didn't originally fall there even when you're looking at the dress very closely. She also made some other adjustments that involved working with the lace and did so beautifully. Her cost was a bit higher than the other seamstress I saw, but I just wasn't as confident in the other one. So, my only advice to you is to look around to find the right person… Good luck!!!

hyechica81 · December 2014

i am anywhere from a street size 20-24 depending on the style of the pants shirt skirt or dress, my mori lee 3098 the sample i tried on was a 22 i measured the highest at a 28 on the size charts but my waist was only 4 inches difference from the 22 to the 26 so she ordered the 26 it came in and fit like a glove except the bust had to be taken in like 4 times because it was so huge

your best bet is to go to the shop and get measured and ask to see what your mesurments are size wise for stella york and then go from there a dress can be taken in two sizes but often cant be taken up any sizes sometimes the seemstress can let out the dress a inch or two.

some brides make the mistake of ordering the dress in a smaller size against the salons recommendations hoping to loose weight well dress comes in it does not fit and they dont end up loosing any weight

Maggie0829 · December 2014

Seeing that Stella York is a sister company/designer to Essense of Australia and I bought an Essense dress I hate to break it to you but I was a street size 8-10 when I bought my wedding dress and I ordered it in a size 8 so it seemed that they were pretty true to street sizes. So if the designer of Stella York follows a similar patter to Essense then your dress may need to come down more then two dress sizes. This can be done but just be prepared for more work/costs then what was initially estimated.

I would just make sure that the seamstress working on your dress is very experienced and you feel comfortable with her/him.

futuremartin2015 · December 2014

I don't think you will have much of an issue. My MOH was married last year and her dress was a size 10, and she's tiny. The person who altered her dress was able to take it in, without compromising the shape or quality of the dress. As long as they have a good seamstress, you should be fine!

nicole4793 · December 2014

I'm a size 4, but the bridal store ordered me a size 8. I think that your gown will be able to taken in without too much of an issue! If the ladies at the bridal store specifically told you their seamstress should be able to take it in, then they better be right. I think you'll be fine though

jenijoyk · December 2014

I think you'll be fine! I originally ordered a wedding dress in a size 8, which was really big for me at the time (but they give you that crap about "Purchase the size for your biggest body part!" and I'm D cup, so I went with it).

Then, I ended up losing 20 pounds. They still altered the size 8 down to fit me perfectly. I ended up not wearing the dress anyway for other reasons, but they didn't say boo to me about it. They just pinned back what looked like 3 or 4 inches on either side and it was fine, and was around $400.

The wedding dress I DID end up wearing was a size 4 and I altered that one down a size too. Which means they probably altered my first dress down about 4+ sizes, without a complaint.

I think alterations seem a lot more complicated then they usually are.

redheadbride15 · December 2014

I was surprised when I was trying on dresses that the bridal sizes were much more true to size than I thought they would be. I am a street size 12 and most of the samples I tried on were size 12 (a few were 14). Almost every gown I tried on fit me almost perfectly (probably 20-30 gowns by multiple different designers). So anyway, my point is that I'm a bit skeptical about the word-of-mouth out there that says bridal sizes are so different from street sizes. Maybe it's dependent on your body type to some extent.

jenna8984 · December 2014

redheadbride15 said:

I was surprised when I was trying on dresses that the bridal sizes were much more true to size than I thought they would be. I am a street size 12 and most of the samples I tried on were size 12 (a few were 14). Almost every gown I tried on fit me almost perfectly (probably 20-30 gowns by multiple different designers). So anyway, my point is that I'm a bit skeptical about the word-of-mouth out there that says bridal sizes are so different from street sizes. Maybe it's dependent on your body type to some extent.

I agree with this. I'm a pant size 6 and my gown was a mermaid in a size 6. Not all designers make them 3 sizes out of wack. But good luck!

badbnagdway · December 2014

OP, if you bought a sample, I assume you did try it on so you could physically see how much too big it is?

Dresses just all run really differently. They can be altered within reason. I do think dresses with lace and especially lace details are harder to alter and make look the same. But if you bought the dress I'm not sure there's a lot to be done except make sure you are using a reputable seamstress.

theartistformerlyknownas · December 2014

badbnagdway said:

OP, if you bought a sample, I assume you did try it on so you could physically see how much too big it is?

Dresses just all run really differently. They can be altered within reason. I do think dresses with lace and especially lace details are harder to alter and make look the same. But if you bought the dress I'm not sure there's a lot to be done except make sure you are using a reputable seamstress.

This. Forget street sizes versus bridal sizes and sizing charts. How does it fit ON YOU? Are there 6 inches of extra fabric when you pull the sides to fit? When you do that, are you encroaching on important design elements or not? Or does it seem like it's only a little too big?

kristenone · December 2014

Have you tried the dress on yet? That will be your best clue as to how it will look taken in. I am a size 12 but my bridal shop ordered a size 18 based on my largest measurement so the sizes can definitely be out of whack for some designers. My dress actually fits perfectly with no alterations needed. If the bridal salon says they can take it in I would hold them to that since you bought the dress based on the assertion that they could alter it to fit.

Alteration question - Pic included

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