Designing Your Own Wedding Dress

Many brides have been thinking of their wedding gown long before a ring was on their finger. But what a bride probably didn’t expect was to be disappointed by not finding the right skirt matched with a bodice that is complimentary. Or possibly a bride had her heart set on a color choice that was difficult to find in the exact shade of eggshell or cream that they were hoping for. The right solution may be designing your own wedding dress. With the right design ideas and professional assistance, brides can walk down the aisle in the dress they have dreamed of without having to settle for what was at the store.

Choosing Your Design

Before deciding on your design style, it would be best to head in to a bridal shoppe to get an idea of dress styles that compliment your figure. Nothing would be more unfortunate than custom making a gown just to find the silhouette is less than flattering. If possible, having your dressmaker with you could certainly help, but at a minimum, explain to the bridal consultant that you are looking for the best silhouette for your figure. This will better enable your consultant to show you a variety of styles, from A-lines, to ball gowns to detailing such as strapless or spaghetti straps. The major characteristics are very important during the design phase.

Visiting a salon will also help a bride to see detailing they may want to incorporate into their dress. Beading patterns, ruffles, lace and even fabric types are all decisions a bride will have to focus on during the design process. Taking an up close look at how a pearl bead looks compared to crystal beading can only benefit a bride.

Finding Someone Who Can Sew

The process of finding someone to sew your design creation can be daunting if you don’t know where to look. If there are no relatives or friends with a sewing talent your search should start with any referrals people may have. Experienced wedding gown makers are preferred of course and likely a trip to the internet can get you in touch with several. However, if you want to take a more creative route, you can try local design schools. Many students would love the opportunity to create a gown- and actually be compensated for it. What you have to be certain of is both the level of craftsmanship of your designer as well as professionalism details such as being on time, providing fittings and being open to your ideas and suggestions.

You may not have to look far at all if you want to merge a few design features from one dress to another that happen to come from the same designer. Some design houses will provide a customized dress for you based on your requested features. This can be costly and time consuming so be conscious of your choices and plans.

Designing your own wedding dress can be a fun and creative way to customize your wedding. Once you have decided on the design, a bride should be committed to the plan in order to not impact the price, construction time or overall look of the dress. However, if during the fittings something simply is not working, remember that it is your design and your gown. If your designer is unwilling to budge, don’t hesitate to cut your losses and move on to someone who can better help you. 

Wedding rings are an important item for the bride and groom not to forget, so why not take a look for insipiration.