A Draped Dress with an Over Bustle - Alterations

Lately I have been adding under bustles in most of the dresses I have altered.  Today I was ecstatic to do an over bustle on a really flowy dress.  Bustling is tricky since you don't want to take away from the beauty of the dress. 

This is the front of the dress:

And the back before bustling:

For this bustle I attached a piece of ribbon to the lining and there is a small opening in one of the seams in order to tie it up into the bottom of the lace up back.  It's completely invisible which is always a challenge with an over bustle but totally worth it!!!  I am in love with the flowy feel of an over bustle. 

Halter Bridesmaid Dresses - Alterations

It isn't very often I alter bridesmaid dresses with halter straps.  I really liked this dress and wanted to showcase the style.  It is really flattering and I love the detail on the bust.  The colour is also great, a deep blue with a hint of teal. 

A summer Wedding Dress - Alterations

This bride is getting married in the mountains and wanted a very simple dress.  She ended up going with something with more detail then she initially expected. 

I love the tulle on top with the lace detail and beading. 

Changing A Wedding Dress Neckline - Alterations

I had a bride contact me who found the perfect dress but she wanted the neckline changed from a soft sweetheart neckline to a true sweetheart.  Here is the dress before:

And here is a close up of the neckline.  I pinned where the new neckline will be after. 

The after is a significant change.  I think it looks perfect with the rest of the detail of the dress.

I also added a bustle.  This dress is a great example of how a bustle will look with the side ruffles. 

Princess Dress with an Under Bustle - Alterations

Princess dresses are great, the volume is beautiful but it is often tricky to add a bustle.  Here is the dress I was working with this week. 

A huge train with tons of volume; the under bustle was definitely the right choice.

Bridesmaids in Blue - Alterations

This year I am still not sure what the wedding colour is for the season.  Usually I know based on what colour bridesmaid dresses I get.  In the past purple has been HUGE.  \

I got these blue bridesmaid dresses into my studio last week and they are stunning.  I love the fabric, it's super romantic. 

Dealing with Delicate Fabrics that Pull out of Seams - Tutorial

My husband has a pair of linen shorts but there is a problem.  When he puts his hands in his pockets it pulls the back seam of the shorts.  Normally that would not be a problem however, the linen is so delicate it is pulling out of the seams.  It's hard to explain but that is where photos come into play:

They are wrinkly, they are linen.. I absolutely did not even consider ironing them before taking pic's... haha.  Here is the back where you can see the problem area. 

Here is an even closer shot..

The root of the problem is that the fabric does not have the stability... So I needed to add some.  I cut two pieces of woven interfacing.  I didn't measure or anything.  Just as long as they are longer than the split area. 

I then positioned my seam... you can totally see the damage on the wrong side of the fabric as well. You can actually see I tried just re-sewing the seam but it didn't work...

I then ironed on my interfacing over top of the problem area.

I then sewed a new seam making sure my new line was in enough to go beyond the problem area.  In this case my seam tapered in 1cm farther than the old seam.  Here is what is looks like from the inside. 

 

Finally a view of the outside of the shorts post repair. 

 

 

My husband was pretty ecstatic, he wore them right away and it's winter!