How to consider the cost of alterations when shopping for your wedding dress
You’re shopping for your dream dress… Gown after gown, and you look gorgeous in all of them.
Good problem to have.
Though, each needs their own tweaks: too long, armhole digging in, don’t love the applique on the shoulder. And your sales consultant keeps telling you, “Don’t worry, you can always alter it!”
While that’s true, not all alterations are created equal, and some will certainly set you back further than others.
Unfortunately, many brides and engaged couples fall in the trap of buying a dress that is too big, or doesn’t have the sleeves you want, etc. in exchange for a smaller price tag and the idea of making those changes at the seamstress’s. However, they’re not aware that the cost of alterations might erase those savings entirely, or even end up costing more.
In today’s post, we’re breaking down what dress features and chances can result in more expensive alterations. By the end of this blog post, you’ll be well-equipped to spot a possibly costly alteration while shopping for your wedding dress, so you can stay in budget.
The Tale of Two Dresses
Let’s say you have a wedding attire budget of $550. You find two beautiful wedding dresses. Each has dreamy beading and lace applique, is floor length, and has a number of layers to give some volume. Exactly what you were looking for.
Dress #1
Size or two too small
Hem a little too long, even with tall shoes
Dress cost: $95
Left in budget: $455
Dress #2
The right size
Wide beaded straps you really don't like
Hem way too long
Dress cost: $200
Left in budget: $350
You decide to take home Dress #1 since both need to be altered anyway, and choosing Dress #1 gives you an extra $105 left in your attire budget.
Time for the wedding dress consultation!
You tell the seamstress you don’t need too much in terms of alterations, just a small hem, maybe only an inch or two, and to let the dress out. After taking a closer look at the dress, the seamstress tells you your alterations are going to be landing somewhere around $400.
😵💫
We all hate sticker shock, especially when trying to stick to a budget.
How can this happen?
It comes down to lack of awareness! Most gown-shoppers aren’t seamstresses, (and honestly, neither are most wedding dress sales consultants), so there’s a lack of understanding around how difficult or time consuming a specific alteration might be, and therefore, how expensive it could be.
And although we would have a blast tagging along while you dress shop, we can’t give you a fitting consultation for each dress you try on.
So how are you supposed to stay on budget?!
We’re going to teach you what to look for when dress shopping, so you can spot a potentially expensive alteration when you see one. 🔎
We’ll come back to these two gowns a little later on.
How to estimate alterations costs when wedding dress shopping
When trying on seemingly endless styles, and browsing even more, keep these elements in mind. Recognizing these dress characteristics can help save you from a surprise at the seamstress’s.
Overall Fit Style
A looser fitting style dress will typically be easier to alter, and therefore less expensive. Think beach wedding styles, slip dress styles, a generally more “relaxed” fit.
A dress that is very structured is much more complex to alter, and consequently pricier. Think lots of layers of fabric, a bodice, boning, almost feels like the dress itself is holding you up and giving you support. Any alteration on a structured dress will almost always cost more than the same alteration on a less-structured style.
Applique
Applique is a decorative element or piece of fabric that is attached to a garment. Most notably as pieces of lace, but can also be a netting with beading, or horsehair braid on a hem.
In order to alter a gown with applique, the applique is carefully removed by hand before the alteration. Then, when the alteration is finished, the applique is reattached by hand. So the presence of applique anywhere you’re thinking of altering (side seams, hem, shoulders), will add two additional steps of handwork and really add to the price of the alteration.
Hem
A hem is the most common alteration for wedding gowns, and has the widest range of cost. Three elements of a dress hem contribute to the amount of work, and therefore cost, of shortening your dress: the width of the dress - how much fabric there is to hem, number of layers, and presence of applique or horsehair braid. More of any of these will quickly add to your alterations total.
The most expensive hem will be a very wide skirt with horsehair braid. Horsehair braid is a plastic webbing that gives stiff structure to the edge of the fabric, almost allowing the fabric to stand up on its own. These can be both internal or external layers. Each layer with horsehair braid can easily cost $120+ to shorten. Is there decorative applique on the outside of the dress, too? That will add to the hem layer cost as well.
Unfortunately, taking 1/2 inch or 4 inches off a hem costs the same, as it requires the same amount of work. 😉
Size Change
First, you need to consider if you’re trying to size the dress up or down. Sizing down is always easier than sizing up. When sizing down, elements that will add to your alterations cost are number of layers, presence of applique/beading/other decoration, and whether the downsizing needs to happen at the zipper.
Sizing up depends on how much seam allowance the dressmaker left in the seams of the dress. If there is enough, then only the same elements for sizing up need to be considered. When there is not enough seam allowance, the alteration immediately becomes more complex and more costly. Adding a lace-up back corset is a great option here and starts at $175.
How do you know if there is enough seam allowance to let out your dress? You can only know by opening the seam. Many wedding dresses come with some, but the max is usually 1.5 inches, enough to go up maybe one size. If you do need to go up a full size, be prepared for the possibility there is not enough seam allowance.
Custom Additions
Want to add sleeves to your gown? What to exchange the lining for a different color? What to add an additional lining layer? Looking for more detail with more hand beading?
Custom gown additions or style changes will typically be a higher cost alteration as they tend to be more involved and take more time.
Schedule your Wedding Dress Consultation
Get all the details on the alterations you need for your perfect dress fit you perfectly ✨
Back to our sister dresses…
Let’s go back to our two dresses from earlier. Now we’ll break down their respective alterations and roughly how much work they would be. Keep in mind these are just examples! How much it will cost to alter your gown could be very different. Be sure to schedule a Wedding Dress Consultation to discuss your specific dress and alterations.
Alterations for Dress #1
Dress #1
Size or two too small
Hem a little too long, even with tall shoes
Dress cost: $95
Left in budget: $455
Letting out the dress:
As discussed above, how much a dress can be let out is unique to each garment and depends entirely on how much fabric is left inside the seams, aka, the seam allowance. In our case, we need to size up the dress at least one size. Even if the dressmaker did leave a good amount of seam allowance, it’s not typically enough to go up more than one size. So, we have to go with a corset.
Alteration cost: $175
Dress hem:
Onto the hem. Both of these dresses have similar ballgown styles. This means a wide skirt and many layers, which translates to simply more dress to hem. Applique, beading, and horsehair braid add complexity, and a lot of time consuming hand work to the hem, which again, both dresses have.
For simplicity, since the shopper was looking for similar styles, let’s say each dress has the same number of layers, and the hem widths (the length of the fabric making up the hem) are roughly equal. For two layers of tulle ($30), two lining layers ($100), and the outer fabric with applique ($120), that gives us a hem cost of $250.
Alteration cost: $250
Alterations for Dress #2
Dress #2
The right size
Wide beaded straps you really don't like
Hem way too long
Dress cost: $200
Left in budget: $150
Letting out the dress:
This dress size already fits, so no need to look for seam allowance, and no need to add a corset. But even if the dress was a little bit too small, there’s a better chance that the seam allowance could give us enough fabric. This is of course not always the case, and the amount we can let out also depends on how delicate the fabric is. Applique and beading is also a consideration here as it also needs to be removed before the seamstress can access the side or back seams in order to alter them.
Alteration cost: $0
Dress hem:
Regarding the hem, one important consideration that was missing from our list of items contributing to the cost of a hem, was the amount needed to be hemmed. At the end of the day, it doesn’t matter if the dress needs to be hemmed half an inch, or 12 inches, the amount of work is the same.
Alteration cost: $250
Dress straps:
Straps are often very possible to remove so that you’d never know they were there. The way to get to them, however, is not straightforward! You have to open a seam somewhere else and turn the dress inside out. While you’ll still might need to move applique to get to the seam you need to use, it’s a lot less involved than letting an entire dress in or out.
Alteration cost: $40
The results
Let’s see how these two dresses add up after their respective alterations.
🥁🥁🥁
Dress #1
Corset: $175
Hem: $250
Total Alterations: $415
Purchase Price: $95
Total Cost: $510
Left in budget: $40
Dress #2
Hem: $250
Straps: $40
Total Alterations: $280
Purchase Price: $200
Toal Cost: $480
Left in budget: $70
The alterations needed for Dress #1 completely eclipsed the original savings and ended up costing more than Dress #2 in the long run.
The Takeaway
The cost of your dress does not necessarily correlate to the cost of your alterations! A less expensive dress does not imply lower cost alterations. This is a false assumption some brides and couples make accidentally. Just remember that even if were to get the dress for free, it’s going to take the same amount of time, work, and expertise to make it fit you perfectly 😊 Additionally, the amount a hem needs to be taken up does little to nothing to impact the cost of altering said hem.
Use our list as a guide to keep an eye out for costly alterations when shopping, or for building your wedding attire budget. And of course, when you’ve found your dream gown, call us or message us to schedule your Wedding Dress Consultation.
The cost of your dress does not necessarily correlate to the cost of your alterations.
Wedding dress alterations FAQ
We’re sure you’ve still got some questions! Here are some common ones we get about wedding dress alterations. If you still have questions of your own, or would like to schedule a fitting, call our alterations shop in Cedar Rapids at (319) 377-0751 or send us a message on Facebook.
Won’t my wedding consultant tell me how much a certain alteration will cost and keep my budget in mind?
Sometimes! If your wedding consultant has many years of experience, or even spent time in alterations themselves, they might be able to give you an idea of how much an alteration on a particular dress might impact your budget. But that really is the rare exception, and not at all the rule. In all honestly, the goal of a wedding consultant is to sell a dress. Doling out “it can always be altered” is meant to easily resolve any reservations you may have with a dress and aid their goal of achieving your true Dream Dress, but also selling a gown. This isn’t necessarily said with your budget in mind. Of course, no shade to our wedding consultant friends! We can’t all be alterations experts.
In some cases, wedding boutiques do have an alterations team in-house. Then there is the possibility for the seamstress themself to come out and consult on a specific dress, if they happen to be available during your appointment. But again, this isn’t always possible.
What if there isn’t a seamstress available in the shop to give me alteration price estimates?
This can certainly be the case whether there simply isn’t someone in the shop at the time of your appointment, or you’re shopping outside a bridal boutique either online, at a vintage shop, or elsewhere. In this case, you really need to rely on using our tips to spot those potentially costly alterations.
When should I get my wedding dress alterations?
At our shop in Cedar Rapids, we ask our brides to come and see us absolutely no later than 4 weeks before the wedding. But more time is ideal. Two months gives a more comfortable buffer. In the summer, turn-around times tend to be longer (maybe 6-8 weeks). If you find yourself really racing the clock, we do have a rush fee available to get jobs done faster than the current turnaround time.
Read more about how long it takes to alter a wedding dress here.
How many wedding dress alterations should I have?
Typically, you can expect to have at least 2 wedding dress fittings. Your initial fitting when you drop off your dress, and when the alterations are complete. If no further adjustments are made, you take your dress home that day! Sometimes, more fittings are needed, especially if you have some more custom or complex alterations like custom sleeves. And in other cases, alterations need to be done in a certain order of operations, which would also mean more fittings. For example, if you want to remove some layers of the dress so the skirt is less full. Removing skirt volume can make the skirt longer, so you’ll come back in for another fitting for the hem after those extra layers are removed. These kinds of “order of operations” details will be discussed at your initial Wedding Dress Consultation.
