Designing your wedding gown - where to start - Your Christian Bridal and Wedding Resource

If you want to design the gown and then have a seamstress make it for
you, how the process goes will depend a lot on the person you work with. Different dressmakers and designers vary considerably in both their
vision and their ability to carry it out. They will also vary in how
careful and concerned they are to get *just the look you want*.

If you wish to design and sew your gown yourself, the results will
depend on both your sewing skills and your determination. They will also
depend on how much (and what quality) information you find.

My book, A Bride's Touch: A Handbook of Wedding Personality and
Inspiration includes 14 pages on deciding on style, 25 on basic design
and sewing, 11 more on making headpieces and accessories, about 30 pages of specific step-by-step information on cutting, fitting and
construction, as well as a five-page visual "glossary" of sleeves,
necklines, skirt styles, etc. It also talks very candidly about the
trickiest parts of gown design and sewing, to help you decide if you are
really want to do it or not.

Lots of women are very capable of making a lovely gown themselves-- but after designing and making custom gowns since the 1980's, I have seen the easiest and hardest parts. And I don't think it benefits brides or
willing family members to gloss over the hard parts, as some books about
wedding sewing do. I think it would be useful to you whether you want to sew your own, or want to work with a seamstress (it also discusses that subject). Look or ask at your local library, on Foreverwed.com, or at: http://www.frazmtn.com/~ambarian/order.html for information, table of contents link, etc.

From A Bride's Touch, a basic strategy for designing and sewing a
wedding gown would include:

~ selecting the general style/mood/character/historic influence,
silhouette/proportion, color, and fabric through magazine search and
shopping
~ considering issues of your personal proportions and other factors such
as church restrictions
~ taking measurements
~ looking for (and perhaps altering) patterns
~ fabric shopping and purchase
~ considering seam finishes and tools/notions needed
~ planning and purchasing lace, beading and other decorations
~ making fit adjustments to the patterns
~ cutting your fabrics
~ pin-fitting
~ construction
~ finish work
~ gown storage and care

Wedding gowns really don't take particularly complicated sewing, in most
cases. The reason some people become discouraged when they sew one is because the fabrics are often difficult to handle and finish the seams
for, and because the fitting is more precise, in many cases, than the
average "day wear" sewing project.

Decorative detailing can also seem overwhelming -- and be fairly
time-consuming -- but again, the actual work is fairly straight-forward.

If time or complexity is a concern, many of the loveliest gowns are
fairly simple, and decorated graciously--but only in the most important
areas. (This gives you a much finer-quality product than if you scantily
bead or decorate an entire gown.)

You will find other books at your library (and book or fabric store,
too) that may be of help to you. A popular book is Sew Your Own Wedding from Palmer/Pletsch. It has some good information, but I disagree with several of their fit and finish methods. I believe that there are ways to accomplish the same ideas with more professional results, and I think any seamstress skilled enough to sew a wedding gown can use them. I have heard great reviews for, but have not personally read a book called something like "Bridal Couture". I have heard that it uses advanced sewing techniques and shows several actual gowns step-by-step.

Look, also, for books on historical costume, fashion history, theatre
costuming (they usually have really practical information-- my favorite
is The Costumer's Handbook. Sorry I don't have the author at hand; my
book collection is currently in storage), personalized fitting (there
are a number of books on this subject), beading and other specific
sewing or decorating techniques, etc.

If you have specific concerns, do feel free to contact me directly, and
I'd be happy to talk more with you about your project. I hope this gives
you some direction and ideas.

Very best wishes on your gown and all your wedding plans!

Sara L. Ambarian-- Foreverwed.com Expert
author of "A Bride's Touch: A Handbook of Wedding Personality and
Inspiration"/' creative consultant/ custom bridal designer

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