The Perfect Fit

Understanding the Alterations Process
You’ve found “the” dress—but it needs a little TLC before you strut down the aisle. Savanna Short, of Sew Savanna based in Altavista, tells you what you need to know about getting your wedding gown altered:
Start working on alternations ASAP—
“We do have a waitlist for certain months if we book up quickly. That’s why it’s never too soon to contact your seamstress. As soon as you purchase your dress you should contact who you want to alter it for you and get on their books.”
Allow at least two months for alterations—“This is usually enough time for us to work on your dress and get you back in for a fitting all while having enough time to make last-minute alterations.”
Plan for two fittings, maybe three—At the first fitting, we have you try your dress on, we pin up anything that is too big, open up seams where things are too tight, pin up your hemline and show you different types of bustles. At the second fitting, most of the time the dress fits and you can take it home. If the dress is significantly small or big when you first bring it in for alterations, you may need an extra fitting.”
Speak up about future weight loss or gain—“When it comes to weight loss, we try to push the alterations out as far as we can.
In certain cases we’ve even waited until two weeks before the wedding to start on the alterations. This does include a rush fee.
This also goes for people gaining weight, such as pregnant brides.”