Challenges

added July 2010

Leanna, I bought and have watched your DVD. I have done many bridal gowns and still enjoyed it very much.

I DO need help with this one though. My bride has a poly chiffon gown over satin skirt. The chiffon is gathered under the bust in the front and I was able to hem the front from side seam to side seam as usual.

The chiffon is, of course longer than the satin skirt, about 3 inches on the sides and as much as 4-5" at the train. What is the best way to approach the bustle? I did a "pick-up' bustle when she was here, but as I look now, the chiffon hang WAY down about 6" after the satin at the furthest point on the train. I tried a french bustle too but the chiffon sides away from the skirt so much she will step on it.

She is being married on the beach with an indoor reception, so I have made some bridal flip-flops for her. (She will be barefoot during the ceremony.)

I realize I may need to make more "thread chains" to keep the chiffon in line with the skirt. Any other suggestions. 

I did buy your DVD and really need you to address my question.

Thank you, Cathy

Hi Cathy, 

I can't really say what is happening without seeing the gown. Quite often Chiffon drapes in funny ways because of it's grain. It's sometimes maddening to do a bustle that hangs nicely with the chiffon. I often find that using more points helps. You often have to bustle the layers separately too. Whatever works best is right when doing bustles. Don't be afraid to be creative. You do not have to do things exactly as I did in the DVD for every gown. 

~Lea

added April 2009

Hello! Hopefully you can answer this question before my wedding. I recently had my bridal gown bustled and was very disappointed to see the back was still dragging the floor. The seamstress told me that it was the best they could do for that style dress. She had put in three points and said the dress was supposed to hang in the back. I have never heard of such a thing and was wondering if I should ask her to try again,or go somewhere else. The gown is from Mary's Bridal "Fairy Tale Princess Collection" # SO88624. Do gowns ever drag the floor after being bustled? Thank-you for any ideas you may have

Hummm, I looked at your gown here: http://www.marysbridal.com/bridal/8624.htm Though it may be a challenge, I see no reason why it could not be bustled without dragging. I will sometimes do a drag if the bride asks for it, but otherwise I do it with no drag. 

I don't think asking her for a redo will help anything. She may not know how to do it right. I think you need to find a new seamstress to redo the bustle. 

~Lea

added February 2008

How do you bustle a 10 layer, tulle gown? Do you just attach all the layers together and hold at the waist?

Thanks, Dyanne

I have done it that way, but you can also run a cord along the waistline that you drape the tulle through. It ends up looking much like a French bustle. 

~Lea

added February 2007

Hi Leanna,

I liked your website and all the pictures of the wedding dress bustles. I need to know which bustle would work best for my wedding dress. Please see the link to get an idea of what my dress looks like.

http://www.alfredangelo.com/index.cfm/fuseAction/collections.productDetail/productID/2039e191-e45b-4b44-bba1-6a2ac07f9712/categoryID/32e5a88c-cbf1-498f-afcf-dbfca138c5d3

When I pin the dress up for the reception, I don't want to hide all my color. Can you give me any suggestions or recommendations?

Thank you,

Britney

This is the 4th time I have been asked about bustling for this gown. It does give an interesting problem with the vivid colors. 

It's a hard call, but you have to loose some color somewhere. I think a Ballroom bustle will loose the least because you are covering the top section which is thinner than the lower area of the train where the color section is wider. For the French bustle you are turning under the lower section which has most of the color. I hope this makes sense

~Lea

added March 2006

I have a wedding dress with 2 skirts: Underskirt, with 3 layers of fluffy tulle attached at the two side seams. It is approximately 120 inches long from the waist.

Overskirt, split down the back, attached at the two side seams, approximately 90 inches long from the waist. The overskirt has a bead edging about 2 inches wide around the bottom and up the split in the back. The skirt has no other beading on it at all. 

I can get the Overskirt looking pretty good, but am having a problem with the 3 layers of tulle on the underskirt. How can I bustle the tulle to make the tulle look good when the overskirt opens at the split? 

I have tried the underbustle because it looks the best, but maybe I should try the overbustle? 

Thanks so much for your help! 

Tulle is really hard to deal with. French bustling often works, but sometimes it doesn't either. This is where you have to get creative and try things that aren't normal. There is a technique were you sew a long strand of ribbon at one side near the waist, under the skirt but over the tulle. On the other side you sew a ribbon loop. To bustle you tie the end of the long ribbon to the loop. Then you tuck the tulle up through and around the ribbon, forming what looks like a French bustle, but supports the tulle better. 

There are other things you can try but I can't really figure out any because it's hard to figure out what this is looking like by your description. Do you have pictures?

~Lea