The Ballroom Bustle

added March 2010

Dear Leanna - 

My daughter's wedding date is May 22, and we are STILL trying to determine the best way to bustle her wedding gown. At her first fitting, we tried several bustle types and none of them seemed right for her dress or her small frame. She is 5'-0" tall and weighs 100 pounds, and her dress is a size 0 that is being drastically altered to fit her! Her dress is David's Bridal style # SWG9902, which has several layers of tulle and a sweep train. Link = http://www.davidsbridal.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplayView?storeId=10052&catalogId=10051&categoryId=-49973483¤tIdx=2&subCategory=-49999486|-49973483&catentryId=6142349&sort=

Her next fitting is April 1st. Can you please give us your opinion on the best bustle for this dress? We are having an outdoor, "full blown" reception (dinner, dancing, etc.) so she definitely needs a bustle!

Thanks for your help! Gail

Hi Gail,

I don't have any pictures on my site that are close to what I would recommend. The train is too short for a French bustle to look very good. Depending on how the seams were set under the ruffles an Austrian might look nice but it will be complicated to rig. I think it might be easiest to do a basic Ballroom. The train is not long but it is wide, so I think you'll need several points though, maybe up to 8. 

~Lea

Leanna, 

Thank you so so much for your quick response!! After researching the different styles online we kind of thought that the ballroom style might be the best option for her gown but didn't trust our judgement on that. Again, thank you so very much in helping us with your expert opinion.

Gail 

added February 2010

Leanna Studios,

I was wanted to see your comments. Here's what my local bridal store's recommended seamstress did for a bustle on my dress. When she was pinning it up, I swear there was only an inch on the ground remaining. She said it was "impossible" to get a complete bustle because of the train design.

By the way, if you can't tell photo P2020383 is the alleged bustle.

Teresa

Hi Teresa,

I understand why your seamstress might have created this bustle this way but it is totally unacceptable. The first goal of bustling is to get the train up off the floor. The second goal is to have the bride's backside look good. She was trying to give you as much exposure of the train design as she could but she didn't get anything off the floor. 

Occasionally I get a bride who wants a little drag left in her bustle. There is a style going around called puddling that has the gown too long in both the front hem and train but I think it's simply horrible. 

If you ask them to redo the work, I don't think you will get a good bustle from this person. If she knew how to do it right she would have done a lot better than this picture. Your train is a bit of a challenge but I have done successful bustles on such trains. Some of the decoration of the train will just have to be hidden by the bustle. When things are not going well, I have advised brides before to cut their losses and find a new person who can do the work well. 

You have a hard conversation with this store coming. They have not done a good job and you should not have to pay for it but they can also refuse to give you the gown until you do pay. If they will let you pay with a credit card, you might be able to get your money back through a chargeback. I can explain to you how to do this later.

You have not said how much time you have until your wedding. If you have enough time you may try having them redo the bustle before you go elsewhere. There's a slim chance you may like the outcome. You could take them a picture you like from my site. Maybe like this one: http://www.leanna.com/Bridal/bimages/ballroom17.jpg

And ask then to do it that way. They might not like being told how to do it but you are the bride and should get what you want.

I hope this helps a little, 

~Lea

added January 2006

Thank you so much for this wonderful website. I just got into period costuming a few years ago so I am comfortable in corsets, ball gowns and used to wearing (and making) bustled gowns. However, when I picked out my wedding dress, I was completely at a loss as how to create a bustle on such a skirt.

http://www.bridalonlinestore.com/store/Jennifer.asp

Any advice.

Constance

Creating a bustle on an already finished gown is much different than making a gown with a bustle. I have been looking at your link to try to get ideas. This is one of those situations where I'd have to play with the gown until I find something that looks good. I would try to find points that would hold the train up at the places where the skirt is gathered. It probably would not be as I normally set the points but it would end up looking much like a ballroom bustle. However it is done, the bustle will be quite fluffy because of all the fabric in the gathered flounces. 

Without seeing the gown on you. It's really hard to give you advice, but I hope this little bit helps.

~Lea

added July 2005

Do you know of any bustles that look like a bow?

There is a way to do this. You have to have a lot of fabric in the hip area. What you do is a normal Ballroom bustle and instead of tucking the excess fabric under, you pull it out the edge of the points. It sort-of looks like a bow. I've not found a bride that likes the effect though. Anytime I've tried doing it the bride decides to just tuck the fabric under, after she sees how it looks on her butt. 

~Lea