Can this dress be hemmed?

I received the green Nicole Miller dress from Bluefly today (see "sage
green bridesmaid dress" thread) and it is beautiful and perfect, except
for the fact that it is at least six inches too long. The hem is a
little bit flouncy and there is a gathered part in the back that is
continuous with the rest of the hem.
http://www.bluefly.com/pages/products/zoom.jsp?PRODUCT%3C%3Eprd_id=2010129835
or http://tinyurl.com/9tavk
Is it possible to hem a dress like this, and if so, will it be
cost–prohibitive? This dress was made for an Amazon.
––
Melanie Lee Chang * mch...@lppi.ucsf.edu
Canine Behavioral Genetics Project
University of California, San Francisco
http://psych.ucsf.edu/K9BehavioralGenetics/

Melanie, in looking at the photo, I see a seam at the bustline. When my
wedding dress was hemmed (lots of lace, etc. at the bottom), she took it up
from that seam. An experienced seamstress shouldn't have a problem doing
this, unless there's something I'm not seeing in the photo.
As for cost, a lot will depend on your area. I only paid $50 for my
alterations (resizing bodice, hemming) but I got super lucky and I'm in the
Midwest. I'd say avoid alterations at bridal shops and look for
independents – ask at fabric/craft stores if there aren't any seamstress or
tailor listings in your yellow pages.
Gorgeous dress, btw!
beth


"Melanie L Chang" <mlch...@mail2.sas.upenn.edu> wrote in message
news:dpbpu9$1gg...@netnews.upenn.edu...

bethG (NOrabbitS...@carrotpatch.net) wrote:
: Melanie, in looking at the photo, I see a seam at the bustline. When my
: wedding dress was hemmed (lots of lace, etc. at the bottom), she took it up
: from that seam. An experienced seamstress shouldn't have a problem doing
: this, unless there's something I'm not seeing in the photo.
You are brilliant! Thank you! Below the bust should work quite well.
The flounce starts there, but I'm guessing it shouldn't be too hard to
deal with.
Now I just have to find a real tailor around here –– this might be a bit
much to ask of my local dry cleaner?
––
Melanie Lee Chang * mch...@lppi.ucsf.edu
Canine Behavioral Genetics Project
University of California, San Francisco
http://psych.ucsf.edu/K9BehavioralGenetics/

On 1/2/06 12:03 PM, in article dpbpu9$1gg...@netnews.upenn.edu, "Melanie L
Chang" <mlch...@mail2.sas.upenn.edu> wrote:
Hemming the dress shouldn't be a problem if you don't mind losing some
movement (i.e. Smaller circumference at the hem = less swooshing), but I'm
not quite sure how that back gather is attached at the bottom (if at all).
I can't tell from the photo, but that may complicate things. Normally I'd
agree that taking up the extra material at the bust would be a great way to
maintain the original hem, but that'll probably cost more since you'd
probably have to redo the zipper (assuming that it has one).
As a fellow member of the "vertically challenged", I feel your pain. I have
similar dresses sitting in my closet that need to be hemmed –– just haven't
gotten around to it for one reason or another. Well, ok, that's not true ––
I'm just lazy. :p
FYI, it may be more expensive to hem this dress than a typical frock due to
the difficulty of working with smooth fabrics (i.e. Slippery, probably
requires invisible hems), but it all depends on who you find. As for cost,
it'll probably be around US$30–50 depending on whether there's a lining, but
I'm just extrapolating based on a quote I got for a dress alteration. If
you're wary of finding a good seamstress, the best rec that I've heard is to
go to a good local store (e.g. Local dress boutique, Nordstroms) and ask
whether they'll refer you to their seamstress. A friend of mine found her
seamstress that way via Banana Republic.
Good luck,
ami

"Melanie L Chang" <mlch...@mail2.sas.upenn.edu> wrote in message
news:dpbuov$158...@netnews.upenn.edu...
There are several alt.fashion posters and lurkers in the SF area but
again, check with Britex Fabrics in the City, the store where real
seamstresses go for fabrics. If you knew the seamstress at the local
dry cleaner and knew her work that would be fine, but with such a
gorgeous expensive dress I wouldn't take a chance.
Audrey

I agree with Audrey. If you already know an experienced seamstress (I
use one who owns a dry cleaning store), then you can rely on his or her
expert opinion. Mine will tell me flat out what she will and won't do.
I relied on her opinion about a dress I purchased from Nordstroms for
an affair. She looked at it and told me to return it, which I did. I
was able to get something similar that needed no alteration from
Nordstroms.com.
Good luck with the dress, which is beautiful by the say.
Susan
http://susansspa.blogspot.com/

Melanie, you live in a city with expert seamstresses. As I mentioned
before, you can find one through Britex fabrics. Take your dress to one
and let the seamstress tell you what should be done and how much it will
cost.

"Melanie L Chang" <mlch...@mail2.sas.upenn.edu> wrote in message
news:dpbpu9$1gg...@netnews.upenn.edu...
....
That is a very pretty dress. Other posters have suggested hemming the bottom
or taking it up under the bust. Those are great suggestions, except that I
think it would throw the hang of this particular dress off. It's hard to
tell from the picture, but I think that seam across the front near the knee
is there because the bottom piece is cut on a bias to add fullness to the
flounce. If you take out six inches under the bust, you may end up with that
seam mid–thigh, giving more flounce from there down than you would like.
Likewise, taking six inches off the bottom would make a little flounce right
above your ankles. I think the best way to keep it in proportion is to
remove 4 inches above, and 2 inches below that seam to keep it in the knee
area. It's hard to tell from the rear view photo where the seam ends up, but
I suspect it dips down to the hem in back. From there you could take the six
inches (or less) off the bottom of the rear drape.
I hope this makes sense, and good luck!
Leona

"Melanie L Chang" <mlch...@mail2.sas.upenn.edu> wrote in message
news:dpbuov$158...@netnews.upenn.edu...
As a fellow vertically challenged a.f.er, I need to chime in with something:
Although you can have someone simply shorten the dress below the bustline,
as suggested, you might want to consider how that will change the
proportions of the dress. If it makes the lowest section of the dress (the
very bottom, the flouncy part) a much larger proportion...I'm not describing
it right...Ideally, you would get both the skirt portion *and* the flounce
portion shortened so that the different sections remain proportionate to
each other. If the flounce gets moved upward 6", will it change the
(beautiful, graceful) lines of the whole dress?
Good luck with it.
cofarb

"lslep" <...@bar.com> wrote in message
news:11rj9qrh24qp...@corp.supernews.com...
That's what I was trying to describe, too. It's about proportions. And I
hadn't even considered the zipper issue.
Melanie, have you contacted any bridal salons in your area to see about
ordering something that would be designed/proportioned/measured for you? It
would probably be a lot less scary than finding an independent seamstress,
picking a pattern, fabric, etc.––and trusting a stranger. A bridal
"boutique" probably deals with these issues all the time.
cofarb

cofarb (do...@cofarb.com) wrote:
: Melanie, have you contacted any bridal salons in your area to see about
: ordering something that would be designed/proportioned/measured for you? It
: would probably be a lot less scary than finding an independent seamstress,
: picking a pattern, fabric, etc.––and trusting a stranger. A bridal
: "boutique" probably deals with these issues all the time.
I haven't done that. Partly because I despise all bridesmaid dresses
that are designed as such (the styles and materials are generally
heinous), and partly because my one experience being fitted for a real
bridesmaid dress was miserable (it ended up not fitting very well after
very expensive alterations).
I'm hoping I can find a reasonable solution for this dress, because other
than the length it's fabulous and exactly the sort of thing I would have
picked for a formal occasion anyway, even down to the color. I knew
there would have to be some difficult–to–insoluble problem with it. It
was just too good to be true.
––
Melanie Lee Chang * mch...@lppi.ucsf.edu
Canine Behavioral Genetics Project
University of California, San Francisco
http://psych.ucsf.edu/K9BehavioralGenetics/

mlch...@mail2.sas.upenn.edu says...
Are the dress's bust–waist–hips are in the right place for you? If not,
you're probaby looking at several sets of adjustments.
Best case scenario would be that from the hips up it's fine (and that
back hanging thing is a separate piece of fabric and not actually part
of the main body of the dress) and you could have it taken up at that
curved seam at the top of the bottom flounce.
If there are length issues between the bottom of the bust and the hips,
you've got a problem because there's nowhere to take anything up
between the bust seam and the lower leg seam.
–S./NYC

Melanie L Chang <mlch...@mail2.sas.upenn.edu> wrote:
You can get a really educated guess from the folks
on news:alt.sewing, if you post the link to the photo there.
Hoping you find a solution for *this* dress also.

"Melanie L Chang" <mlch...@mail2.sas.upenn.edu> wrote in message >
Melanie, does the dress reach the floor in stockinged feet or did you prefer
the dress reach above your ankles? My preference is for tea–dress length
(above ankles)... however I saw someone who wore the floor length in almost
same style as yours, and the way she moved in matching heels, it was soooo
stunning. Sort of like Angelina Jolie in that leather dress and peekaboo
heels... ooh la la
I second your sentiments with bm dresses and fittings. Yuck. Lemme rant:
My bm dress was sent to me from out of town. I had just had a baby and was
sent a gown that had to be taken in. I can operate a sewing machine, but
only on home decor so lets go to the "experts". I couldn't get to the
original bridal shop so I took it to a local bridal shop.
I had to wait almost an hour while a "best friend" was trying to convince
the bride that the hideous brownish mrs haversham gown looked beautiful on
her (i bit my tongue). The store owner was also trying to get rid of it...
When I finally got service, I was admonished by the owner's overbearing
mother on why my/our bm dresses weren't purchased from *their* store (trust
me, this shop still has a 1960s display in their window). Then they told me
they couldn't fit me in and if they did, they'd charge about $150+. I never
intend to go back there again, for anything.
I left and took it to a local tailor. He charged half what the bridal shop
asked. He looked like he knew what he was doing. Until he told me he'd sewn
a panel upside down and told me to come back again.
After all this, it still didn't fit. By then, I was so fed up with the time
and effort spent. I just took the damn thing, didn't bother about how it
looked and ran it thru my own sewing machine. Nobody even noticed I had an
extra flap of seam inside my gown, it looked fine! end

Thanks for all the advice, guys. I'll let you know what happens!
My boyfriend says that I MUST make this dress work, so I guess he likes
it. I'll see what I can do.
––
Melanie Lee Chang * mch...@lppi.ucsf.edu
Canine Behavioral Genetics Project
University of California, San Francisco
http://psych.ucsf.edu/K9BehavioralGenetics/

Melanie L Chang wrote:
as not–a–good–seamstress–but–a–short–person, I would think that it CAN
be shortened at the high waist and if that makes the rest of the dress
too voluminous, taken in a bit along the side seams. Keep some fabric
tape/safety pins handy too... (: