How To Design Your Own Wedding Dress

Designing your own wedding dress can be a fun and memorable experience.  It is also a way to get a custom designed gown, that no other bride will have, at a fraction of the cost of having an established designer custom design a gown for you.

There are many steps and considerations when designing your own wedding dress, so be sure to allow plenty of time before the big day to complete this project.  Also, if you aren't the one who is actually going to be doing the sewing, you must allow plenty of time for actual construction of the dress.  The concept and design may be wonderful, but if there is no time to execute the dress, it is useless.

First, you must decide on style.  Do you want the Cinderella gown or the Hollywood replica gown?  If you have decided to design your own wedding dress, it may be because you don't have a particular style and you want bits and pieces of all designs.  Be careful not to go to hodgepodge with your wedding dress design.  You don't want it to look like a kindergarten project.  Another thing to consider when choosing style is comfort.  Remember, you will be wearing this dress for the ceremony and the reception.  Since this is a custom gown designed by you, it should fit you perfectly.  It should show off your best attributes and hide any problem areas.

After you have decided on style, you will have to choose a material.  You must find a material that works with your style.  For example, a Cinderella gown cannot be made without tulle, but a trendy fad-of-the-moment dress may not have a stitch of tulle in it.  Find a material that is comfortable, breathable and easy to work with.  All wedding dress material is not common in everyday clothing.  If you are unfamiliar with types of material, it will benefit you to go to a fabric store and familiarize yourself with different types of fabric.  You also can visit wedding gown shops and look at their dresses to look at different fabrics.

The last and most fun part of designing your wedding dress is adding the embellishments.  Decide which overlays, if any, you want to add to your wedding dress.  Be aware that crystals can be very heavy, so you should be prepared to carry an extra 10-15 pounds if you want a wedding dress covered in sparkles.  This is also the perfect opportunity to add in your something old, maybe a piece of lace from your mother's wedding dress or a crystal brooch from your grandmother.  A small blue ribbon laced into the overlay can also add something blue.