Are you a bride shopping for your wedding dress or perhaps have found your dream wedding dress and are thinking about alterations now? Are you curious about what a wedding dress bustle is and how they work? If you are not very familiar with the bridal fashion world, you may not have heard the term bustle before. When brides are shopping with us at Lovella Bridal, they often ask how a bustle will work on the dresses they are trying on. We have lots of thoughts and tips on a wedding dress bustle and can't wait to share!
We are here to share all the insider tips and advice for what exactly a bustle is and how you bustle a wedding dress. If your wedding dress has a bustle, you'll definitely want to get our tips and pay close attention because dealing with the bustle is not hard on wedding day, you just need to plan ahead and work with a professional. We’ll share why you should have a seamstress add a bustle to your wedding dress and how you can prepare to bustle your bridal gown on your big day.
Video: What is a Bustle & How do you Bustle a Wedding Dress?
If you are curious about how wedding dress bustles work, be sure to watch our latest advice video to see first hand how a wedding dress bustle works. Our wedding fashion expert dives in to share what a bustle is and how to bustle a wedding dress.
What is a Bustle?
Before we dive into all the tips for how to bustle a wedding dress, let’s start with the basic logistics. What is a bustle? It’s important to know that a bustle is different for each individual wedding dress but does the same essential job. A bustle is added to a wedding dress, particularly if there is a long train, so that you can gather the train and long skirt and pin it up so that you can move and dance during your wedding reception more freely.
We love a long train moment on a wedding dress, but by the time the reception hits, you want to be out on that dance floor with your family and friends and a long train can become a tripping hazard for both you and your guests. Not to mention your dress could get ripped or damaged. A bustle will ensure that your dress skirt and train is safely tucked away, out of harm’s way, allowing you to move about your wedding reception more freely.
Dress Loops
We often hear from brides who do not want to add a bustle to their wedding dress that they will just use the loop on their dress skirt to carry their train around during the wedding reception. The loop on a wedding dress skirt is actually not intended for this purpose. That loop is really to hang the dress train on a hanger when inside the garment bag to prevent it from bunching up too much.
It’s become a popular practice in wedding culture nowadays but we would encourage brides against it. Wedding dresses can be quite heavy and you don’t want to carry that much weight around on your wrist. It’s going to hinder you being able to hug your guests and dance and move freely.
We also hear from many brides that want to know what the bustle is going to look like on their dress because they don’t want to buy a dress if the bustle doesn’t look good. Trust us, by the time you are bustling your dress, you are well into your wedding reception and the photos are going to be more candid. There are not very many photos taken from behind on wedding day to begin with. The front of your wedding dress is far more important than the back.
Alterations
As we mentioned before, each wedding dress bustle is individual. You will not buy a wedding dress with a bustle already on the dress. Each seamstress has their own technique and the bustle must be added to each dress in a certain way depending on the specific dress and the bride’s needs.
You might be thinking that you will just buy the right size wedding dress and not need alterations at all. At the very least, your wedding dress is going to need to be hemmed to the right length depending on your heel height. Ideally, your wedding dress will just graze the floor with your selected bridal shoes. Once at the perfect length, then you can move on to adding the bustle.
Each bride will also have different needs for their bustle. Maybe you aren’t having a big dancing wedding reception so you just want to lift the train a little bit for comfort but still have what we call a sweep train and have just a bit of fabric trailing behind. Or maybe you plan to spend your entire reception on the dance floor and want your entire train lifted. Be sure to tell your seamstress exactly what you are looking and hoping for so they can work their magic and choose the best system for your wedding dress bustle.
The bustle will consist of buttons and loops so that you can tuck up and secure your dress train to the back portion of your wedding dress. But again, this will vary slightly depending on the style of your dress and your body. The number of loops will vary and the way in which the skirt is tucked up will vary.
Pro tip: be sure to have someone with you at your final fitting, whether it be your mom, wedding day stylist, maid of honor, who every will be helping you get ready on wedding day. Your seamstress can walk them through exactly how to bustle your wedding dress so that it looks it’s best on the big day.
Not All Dresses
It is also important to note that not all wedding dresses can have a bustle. Your seamstress will be able to tell you the options available for your particular dress, but there are some limits. A wedding dress that has a very long extravagant train, or a lot of heavy beading, just might not be suited for a bustle. All that extra fabric adds weight and there is only so much gathering and tucking you can do. You really don’t want to be trying to dance with a few extra pounds of fabric tucked up behind you. A second wedding dress to change into for your wedding reception may be a better option in some situations.
A wedding dress bustle should look seamless. Your seamstress will place the bustle in a way that does not stand out. If there is too much extra length in your dress train, it may not look pretty when you try to gather it up and bustle it. You don’t want the bustle to stand out or draw attention, you want your dress to still flow and look effortless, even when bustled up.
More Helpful Bridal Fashion Advice
We hope you have found this advice helpful when it comes to knowing what a wedding dress bustle is and how they work on wedding day. For even more helpful advice when it comes to shopping for your dream wedding dress and finding your bridal style, be sure to check out our past posts:
- Everything You Need to Know About Bustles
- What To Expect During The Alteration Process
- What Is The Difference Between Wedding Dress Alterations, Modifications, and Custom Changes?
About Lovella
If you're shopping for your perfect wedding dress, come visit us at Lovella Bridal in Glendale, CA. We carry wedding dresses in all sizes and styles, including plus-size bridal gowns and a full selection of veils and accessories. Lovella Bridal is the premier, luxury bridal wedding dress shopping boutique located in Los Angeles, California. Lovella features couture, feminine, modern and chic bridal gowns in all sizes from the best wedding dress designers. Schedule an appointment to find the wedding dress of your dreams at Lovella Bridal. We can't wait to help you!
About Wedding Fashion Expert
Our wedding dress shopping tips and advice are from Nayri, Lovella's own, in-house wedding fashion expert. Nayri is truly the expert when it comes to bridal fashion and wedding style. As the Wedding Fashion Expert, Nayri is the top bridal fashion stylist and the best-selling author of the book "I'm Getting Married And I Have Nothing To Wear," the ultimate guide to helping brides find their wedding day style and their perfect wedding dress. You can subscribe to her YouTube channel or listen to her podcast for more helpful and practical advice on wedding dress shopping.
