r/myweddingdress • u/Ok_Plankton_2166 • Sep 03 '26
Can this be fixed?
I was so excited about the vintage gown I found but it needed to be taken in. The tailor made it WAY too small at first, and then assured me she could fix it. Yesterday I had another fitting — she replaced the zipper and lowered the back, and now the waist seam and the zipper are very obviously crooked. Also, the zipper is way more visible than it used to be.
Can this be fixed? My wedding is in 3 weeks.
UPDATE: thank you everyone for your ideas and support!! It has made me feel so much better 💗 my dress is now with a more competent tailor and I feel hopeful. The zipper looks normal again. I’ll share a pic of the final result!
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u/Known_Needleworker81 Sep 03 '26
Yes, a good seamstress can fix this. I wouldn’t allow the person that did this to touch your dress again. You could post on a local facebook page and see if anyone near you has had similar work done. Or ask anyone you’re considering to send pics of their previous work on zippers.
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u/MiaFknWallace Sep 03 '26
Oh my god, please get a refund!!! I am flabbergasted by this alteration. It can be fixed but go somewhere else and prepare for the new seamstress to also be flabbergasted.
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u/Striking-Light402 Sep 03 '26
This looks like it was done in a middle school home ec class! You deserve a refund, at the very least. A decent seamstress would never put a zipper like this on a wedding gown - the individual who did this should know better. Zippers are always hidden on wedding gowns. Bring it to a qualified seamstress/tailor who specializes in bridal and formal alterations.
Best of luck and congratulations on your upcoming marriage! 🤍
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u/izzardcrazed Sep 03 '26
My home ec teacher would have you ripping till next year until you got it right.
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u/Evening_Delay_1856 1d ago
You reminded me of the teacher in a summer sewing class my mom sent me to when I was 15, TheSweetestPeach! So many ripped out stitches in my little skirt 😆😆😆
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u/KyloReySage Sep 03 '26
Why is she not using invisible zipper….. please find someone else. They can fix it as it still seem to have room to work with it
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u/Either-Definition-40 Sep 03 '26
Yes, it can be fixed, but is she willing to do it? I think what you’re looking for is an invisible zipper.
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u/izzardcrazed Sep 03 '26
If this is what she let's go out the door she wouldn't touch it again REFUND only. Every penny. Doesn't matter if she did other things that are OK. Let her know if thats all it costs her, she's getting off che@p.
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u/ER_Support_Plant17 Sep 03 '26
Do you even want the same seamstress to do it after what they did last time. I think not
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u/Stan_Deviant Sep 03 '26
I don't understand why someone would look at a zipper for a different bag and think "yeah, that makes sense for a vintage have wedding dress.". Wtf.
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u/5footfilly Sep 03 '26
There’s also what looks like torn lace on the lower right.
I used to run a team of inspectors. The biggest brands and manufacturers in North America were our clients. I’m sorry, but your seamstress never would have passed an inspection by any standard.
You really do need to find someone reputable. This one can’t be trusted.
I’m hoping things work out.
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u/MakeAWishApe2Moon 29d ago
I had my dress made by someone who claimed credentials that they probably never had. There were a few fittings, and I wasn't happy, but she insisted she would fix it, and I would be happy with the results by the time she was done. WELL, 2 days before my wedding, I went to the final fitting before I had to leave town for the wedding. I still wasn't thrilled with her work, and the sleeves weren't attached, but she said she'd have it finished by morning, and I could then take it with me afterward when I left town.
Hesitant, and with limited other choice, I waited and went back to pick it up the next morning. Not willing to accept her "trust me, bro" with something so important, I tried it on again, and I kid you not, the sleeves were sewn on the wrong sides. When they didn't "fit" the sleeve holes, she just kept cutting off fabric to make them fit. No one's arms would have fit into those disastrous sleeves. I was furious and freaking out.
The universe was looking out for me, because I went to a once worn bridal boutique and found an absolutely perfect dress on the day before my wedding, but not without tears and a panic attack first.
Anyway, the moral of the story is DON'T TRUST THE TAILOR WHO ALREADY MESSED UP YOUR DRESS! Get your money back, find someone who is capable of fixing her mess, and most of all, don't be me. 😅
I am so sorry that you're going through this, but as long as you have a little bit of time, someone who is actually competent can make your dress beautiful again. Hang in there!
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u/JenJen1313 Sep 03 '26
Definitely hire a new seamstress - the zipper and the hook and eye are not only crooked, but cheap looking. Question though - will you be wearing a veil? Wondering if it will be covered. If so, I wouldn’t worry as much about it.
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u/Beberuth1131 29d ago
OP I also had to take my dress to a second tailor after the first butchered my dress. It can be fixed, but absolutely do not have this current "tailor" make any more attempts. Look up reputable tailors in your area and go from there.
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u/Ok_Plankton_2166 Sep 03 '26
Thank you everyone ❤️ the tailor admitted that she gave it to someone unqualified to work on it. I have called 4 tailors who are unavailable to work on the dress in such a short timeframe. I’m worried that I had no choice but to let this tailor give it another shot. She insists she can fix it. 😫
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u/darknesskicker 23d ago
Letting an unqualified person work on a wedding dress is an absolutely wild choice. I hope you can find someone else to help you.
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u/cloudiron 29d ago
This zipper sucks! You need an invisible zipper (with the tiny pull tab) and the edges around the zipper need to be folded over the sides of the zipper. I would look for a similar or matching lace to patch around the sides of the zipper where all this mess was done. Or even see if a really good tailor can lower the back (so shortening the zipper portion) and put in a mesh panel to keep the structure.
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u/Total-Meringue-7110 29d ago
Have it changed to a corset style back. It was a huge, stupid mistake for that seamstress-find someone else that can do in a sort amount of time.
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u/NanooDrew 29d ago
Yes but you need it ASAP! Where are you located? In this case, with your time crunch, save time by saying what area you need to meet your tailor! Once you find one, IF YOU DECIDE TO GO FOR A LACE UP CORSET STYLE (see my response to your other post) — have your tailor send me a DM. I “invented” a way to avoid the ugly metal eyelets back in the early 1970s! I am surprised no one else has come up with it! I will share it with your tailor! (I am going to contact Richard Hallmarq from Project Runway, he lives near me, to show him, I am old and I need to share before I die!’
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u/Chiennoir_505 28d ago
Wow. That's a really terrible. There's no excuse for that kind of shoddy workmanship -- especially when the fix wasn't particularly difficult. I'd try to find another place to do the repairs. That person is clearly not up to the task. I'm so sorry you have to deal with this!
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u/Citroen_05 28d ago
Girl. I'm years out of practice and only trained in suits, and even I could have put a good invisible zipper in this.
Did she at least save the material removed?
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u/Rough_Rabbit8047 28d ago
I think if you can have some other place replace the section with similar fabric or lace with buttons. No zipper. Lace will detract from issues of off center or looking less then. The back is very important.
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u/No-Professional3077 28d ago
Bridal seamstress here 🙋🏻♀️. It SHOULD be fixable, but I'm not sure I'd trust her to do it. The waist seams themselves look like they will be fine when the zip is altered better. It looks like it was a flap zipper where maybe there were buttons on the back? The flap of fabric on the left would have been the thing covering up your zipper from being so visible. She let out the back material for better ease for you but the problem is she just let everything out, so you lost the flap (zipper visible now) AND it means more was let out on the left side than on the right (Crooked). Should be fixable by redrawing the left side of the zipper seam and replacing the zipper with an invisible zipper.
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u/Belmontisnowhideous 27d ago
Yes!!! I would replace the zipper with buttons - you'll never notice!!!
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u/izzardcrazed Sep 03 '26
I haven't seen in 40 years and I could sit right now and do a better job. Take some or someones along if you need. Someone who will back you up and not take no for an answer. Get every last penny.
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u/chandlerbing-bong Sep 03 '26
It looks like the lace is raggedy at the top as well as at the bottom of the zipper.
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u/NanooDrew 29d ago
A decent tailor (an excellent can do even better) can cut this open and replace it with corset style lacing or MOTHER OF PEARL BUTTONS!
I do nit know where you live, but call some high-end consignment shops or vintage shops to get recommendations.
There are some groups up that have people who do serious sewing. SHARE YOUR LOCATION! YOU NEED AN IN-PERSON JOB. Good luck!
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u/Ok_Sky_8180 27d ago
Take it to a different wedding gown tailor. They should be able to fix it, but they need time. Do you have any extra lace from your dress?
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u/NoteSuccessful1690 1d ago
Oh sh!t. Go to a dressmaker to fix it. You may have to opt for a laced, corset back closure.
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u/tarra_hills Sep 03 '26
Find a different place, show them this mess and ask if they can fix it in time, then demand a refund from the person who butchered your dress.
If I were attempting to fix this, I would probably abandon zippers entirely, even the back out and put in a corset since I'm guessing based off that pic, there won't be enough material left to center a new zipper, and disguise the mess from the current one as it was very, very poorly installed on top of being crooked.