How Far In Advance Should You Get Your Wedding Dress Altered?

Let's talk wedding dress alterations!

When a bride finds her perfect dress, she'll almost always ask how soon the alterations need to be done. Some brides are just eager to have their perfect dress fit perfectly and who can blame them! The short answer is this: the fitting and alteration process should start about 6 to 8 weeks before the wedding day. Early enough that there's no panic, close enough that the dress is fitted to the body you'll actually walk down the aisle in.

Let me walk you through why that window works, and what the process really looks like — because it makes a lot more sense once you see how it all comes together.

Why 6 to 8 weeks?

There are a lot of reasons for that time frame, but here's a big one. I can't tell you how many brides have come in for a fitting and told me they've lost weight since buying the dress. Some even tell me they're on a diet and plan to lose more before the wedding. Secretly, I'm a little envious that they're young and can do it so easily, but I usually gently advise the bride to try to maintain from there on out. Depending on the complexity of the dress, we can sometimes make last-minute adjustments if needed, but most gowns have multiple layers, and it just isn't always possible to change things at the eleventh hour.

That's really the heart of it: your dress should be fitted to you, as close to your day as we can reasonably manage, so it fits like it was made for you. Because by the time we're done, it was.

How many fittings will I need?

Bridal gown alterations usually take between two and four fittings, depending on the complexity of the dress. Here's how it typically goes:

The consultation (optional). Some brides like to come in right after purchasing their dress, just to get an idea of what work is needed and what it will cost. There's no pressure it's simply a chance to make a plan.

The first fitting. This is where all the needed alterations get discussed and planned out. Things get pinned up, giving you a real idea of what the dress will look like once it's fitted to you. Come to this one wearing the shoes you'll wear on your wedding day and the undergarments you plan to wear with the gown — both change how the dress sits and where the hem should fall, so it matters more than you'd think.

The second fitting. This is where we verify that the alterations have gone as expected and check the fit. I personally prefer not to touch the hem until this fitting. Sometimes the other alterations affect the hem, and you never, ever want to get that wrong for a bride.

The final fitting. This is when everything, including the hem and the bustle, if you need one, is in place and the gown is ready to go. I always plan a little extra time for this one, because I've found brides love a full run-through: putting on the dress, the shoes, the veil, the whole picture. And if the gown has a complicated bustle, I like to make sure whoever's with you that day learns how to bustle it, so you're never left fumbling with it in the ladies' room during your reception.

What makes some dresses take longer

Not every gown is the same amount of work, and it helps to know if yours might need a little extra runway:

Beaded and heavily embellished gowns are the big one. When a dress is covered in beadwork or delicate lace, taking in a seam often means carefully removing beads by hand, doing the alteration, and then stitching them back so you'd never know they moved. It's slow, meticulous work — and it's exactly the kind of thing you don't want anyone rushing.

Gowns with several layers take more time too. A dress with a lining, an underlayer, and an outer layer of lace or tulle is really three garments in one, and each change has to be made on every layer so they hang together beautifully. And a dress that was ordered a size or two large — which happens all the time, since it's easier to take a gown in than let it out — is simply more work than a little nip here and there.

None of this is anything to worry about. It just means we start with a little more time in our pocket.

What if my wedding is soon and I don't have that much time?

That is perfectly fine. I work better under pressure anyway!

All jokes aside  life happens, and we don't always have the luxury of that six-to-eight-week timeline. I once had a bride call me the week of her wedding in an absolute panic. She'd picked her dress up from being altered somewhere else, and they had made a bit of a mess of it. We were able to get everything fixed in time, and nobody knew any different.

So if your day is coming up fast, please don't panic and don't assume it's too late. Reach out anyway. I'd much rather you ask than spend the last week of your engagement worrying about your dress.

The bottom line

Bring your gown in about 6 to 8 weeks before your wedding, come to that first fitting with your shoes and undergarments, and give the more detailed dresses a little extra time. Do that, and your alterations will be one of the easiest parts of your wedding planning, I promise.