Weddingbee Blog

I didn’t think twice about bustles before my first dress fitting. I had no idea that it would be such a difficult decision to make! I went to my first fitting alone without a camera, and that wasn’t a very good idea… I didn’t have anyone to bounce my opinions off of, and didn’t have pictures to show anyone afterward. I ended up going back to the salon a week later so my mom could see the different bustles in person.

During the initial fitting, the first bustle that the seamstress/shop owner tried was the popular French bustle. I have seen these many times, and found them to be quite lovely. I assumed that this was the bustle I would go with—another reason that I didn’t do any research before the fitting. To my surprise, it just didn’t work with my dress style. The underpinning hid a lot of the lace, and the width of the underbustle looked weird against the silhouette of the dress.

The seamstress then tried an overbustle. It started out simple, but soon had many, many points. It was way too complicated for my taste, and I began to worry. The dress would be bustled for the majority of the time that I would wear it, and I really wanted to be happy with it.

I didn’t get any pictures during the first fitting, but I brought my camera for round two.

Mr. Taffy, do not look any further!!!

It may not look too crazy from this view, but look at this close up:

It was just too complicated for me.

I don’t have a side view to show you, but it was very frilly and poofy, and not what I was looking for. The problem was, I was wearing the dress and couldn’t get back there to show her what I wanted, and was having a hard time communicating it. This was not the salon’s fault—they have been great. I just didn’t know enough about bustles to suggest something verbally.

The seamstress agreed to try something simpler, and we came up with this:

This is kind of close up and taken at a weird angle. In this side view, you can get a better idea of the bigger picture in my reflection on the left. We forgot to take a full-length image!

I am so happy with this bustle. It doesn’t hide the lace, and it maintains the simple silhouette of the dress. It will also be easier for my mom and bridesmaids to bustle, which is great.

I am so glad that I took some time to think about this, and brought my mom in for a second opinion. Don’t rush on your bustle if you aren’t happy with it! I’m so glad that I listened to my gut and tried other options.

What was the most difficult dress decision during your fitting?