How to Make a Wedding Dress Shorter Without Sewing

The right length of a wedding dress reinforces its statement.

Making a wedding dress shorter without sewing is a project that need not send a bride and her helper into tremors of anxiety. With planning and the wonders of fusible web tape, the dress can be shortened without a sewing machine, the bride will be happy, and one more thing will be crossed off the to-do list.

Things You'll Need

• Measuring tape
• Paper-backed fusible web tape
• Light-fade marking pencil
• Fabric scissors
• Scrap piece of thin cotton cloth

Instructions

1. Have the bride-to-be put the dress on with the chosen shoes.

2. Turn the bottom hem up on the outside of the dress at the desired hem length. Measure the amount that is turned up. Do not put pins into the dress; pins can leave holes in fine fabric.

3. Have the bride-to-be take the dress off then turn the gown inside out.

4. Mark on the inside of the dress the amount turned up less 1/2-inch, which is the new hem depth. Use a self-erasing marking pencil to draw this line all around the bottom edge of the dress.

5. Cut on this line with fabric scissors.

6. Test the fusing process on the piece of fabric that was removed from the bottom of the dress. Read the package instructions for the fusing tape and do several practice “hems” on the scrap fabric before working on the dress itself. Place the tape on the fabric, paper side to the surface. Iron on the paper portion of the tape, let it cool down then remove the paper. Fold the fabric over so that the tape is encased between the layers then iron again. It is a good idea to use a scrap piece of thin cotton cloth between the fabric and the iron, such as an old pillowcase. Continue testing until you have found the correct temperature for your fabric that produces a consistent bond all along the tape strip.

7. Turn the bottom of the dress up 1/2-inch on the inside and press with the iron to create the hemline.

8. Place the tape, paper side against the fabric surface, on the 1/2-inch hem allowance on the wrong side of the fabric. Align one edge of the tape close to the cut edge of the hem and fuse it in place. Do not iron over the pressed hemline.

9. Remove the paper. Fold the fabric up along the pressed hemline and press again to fuse the two layers of fabric together. This creates the hem.

Tips & Warnings

• Paper-backed fusible tape is available online through drapery suppliers and at fabric stores. Light-fade marking pencils are available from most fabric stores.

• Pressing a wedding dress hem is easier if you have a large work area. Cover a table with a towel, cover the towel with a clean cotton sheet then clamp it to the edge of the table to hold it in place.

• Fusible webbing that melts onto the bottom of an iron is very difficult to remove. Use a pressing cloth to prevent this from happening.

• Do not iron over the lines drawn by the marking pencil; it may cause them to become permanent. Light will fade the marks until they are invisible, but you can also erase them with the built-in eraser.