I've seen that happen with beaded dresses too, and it puzzles me. My mother works with beads, and her items are tough as nails. Nothing ever comes apart. I'm wondering if the problem is weak thread, or perhaps inadequately securing each string of beads?
You speak the truth. I love the creative process, and the shocked reactions when friends ask me if I stoned the dress myself.
That does take time and patience. I love making jewelry and have a load of rhinestones and beads etc. However, I get so tired from work etc. that it's hard to concentrate when I get home. I really want to learn how to work with dresses though! That is one project that I want to learn how to do.
Has anyone bought a standard dress from pearllydress? I'm contemplating getting one of them and stoning it myself, but there doesn't seem to be much information about their quality, and I am skeptical cause it's based out of China.
I have noticed that the beads are sewn on poorly. I glue all threads on any BR gown on the wrong side of the fabric! Works well.
Here are some photos of a dress a customized and bought from RainbowShiu for about $300... I bought the dress plain and glued on rhinestones myself... A pain, but i love dancing and I am on a shoestring budget when it comes to dance. I love the dress. Sorry I don't have better pics of it. Front View: Back View: You can see a little more detail in this pic: My Avatar show me in a rhythm dress I bought from dancedresspro.. another chinese vendor... Also love that dress, but I bought that one WITH rhinestones instead of glueing them myself and now they are falling off. It's time for a new dress anyway!
Beautiful!!! That is an excellent color on you. I think stoning it yourself makes a big difference; the design comes out the way YOU want it!
Heh, I see some familiar faces in those pictures. Including your pro, I believe. Well, don't know him, just recognize him. That dress does look really good on you though, I agree
Thank you AM and etp!!! Yes, my Pro Eugene is in the first two shots and my studio manager Sasha is in the third. The third is not the best photo of either of us but it was the best closer up picture i had with the right lighting to show the details better.
That is a more than adequate dress and looks beautiful on you. The girl who has the most expensive dress is not always the winner. I'd rather spend the money on lessons.
I've never worn a dress from china. I have seen them up close and the thing that stands out the most in my opinion, is the material. The colors are nice, the stones are good, but the material is different. It is a different blend of some sort. I agree its a good deal for the price. But- if it is a different, more affordable fabric, why not have it made by a local tailor? At least you could have more direct communication about what you want. I have known several dancers (mostly pros) who had a dress maker outside of ballroom who did a more than adequate job. Why go through all the hassle of ordering from china? A side note: I recently went to a local fabric store. It is the main store that supplies all of the local high end fashion designers with their material. I talked to some of the employees and they gave me several references to costume designers who would be more than willing to make a ball gown for a fair price.
The question is, would they be able to do it properly? I certainly wouldn't go to a local tailor for a tailsuit (unless I lived next door to Alex Sinitsa or something).
In terms of Pearlly dresses, I havent had any made there but I can assure you there are plenty of top competiors here and internationally using them to make gowns. And they use Chrisanne fabrics and swarovsky stones. I have been tempted to give them a go, but lately not in a mood to make anything and running out of ideas for what I want at the moment. My creativity ends on color as of latery
And someone you have no idea about in China is making your tail suit? would they do it properly? Dont get me wrong. If I lived down the street from Dore, I wouldn't go to a local tailor either. I was speaking from a money saving standpoint.
Hi TinyDancer, I remember seeing you at a competition in your yellow gown and I thought it was so beautiful on you! You were lucky! I have not had as much luck with ordering dresses from the Far East. They didn't look or fit as well as those I had made here in the States. But that dress is a dream on you - prettier in person than in the picture!
Thank you very much singndance!! (I am going to guess you are a FADS student since those are the only comps i have been to so far lol) Sorry to hear you had such trouble with your dress from China.. out of curiosity, was it from Rainbow Shiu? Admittedly, the embroidery on my dress began to come loose a couple of months ago... but it was nothing a sewing machine couldnt fix! :wink: Also, do you buy dresses from American custom dress vendors now?
