A piece of feedback we’re proud to frequently receive from our lovely clients is that the bridal alterations process was one of their favourite aspects of wedding planning because visiting our Northbridge atelier was a fun and uplifting experience.
“From the moment I walked into Ilka, I felt so welcomed. The team were all so warm, knowledgeable and genuinely invested in making sure I felt confident and comfortable from my very first appointment,” - Maddison
“Ilka was the recommended tailor by the store I got my wedding dress from, and they were fantastic. Everyone is friendly and I had a lovely time each visit,” - Emily
“I’m a very anxious person but the ladies here made me feel so at home and like I was just hanging with friends. The alterations were PERFECT and my dress fit like a glove,” - Kiri
It’s natural for brides-to-be to feel nervous heading into the bridal alterations process as wedding dresses are expensive and can be complex in design and structure, so to put your mind at ease we’re taking the guesswork out of the equation by sharing exactly what you can expect from a Perth bridal alterations appointment at Ilka.
When to book:
To ensure you’re able to secure your preferred appointment day and time (please click here to view our opening hours and to book), we recommend booking in your first Perth bridal alterations appointment 8-12 weeks before your wedding, or as soon as you receive your dress.
If you have a complex wedding dress redesign in mind (eg: you want to redesign your mum’s vintage wedding dress to give it a new look), a lead time of six to eight months is preferred.
How many appointments are required?
In regards to your bridal alterations timeline, most clients will attend two to three fittings for bridal gown alterations. The duration of each fitting appointment is usually 30 to 45 minutes.
What to bring:
In addition to bringing your wedding dress and veil (if you have one, if not, you can try on one of our many beautiful veils during your appointment), please also bring your bridal shoes, as these are vital to ensuring we tailor the hem of your wedding dress to be the perfect length for your height.
If you plan to wear shapewear or specific underwear under your wedding dress, like Boomba’s Barely There Mid-Rise Thong or Low Back Shapers, please also bring these to your appointment. If you haven’t yet purchased your shapewear or underwear by the time your first appointment comes around we can provide advice on what undergarments would be best to help you achieve your bridal vision.
Brides are very welcome to bring one or two support people to their bridal alterations appointment at Ilka. We strongly recommend only inviting friends or family who support your bridal vision and will lift you up and help you to enjoy the experience. If you can avoid it, we suggest you do not bring a large support crew, as too many opinions can make the process feel overwhelming. At the end of the day, the only opinion that matters about how your wedding dress fits is yours!
If you would prefer to come alone, our all-female team will happily step up to be your hype girls!
Arriving at Studio Ilka for your bridal alterations appointment:
Upon arrival at our Northbridge studio for your first bridal alterations appointment you will be welcomed by our seamstresses on the ground floor, who will direct you up a flight of stairs. If you require access to an accessible change room on the ground floor, please let us know when booking.
As you venture upstairs you will discover our beautiful (and newly renovated) fittings suite, complete with change rooms, mirrors, a wall of shapewear and stick on bra products to peruse, plus comfortable chairs for your support person to relax on.
Putting on your wedding dress:
Your seamstress will show you to a change room and then it’s up to you whether you would like to step into your dress on your own, or if you would like our help. We can be as hands on or as hands off as you wish at this stage of the process, however if your dress has a back with multiple button closures, you’ll probably need our nimble fingers to do them up.
Once your dress is on, we’ll help you put on your wedding shoes and then we will invite you to step out of the change room to stand in front of one of our full length mirrors.
Talking through your vision:
Before we do anything, we’ll chat to you about your vision for your bridal alterations, which may be as simple as finessing the hem to something more complicated, like a neckline redesign. When we understand how you would like your dress to look and feel, we’ll start pinning your gown so that it starts to fit you like a glove.
Your seamstress will talk to you throughout this process to make sure you’re happy with how everything is fitting and once you’ve approved the fit, we’ll take a couple of photos to keep on file, which our seamstresses can refer back to. We will then step away for a few minutes to calculate your quote. If you’re happy to proceed, we ask for a 50% deposit to be paid at this first appointment.
What happens next?
You’ll leave your wedding dress in our care so that we can commence alterations. We will book your second and potentially third appointment by spacing out your fittings evenly between the date of your first fitting and your wedding or departure date. For example, if there are nine weeks between your first fitting and your wedding, we’ll schedule your second fitting three weeks after the first appointment, and your final collection will be three weeks after that.
Dress collection appointments and preliminary alterations appointments are available on Saturdays, however second fit appointments are scheduled Monday to Friday, when our full sewing team is in the studio.
How much will my bridal alterations cost?
The price of your bridal alterations will vary greatly depending on the scope of the work that needs to be completed. As a rough guide, we recommend brides budget $1000 for bridal alterations, with most brides spending between $800 and $1400 for a full bespoke tailoring service.
Whether you require minor adjustments or a major redesign, you can be confident that the highly skilled team at Ilka will ensure your wedding gown looks and feels like a dream!