Is it possible to make dresses bigger

It's the perfect solution to a dress that fits too tight. It's the opposite of taking in a dress , which is what you do to make a dress smaller.

You'll just need a few supplies to let out your dress and just a few basic sewing skills. It's a quick project that will take you less than an afternoon from start to finish. When you're done, you'll have a perfect fitting dress, all ready for your next night out. You'll need a few items to let out your dress.

Here's what you'll need to get together:. Before you let out a dress to make it bigger, you need to check to see if this is possible with your dress. The dress will have to have been sewn with extra material at the seams so it's possible to let it out.

Wedding dresses, formal gowns, and nicer dresses will have the extra material at the seams but if you have a casual dress that you picked up at the department store, you might be out of luck.

Turn the dress inside out and take a look at one of the side seams of the dress so you can see if it can be let out.

You're looking for two different options. With the first, there will be extra fabric at the side seam that will be folded along the seam. If you were to remove the stitches, the extra fabric would unfold. The dress I'm letting out has an enclosed seam , with two lines of stitching. I can remove the first line of stitching and get a little bit of extra fabric that I can use to make my dress bigger. This is one of the easiest methods to try, but it also comes with uncertain results.

You may end up with a dress that hangs crookedly or that is stretched out of shape. Also, some fabric will not stretch. Silk, organza, tightly woven linen, rayon, and organdy, among others. Popular types of fabric that probably will stretch include any type of knit material, cotton, stretch lace, stretch satin, velvet, and polyester. The first is to fill up your washing machine for a cold soak and leave the dress in there overnight.

Do not run the wash or spin cycle. Instead, hang the sopping-wet garment in your shower and allow it to drip dry. You can find several other variations on this method, including using a hair conditioner or fabric softener in the cold water soak.

The basic concept remains the same, though. You want to use a relaxing soak and then gently draw on the fabric with your hands to stretch out the dress. If your dress has shaping features like darts, you can try removing the stitching from these elements. This will open up the folded fabric and give you a little more room in the bust or waist area. As a word of warning, though, removing these features will also change the shape and style of the dress.

You could end up with a baggy-looking dress. Darts look like tiny triangular folds stitched into the dress. They usually lie beneath the bust or stand up at the waist. To take out a dart, you have to use your seam ripper to remove the straight line of stitching along the dart itself, as well as the side or waist seam that holds the bottom end of the triangle.

Then use your sewing machine to re-sew the waist or side seam without the dart. If you want this process sewing-free, you can use safety pins to close up that opening! Just make sure you use tiny pins and set them neatly to avoid any obvious bulges or gaps. The best way to make a tight dress a little looser is to try the stretching method described earlier in this article. This can expand the fibers in many types of fabric, giving you a bit of room to breathe inside your too-tight gown!

If you do not have time for the soaking and stretching technique, you can also try using a hand-held seamer to thoroughly dampen your dress. Then use your hands to stretch the material. Slide a safety pin into the fabric, bunching it up so it stays gathered. Close the safety pin and turn the dress right side out for an instantly form-fitting dress. Part 6. Add a belt around your waist.

Grab your belt and tie it around the smallest part of your waist usually above your hips. Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered.

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Work out your new seam by taking your measurements or the measurements of the person the dress is intended for at the fullest point of the bust. Measure the dress both front and back at the bust. Subtract the second measurement from the first to work out how much you need to let the dress out by. Using a seam ripper, very gently remove the stitching on the bust of both sides of the dress. Take extra care not to pull too hard, as this can cause the fabric to stretch or even tear.

Divide the amount you need to let the bust out by 4. This will give you how much you need to let out on each side. Mark the new seam on the dress with tailor chalk and pin the edges of the dress back together at the chalk mark.

Stitch the dress back together you can do this either by hand or with a sewing machine , starting at the chalk mark of one end of the open seam and working your way along the length. Tie off the ends of the thread and remove the pins to finish. A few minor alterations can quickly transform an overly tight nightmare into a comfortable dream. Depending on the style of the wedding dress, you can either use the same method we used in the last set of steps or, as an easy alternative, simply add a fabric gusset to increase the overall width of the dress.

Loosen it enough for the dress to be removed. Lay the dress on a clean work surface. Add two inches to the first measurement and one inch to the second. Cut your gusset fabric according to the measurements taken in the previous step.