Dress straps?

Question

Does it look weird if you sew on straps to a strapless dress?

Answer 1

It will look great if you have a complementary style and good placement of straps.
Start with a temporary strap to compare placement, width, and style. Use a cheap fabric and safety pin it in place. Have someone take your picture using a digital camera with the different styles. For the finished strap, match type of fabric (velvet with velvet, satin with satin).
Strap suggestions:
Spagetti straps with rhinestone chain. Sells for about $10/yard at craft and fabric stores.
Contrasting fabric for straps, and then use some extra contrasting fabric for decoration such as small bow, fabric flower, or fabric trim below bustline.
Contrasting purchased trim, but has to be nice. Do Not buy that cheap sequin stretchy trim. It will look awfull.
If the dress is long enough, you can shorten the dress and use excess material for the straps. If the dress is floor length, make sure you remove enough so it looks tea length and not just too short.
Do not try to match the color exactly if you are purchasing fabric. You will never match the dye lot and it will be noticeable. This goes even for black or white.
Decorate the straps with beading or fancy buttons. Do a little extra decoration in other areas of the dress with same materials.
Try out different width for the straps. What looks bad at 2 inches might look perfect at 1 inch or visa versa.
Reinforce the strap. Use interfacing or thin gosgrain in matching color so it does show through.
Placement:
I suggest the widest placement in front will be best. A strapless dress tends to have a decorative neckline and you will not want to detract from that.
Styles:
One strap from each side of dress attachs to a collar around neck, leaving back open.
One strap dress; starts at right, crosses bust, then over left shoulder, attaches to left back. Looks best if heavily beaded.
You can play with two straps, have them cross in front or cross in back.
One strap from each shoulder attaches to back at widest possible point (front armpit across shoulders to back armpit)
Sewing the straps down:
Stay in the seam allowance and try to match thread to basic color of dress. Reinforce.
Attach the straps with a sturdy decorative matching brooches. Works best with the collar strap style if you do not want to permanently alter the dress. Costume brooches look funny attached in back.

I have made several dress conversions, both to straps and to strapless. My favorite was a dark blue strapless prom dress that would not stay up on a customer. The dress was store purchased too long, so when hemming, the extra material became 3/4 inch straps. Then I attached beaded strands to front and back of straps so they draped around the upper arm.

Answer 2

It depends on the dress, really. If its white- then no. It won't look very nice. That happens when it is light colored so if your dress is very light colored- dont put straps on it. But if it is very dark then most likely it will work. Just make sure you can get a thread closest to the dress color. Also middle colors- use see through straps. That is if the straps are only for holding the dress up... if to stop revealing the dont use see through, of course. But if your dress is different colors, try to put the straps on a dark color- if that is impossible- then don't put any straps on. Hope I helped.

Answer 3

you should protection pin the bra straps to the gown rigidity, yet pin it below, so nearly all of the pin can not be seen and in basic terms an element sliver of steel is seen in case you look very heavily. OR quickly stitch the straps collectively while you're donning it. stitch it with one or 2 lengths of string, after which in basic terms definitely shrink the string out whilst the formal experience is over. be particular to apply string that suits the gown xD

Answer 4

it shouldn't...but to make it look less wierd you could put straps on in a halter style.

Answer 5

it does look kinda wierd and really bad if u mess up. if u get like a tailor or some1 2 do it it would pry look good

Answer 6

it kinda depends on the dress, but it shouldnt if you do it right