How much off the floor should I hem a long dress. She wants to be comfortable when she takes off her shoes too. I was wondering if 1 1/4 is ok. The dress is very full 4 layers thick (organza, lining, and another lining with tulle) I'm starting off by hemming the inside layer with the tulle first then she's coming back so I can measure for the hem on the top 2 layers.
Thanks, Wendy
My rule of thumb.......or foot, as it were.......is to hem the dress so that the hem just brushes above the top of the toe of the shoe. One reason to always make sure whoever is wearing the dress is wearing the EXACT shoes she plans to wear with the dress when you do the measuring. If this gal wants to be able to wear the dress when shoeless I'd say to hem it so it just barely brushes the top of her instep (center foot) while she's standing barefoot. At least that way she won't be stepping on the hem when she's walking, dancing or whatever. While she is standing barefoot use a ruler, place it on end next to her foot and then use a pencil or some sort of a stick and lay it across the top of her foot to intersect with the ruler and see how many inches off the floor that is and you can use that as a measurement all around to see how far off the floor the hem should be.
Val
Does it stand out from her legs like a hoopskirt? My ROT on those is 4" off the floor (in shoes, which always have no heels). Recently I noticed that when people (small children) get close and there are Other Factors (buffet table, bending over to talk to kid, etc), the dress brushes the floor somewhere and it gets stepped on. If you have a full petticoat, slap that on her over her jeans, and have her walk, sit, stand up, dance, navigate the bathroom in it. HTH
--Karen M. no wardrobe malfunctions
InspirePoint website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.