i just got a custom dress made and paid $600 for it now i mean its gorgeous but this is a huge amount to pay yet many elite skaters will pay this. does any one here get custom dresses what do they think of them thanks?? do they reely make difference in overall presentation?

I've had custom dresses made for me that cost more than my wedding dress. I just happened to be at a gathering of judges and so I asked them if the costume made a difference. To my shock and horror, they said no. The only time they notice is if the dress is falling off the skater or body parts are falling out of it. One of the participants noted that some of the dresses for the little ones were way over the top and that she would prefer parents spent the money on skating lessons or ice time.

Glad and sorry I asked them.

I don't think you need to have a dress that has all the baubles and hoopla on it. If you want a well made dress that fits and looks good than you probably will have to pay for it. I know skaters that paid a lot for what looks like a simple dress. The workmanship is outstanding however and far superior to store bought.

For my competition dress I will probably grab an off the rack one and have the skirt lengthened. I don't like too many baubles so I will try to keep it plain but attractive. I'm only planning on wear it a couple of times so I would rather invest my money in other things

I was sitting in a judge's room during a competition and the only time they would comment on a dress was if it was really beautiful, intricate, or just plain over-the-top.

Can you post a picture? I'm just dying to see it!

One of the things that can make a dress very expensive is if you have those austrian crystals. A dress I just bought would have been $300 more (over twice the cost of the dress) if I'd bought the full crystal package (I did not). I thought I was splurging even with what I paid, but the dress has some intricate cutwork that is very stunning and that really makes it look nice.

I think well-made custom dresses do make a difference in the overall presentation. I mean, I wouldn't go spending a lot of money if you're not a competitive skater though. Whether or not people will ADMIT that the dress does make a difference is another story....

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A custom made dress can do a couple of things that benefit the skater. It can fit properly for one, and it can also be designed as to de-emphasize body flaws, as well as take attention away from things like slumpy shoulders. So it is possible for a plain stretch velvet dress to cost $200 because of the fitting involved. It is worth it to spend that kind of money to get that result. If the skater adores the dress and always feels good in it, that has a certain power as well.

Any judge that I have spoken to about clothing says that the dress doesn't matter, the amount of embellishment, who cares. They will notice if a dress has fluffy things around the wrist and the skater has slumpy arms, that's just emphasizing something bad.

Some coaches believe in the power of the dress for the overall polish of the program, and send skaters to a specific dressmaker, and the skaters are told (no asked) what their dress will look like. I am astounded to hear how much those dresses cost. It's a popular point of discussion in the stands as to whether having the $400 dress makes a difference.

I certainly wouldn't. I've had dresses custom-made, and I've had one (my current favourite) remade for me, I've made my own and I've bought one off-the-rack. The latter was the most expensive, especially since I had to buy a new bra to wear under it! But I would never pay vast sums for a dress, it's not worth it.

After all, the men get away with just a tidy pair of skating trousers and a shirt! Husband is just beginning to see the point of a different-coloured shirt or bow-tie, or perhaps a bandanna instead of a tie, but that's as far as he'll go. Some of us who make our own dresses keep a length of the material for husband/dance partner to wear as a cummerbund, but other than that....

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Mrs Redboots
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I love my computer because my friends live in it!
Ice dancers have lovely big curves!

I would pay (finances permitting) for a gorgeous, elegant, well made dress as they CAN be made to hide a multitude of sins (of which I have many) if they're made by a PROPER costumier. I wouldn't, however, pay humungous amounts for baubles, chandeliers and feathers as I think that I look much better with just a small touch of sparkle .... I'm too old to do frou-frou! I've seen an ice dance dress that I would die for, it's expensive, it's fairly plain but BOY is it gorgous .... an anyway, plain and elegant can easily be used again whereas OTT is pretty much a one trick outfit!

As usual a little aside ....


I turned up for my Bronze (UK) Ice Dance Test complete with lovely dress .... my old coach came running up to me and asked if her pupil could borrow my dress as he zip had split! What could I say but yes. It was 'it's' first time out and it was stunning ..... and she was on before me so I didn't even get to debut it. I DID, however, have a great test, no nerves, felt good, smiled .... AND PASSED with no reskates !!!!

Lx

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The best whisper is a click

The most I've ever spent on a dress was $250. It fit great and was beautiful. It made me feel wonderful and elegant. But it did not improve my skating or improve my scores.

The dress really doesn't matter one bit to judges, especially at the Adult Silver level.

Tashakat, just loved the part about "chandeliers"!

I'm so lucky - one of the moms at our local rink is a fantastic seamstress, makes all of her daughter's costumes (and they are gorgeous -the tuxedo one was to die for!) and has offered to help me make dresses for my daughter too! And she says that it costs for about $80 tops for fabric, etc... (but much more for jewels, rhinestones)

edited to fix typos and add the end part in parentheses

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blades, gary, Lucy, Emily, take care of Aiden and Sami. Sami is my sweetest heart, and always will be, forever. RIP Cubby Boy, my hero dog.

Speaking of fabric, I'm waiting for someone to show up in something made of luminex Only about 200 euros a metre, batteries extra.

I was looking at a picture of Shae-Lynn and Victor in the figure skating calendar, and she's got rhinestones on her tights.

I'm an adult skater, and most of my dresses have been custom made. It's the only way I can get a good fit, since I'm tall. The crystals defintely add to the price of the dress....which is why I have the dress made, then put the crystals on myself. I don't think it really matters to the judges in most cases(I've asked a few, and was told it's how they remember a skater....that they write a description of the skater/dress.....but nothing else). What I think matters is how it makes you feel on the ice...and for some of us, a beautiful dress (that you don't have to tug at) makes a difference in our overall performance. Enjoy our new dress.....and wear it a lot. When you are done with it, hopefully, you can sell it (I've sold several of mine).

as an adult skater, I prefer competition dresses to be custom made for the previously stated "hiding of sins". My first dress was purchased online, where I answered questions on sizing incorrectly (it is impossible to get measurements right on your own). As a result, I ended up with a dress that was far too small for me. In addition, I did have a judge tell me that I would have made a better impression on the ice had the dress had a little more flash.

I don't think I've overpaid for a dress either. I don't think I've paid more than $125 for a synchro dress, nor have I paid more than $200 for a competition dress, including crystals.

The best deal for me ever was a sparkly blue cocktail dress made of stretch fabric that was about to hit the Goodwill pile, when I realize that with some Tulip sparkle spray, I could bring it back to life as a competition dress. With a $10 leotard and a $4 bottle of spray, I wore this in, wow, 5 competitions, getting 1st or 2nd in each. The dress new was $40 in '93; resurrected for skating in '01. I still have it in the closet for compulsories or the next event I need it for. It's elegant, adult and sparkly without being over the top.

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Champagne in 2005, 2008, 2009 - who's next out of the pre-bronze club...?

Wang chung!

My first competition dress was custom made and the damage for everything comes to about $250. I got a silver.

My second competition dress was bought via the net (Six-O dress) and I bought the rhinestone and glue and put them on myself. It came out pretty well... and people were pretty surprised that I glued the stones on myself, since there was another skating mom at our rink out there who is well known for her many talents... one of which being STONING skating dresses for competition. (I *did* buy the stones from her though.)

All damages including stones (not a ton...just enough to get some stuff going... no chadeliers!!!) and glue comes to about $115. I STILL got a silver at that competition.

Moral of the story, of course, is that it really doesn't matter how expensive or flashy is your dress, as long as you feel confident in your skating.

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Cheers,
jazzpants

11-04-2006: Shredded "Pre-Bronze FS for Life" Club Membership card!!!
Silver Moves is the next "Mission Impossible"
(Dare I try for Championship Adult Gold someday???)

Thank you for the support, you guys!!!

I do have a couple custom dresses... $600+ each. But they are well made, and fit properly. I am short and chunky and have a large bust size, so most rack dresses just plain don't fit well. Most XL rack dresses seem to be made for tall thinner women, not short heavy women, even though the weight technically is within what's on the size charts. And a poor fitting skating dress just looks bad. Plus, with the large bustsize, many of the rack dresses just aren't made to allow for a bra, or at least don't allow for a decent sports bra.

And if jenlyon60 doesn't mind my posting, her dresses do look fabulous on her. Worth every penny to have a dress that fits and looks so good!

i have a hard time with rack dresses b/c i have a long torso and no boobs so if i find one that fits in the torso it's too big around my waist and chest area...the last two dress we bought i had to use double stick tape to keep the top from moving, i have two dresses though that were costume made but for some one else and then she let me buy them, they cost a pretty penny but again they fit me very well too and are really pretty and nicely made. I would deffinately shell out the cash though for a custom made dress though.

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Waffles & Vodka

Breakfast of Champions

I also think it pays to shop around for a dressmaker. My first dressmaker was recommended by my old coach. I got a good overall fit from her, and her prices were really reasonable ($100 dollar range), but she moved out of state. When I switched coaches, and moved to another rink, a dressmaker at the rink was suggested, as an option. I decided that her prices were outrageous, so dug out a phone number that Olga Volozhinskaya had given me when she coached where I skate. I figured I'd really be looking at big bucks, and was delighted to find out that I was wrong. My current dressmaker is fabulous, and has very reasonable rates. My dress last year ended up costing $275, and that includes the 1000 rhinestones. Elsy2 can atest that the 1000 stones were not over the top at all. The stones pretty much doubled the price of the dress......they are so expensive.....especially when you underestimate and have to pay shipping twice. Pretty reasonable for a custom pattern from my coach's design, and all of the work involved. I think her fee was around $120. (about 2 hours coaching fees.....and I'm sure it took her a lot longer than 2 hours to create this dress). I bought the fabric and stones. Definitely worth if you are aren't a stock size.