Most of the time, we can’t get what we want. It’s particularly true when it comes to competition costumes/dresses. High quality new costumes are darn expensive, but you need a dress for an upcoming competition or a showcase….. Well, there’s something you can do to spruce up a little-less-than-ideal dress— put some rhinestone on it.
Stoning a dress is not that difficult, especially once you get used to it. Just putting Swarovski stones on a dress improves its appearance so much. The key is to use high-quality rhinestones, such as Swarovski. Sure, Swarovski stones are expensive, but remember you start with a cheap dress. Decorating a cheap dress with cheap stones, which you bought at a local craft store, doesn’t do it good. Plus, you’ll feel cheap, too. I felt really cheap when I attempted for the first time. It was for a studio showcase, and I didn’t have enough time to do a research on the how-to’s or to order Swarovski. Since then, I learned. So, here are some tips.
- Buy a pre-owned or inexpensive dress.
You can buy a pre-owned dress from the links listed in this post, or go for a new and inexpensive one from abroad, such as Rainbow Shiu or Acapulco Paradiso. Another choice is Tangoleva. Even though Tangoleva is specialized in tango dresses, some of the dresses look suitable for ballroom showcases. If you decide to buy an inexpensive new one, make sure to order it “without” any stones. Once I bought a dress with cheap stones and had to remove those unsparkling stones in order to put Swarovski stones. Removing the stones took much more time than putting new ones on.
- Order Swarovski rhinestones
The only place I’ve ordered stones is Rhinestoneshop. The shipping is quite fast and I am satisfied with their quality, too. Their website offers some info about terminologies and such. There are flatback stones and hot-fix stones. I think flatbacks are more appropriate for beginners. Of course, there are a lot of other online stores, too.
- Decide on the stoning pattern
This is the part you can use your artistic sense. It’s fun to think about the patterns.
- Get the materials
You need to get glue. I use Gem-tac but some people use E-6000. Other than rhinestones and glue, I use a small paper plate, tweezers, and toothpicks.
- Glue the stones
Squeeze a small amount of Gem-tac on a paper plate.
Using a toothpick, put a little bit of glue on the dress according to the design you chose. Use tweezers to pick up a stone and put it on the spot you put glue. Keep going…..
I find stoning a dress very calming and relaxing. I usually have some music or TV on while I do it.
It usually takes a day for glue to set and dry, so hung the dress when you’re done.
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