One of the most common questions we get from shoppers is “can you help me lace up this dress?” And we don’t blame you, because we know lace up backs are a trend that’s simply to die for, but come prom night you’re going to want to be able to lace it up with minimal effort. So here is Amari’s guide to lacing up that dress:
Step one: put the dress on! It seems simple, but keep in mind that you will want to loosen the straps before putting on and that more often than not, you’ll want to put the dress on over your head instead of stepping into it.
Step two: recruit another set of helpful hands. You could always attempt to tie yourself up, but sometimes the lacing is fragile, and excessive yanking (which is common when doing this yourself) can snap or rip the lacing.
Step three: hold the dress exactly where you would want it to fall on your body. The person lacing up the back will start tying as soon as the dress is held in place. This way, the bodice will rest in the proper spot on the wearer’s body and no one will have to worry about the ties being too loose or the dress slipping down.
Step four: tie it up! Lace-up backs work a lot like a sneaker; start from the top of the dress by the wearer’s shoulders and go from there. Tightening the lacing is easier when you pull from where it goes through the loop instead of pulling from the middle of the back. Make sure it’s tight enough that the dress won’t slip, but loose enough that it’s not cutting off any circulation.
You want to pull right from the loop, instead of tightening from the ends of the laces. Tug above the loop to tighten, and below the loop to loosen.
You don’t want to yank from the end because the laces can snap, and it also won’t be tied tight enough. Start from the top and work your way down!
And voila! Picture time!
Written by Marisa Fertitta