Shooting Star Custom Historical Clothing FAQ Cost | Payment Methods | Delivery Time | Rush Orders | Fittings | Choosing a style Fabrics How much do dresses usually cost? My custom day dresses start at $200 and the ballgowns and riding habits start at $450. An average wedding dress will probably run between $600-800. Fabric choice will have a lot to do with this. High end fabrics like silk, velvet and laces can make the price go up quickly. Why do they cost so much? These are custom fitted, individually designed dresses. I do not duplicate my custom work so you have a designer original. Each dress may take me weeks to search out the perfect fabrics, trim, design, etc. What does this price include? This is for the dress only! The quoted price will not include shipping, petticoats, corsets or underthings unless you specifically request them to be included in the quote. It also does not include a fitting muslin. Payment methods? We take Personal Checks, Visa, Mastercard, and Money Orders. Credit cards are charged the dress price up front and the shipping charge on delivery of the dress. Checks and money orders require half down and half upon delivery of the dress. This means the dress may either be sent C.O.D. or I will ship it after I receive the check. What is the delivery time on a dress or outfit? I need a minimum of 90 days to get a dress finished, if the material is really special or the design is particularly complicated it may be even longer. Also, if there are several orders ahead of you it may also make this time increase. If you need something right now check out our ready-made collection. Keep in mind as a general rule ready made wedding dresses require a 6 month delivery time and other specialty outfits such as dance costume request a 3-4 month lead time for delivery, so 90 days really isn't that long for a custom dress. Notice this is a minimum of 90 days-unless otherwise stated in your contract the maximum is 120 days. This period starts from the time I recieve payment or downpayment on your dress. Why so long? I live about 35 miles from the nearest fabric store, and over 100 miles to one with a wide selection of fabric. Waiting for fabric to be shipped in and the design process itself may take several weeks in itself. Then time must be allowed for the actual sewing. There is only one seamstress/designer- Me! and my time must be divided between my sewing, my husband, my two year old and my critters. Plus, some times of the year are very busy for the living history portion of our business, which also keeps me away from the sewing machine. What about a Rush order? I can do rush orders, however it automatically doubles the price of the outfit, since I have to drop everything to get it finished. Rush orders are only taken with prior approval, as my schedule permits. Sometimes, I just cant get it done in the length of time you have. What about fitting? I have a long list of measurements I need that SHOULD give a good fit IF they are taken properly. ALL measurements on my chart should be filled out, even if they seem superfluous to you. By taking so many measurements it allows me a “cross-check” so I can see if something looks “off” and can ask you to re-measure and confirm. I WILL GUARANTEE FIT ONLY if you agree to a muslin fitting. This is a $25 extra charge, I will make a muslin of the bodice and send it to you with instructions on how to pin and mark it for me. You will need to have someone help you do the pinning and marking and send it back to me. This way I can be assured that your dress WILL fit when it is received. I will refit a dress once for free (even without the extra muslin cost), IF you ship it back to me with return postage and a letter stating where it needs adjustment and how much. Taking measurements Use a good seamstresses tape measure and get a friend to help you. DO not use a metal tape measure, a cloth tape measure or try to measure yourself- all these will add up to inaccuracies. Measurements should be taken snug BUT NOT tightly. Tying a string at the waistline will help to give you a reference point. Do not take you measurements over your clothing, but do take it over the undergarments you will wear with your dress. If you do not have undergarments and wish to purchase them please make a note of this when ordering the dress. How do I choose a design/era? I need to know three things: 1. Date(within 2-3 years) your costume is to represent! 2. Who you will be portraying (i.e. are you a society lady, middle class, homesteader, saloon girl, etc. or is this just because you love the era?) 3. What is this costume for? (Reenactment, Theater, Wedding, Home Tour, Parade, etc. ) There are a large variety of fashion periods in the Victorian/Edwardian Era. I can make anything from about 1800-1910 before or after that I lose interest. My main focus of study is the Victorian era 1838-1901 and my Favorite era is from 1868-1889. The more specific you can be on a date the more accurate I can be... Here are some pictures from Timeline Pages of the The Costumer's Manifesto by Tara Maginnis, P.H.D. to help you decide on a date: 19th Century Western Costume Neo Classical Era (1800-1825) 19th Century Western Costume -Romantic Era (1825 to 1850) 19th Century Western Costume: Hoop Era (1850 to 1870) (actually the 1st bustles start appearing in about 1868) 19th Century Western Costume First Bustle Era (1870's) These pictures include early bustle and the tied back look of the late 1870's 19th Century Western Costume Second Bustle Era (1880's) 19th Century Western Costume Belle Epoque (1890's) 20th Century Western Costume: 1900-1910 20th Century Western Costume: 1910 -1920 What About Choosing a Fabric? Be aware there are some fabrics I will use and some I will not. I prefer to do the fabric choosing. If you have some fabric you would like me to make up for you, please mail me a sample of it first. The period you choose and person you wish to represent will make a difference in what fabrics are appropriate or not. If you order a dress, and would like to see fabric samples I can send them to you at your request. The best option is usually for you to give me colors you prefer and let me make a few suggestions based on what is currently available. Home Custom Clothing Measurement Chart