Here's How To Make A Simple Lehenga For Party With Your Bridal Outfit

Going by how much time, money, and efforts go into finalising your bridal wear, it is absolutely heartbreaking to see it not being used again for years to come. Unlike the old times, these days every bride has a distinctive choice of her own and does not necessarily believe in refurbishing what their moms wore at their wedding. So how can you really end up making more use of your gorgeous bridal wear without being uncomfortable and having to look over the top?

Well, the code is really simple. While it is not fair to ask brides to choose bridal lehengas that have a wider chance to be worn at various functions after their wedding, because it is their big day and they are allowed to sometimes want what they want without having a rational outlook towards it.

So for your bridal lehenga to not lie around in the closet after your big day, we have put together some great tips on how you can reuse them or refurbish them to make it into a simple lehenga for a party that can be worn multiple times around. Read on to see if they make sense to you and help you reuse your bridal wear.

Add a Lighter Dupatta to Your Heavy Bridal Wear

Image Courtesy: Manish Malhotra's Collection

Most often than not, the dupatta of a bridal lehenga is the heaviest and the most elegant part of the whole set. However, they are not easy to carry to any other occasion later on. So if you want to wear your bridal wear as a simple lehenga for a party, then switch the heavy bridal veil with something light and easy. This will not just make your outfit look subtle, but also keep you comfortable in it.

Pro Tip: A net dupatta is easiest to match and looks the lightest with a simple lehenga for a party.

Switch The Blouse With a Shirt

While we are sure that every millennial bride knows about this trick to reuse their bridal lehenga. So if you’re someone who went for an extremely heavy lehenga and do not know what to do with it now, well switch it up a little. The best combination with heavy bridal lehengas is single-toned simple shirts that can balance the heavy embellishments on the lehenga skirt.

Pro Tip: Choose a base colour for the shirt that compliments the colour of the lehenga or the match can look rather off in a simple lehenga for a party.

Reduce the Volume of Your Lehenga Skirt

While bridal wear is known to be over the top and dramatic, sometimes it is the volume of the lehenga skirt that makes it look more like it. For brides that had chosen a comparatively lighter lehenga and made it look voluminous with a tulle skirt or cancan underneath and cannot re-use it now because of the volume of its skirt, we don’t think you have a problem. Just get the volume of the cancan or tulle skirt reduced to how much you think is manageable by you in a simple lehenga for a party.

Pro Tip: Talk to your designer about the kind of work you have on your lehenga and how much flare is a minimal requirement for it to look presentable. Most bridal lehengas can droop if not supported by any cancan at all.

Introduce a Sexy Bodice To Your Heavy Lehenga

Many a time brides are shy to reuse or refurbish their wedding lehenga because they feel that people will anyway recognise it and then it might look rather odd. Well, we don’t think that’s the case if you switch the vibe of your lehenga completely.

From a rather traditional looking piece, you can get rid of the blouse and match it with a sexy bodice that makes it the perfect choice if simple lehenga for a party. Go for something completely contrasting to surprise your friends and family with a never seen before combination.

Pro Tip: Choosing a colour different from that of your blouse can also help make this simple lehenga for a party look refreshing and different.

Reduce the Number of Kalis in Your Lehenga

While some brides love the cancan in their bridal lehenga, some make it over dramatic by going in for a full 24 kali lehenga. It is pretty obvious that a 24 kali lehenga cannot pass off as a simple lehenga for a party and therefore cannot be used that often. So brides that genuinely wish to wear their bridal lehenga again or pair it with a crop top or a sexy bodice, get its number of Kalis reduced to how much you think you can carry for a party.

Pro Tip: While getting the number of Kalis reduced pay special attention to the fabric of your lehenga as materials like Zardosi and Banarasi need more Kalis or they will otherwise fall flat.

Mix and Match a Kurta to your Bridal Lehenga

Lehenga suits, as we call them, are one of the most preferred options of outfits for wedding guests. The convenience of a lehenga suit is that they can most often look good without any drape too. That saves you a lot of hassle.

The blouse and the dupatta of your bridal wear make for an extremely heavy pair to wear to a simple function. So ditch these two, and mix and match one of your Kurtas with your bridal lehenga to keep it simple and edgy at the same time.

Pro Tip: Make sure the kurta that you opt to wear has a slit or a cut for your beautiful bridal lehenga to show as without it the simple lehenga for a party may look rather dull.

Cut the Borders Out To Make It Lighter

As we all know that bridal lehengas are known for its heavy borders and over the top work. However, when it comes to reusing them, it is practically impossible to wear something so heavy.

Therefore one of the coolest ways to reuse your bridal lehenga and making it into a simple lehenga for a party is to cut its heavy borders out in a way that it becomes a lighter version of the same outfit. This way the entire outfit will keep intact without you having to drop any of its pieces.

Pro Tip: Do not think that those heavy borders will go waste in any way. You can use them to make heavy kurtas or shararas that can be worn at other functions or even get them stitched to one of your plain sarees and change it to something more exclusive.

Drape Your Dupatta in a Cool Way

It is sometimes the way that brides drape their dupatta that makes the entire outfit look much heavier than it really is. Well, therefore the key to reuse your bridal lehengas as a simple lehenga for a party is to change the way you drape your dupatta.

Forget the saree style and all the other usual styles of draping and think out of the box and pick one of the cool draping ideas. This way you can change your entire demeanour from traditional to chic and millennial.

Pro Tip: The stole or a wraparound style of draping the dupatta can also help you cover the heavy work on your blouse making it look like a perfect simple lehenga for party.

Do you think these tips are actually useful for brides that want to reuse their bridal lehenga? Well, we are sure that they work. All you need to do is discuss it with a designer or go to a boutique that you trust and people who understand fabrics and bridal outfits in and out.

They can help you figure which of the above tips is actually applicable for your bridal lehenga. So, don’t stress out because we are surely not letting something so priceless go absolutely waste and can’t wait to see how creative do you get to refurbish your bridal lehenga into a simple lehenga for a party.

In case you need more inspiration, check out this video tutorial on how to restyle your wedding outfit like a pro!