5 Tips for Choosing the Perfect Wedding Dress
One of the most exciting parts of planning your wedding is picking out the perfect wedding dress. You’ve likely been dreaming about your wedding for a long time- now that it is finally happening you start thinking about going shopping for that perfect dress!
1. Research which bridal shops are in your area carefully, and be honest about your budget and needs. Knowing what your budget is and what styles you like ahead of time can greatly help your shopping process. You don’t want to fall in love with a dress that is 3X your budget and then face disappointment if you can’t go home with it. On a similar note- be willing to COMMUNICATE with the bridal shop on how you feel about how a certain dress looks on you. If you don’t like a dress, it is 100% okay to speak up and say something.
2. Try on several dresses before committing to one. Sometimes you’ll fall in love with a style you never considered before. Try on a few different styles- some are designed to suit certain body types better and your fitter will help with recommendations. Wedding dress shopping is fun- so why not try on ball gowns, mermaid dresses and anything between. Walking into your fitting appointment with an open mind is always a plus!
3. Buy in person vs. online. While you CAN find some amazing deals online for wedding gowns, the experience certainly is not the same. Part of the fun of wedding dress shopping is getting the expert knowledge of a dress fitter, having your best friends with you as you are being fitted, and getting to try multiple gowns on in one day. There truly are many benefits to shopping at a bridal shop vs. purchasing something online. One of the main risks with buying online is getting a dress that doesn’t fit or looks very different than it did on a website. You’ll be dealing with the hassle of returns and reordering new dresses to try.
4. Bring a smaller, more intimate group with you to the dress shop. You want your closest friends (bridesmaids), your mother and the mother of the groom to go dress shopping with. You may feel tempted to invite more friends and family, but they could overcomplicate the process. Some bridal shops are smaller and may not have the room for a large group for your fitting. A smaller group keeps less “hands in the jar” with making decisions on which dress you should get.
5. Give yourself plenty of time BEFORE your wedding day to shop for your dress! Make sure to shop around for gowns 6-8 months before your wedding. Gowns do take time to produce, refit, resize, make alterations to. You don’t want to be scrambling at the last minute to have your dress alterations done, or panic about the dress not being ready in time. Wedding planning is stressful enough- so allowing yourself some wiggle room with time is always a bonus!
