Tips for choosing your Wedding Dress
|
There are many options available to brides purchasing a wedding dress.
This is truly the best way to get the dress of your dreams. By working with a talented costumer or designer, you can have a wedding dress which exactly fits the image in your mind of the "perfect dress." Also, by creating a dress from scratch you can have a dress designed to perfectly flatter your figure. All brides want to look their very best on their wedding day, and having a dress custom sewn is a fantastic place to start. |
|
- Renting.
Some bridal shops rent wedding dresses out rather than sell them. Since the dresses are only worn once, the bridal shop can carefully dry clean are re-rent the dress to other brides. If you are not planning on saving your wedding dress, this might be an excellent option to consider. If your local bridal shops do not offer this option, you may want to check with shops in larger metropolitan areas.
- Something Old / Something New.
It used to be strong tradition to hand down wedding dresses from generation to generation. Not only was this a huge cost savings, but it also provided an important family connection. Often, family wedding dresses can be easily modernised with new accents of lace and an up-to-date headpiece. Perhaps there is an antique gown worn by your mother or grandmother that can easily be restored. Now there is a new process for removing and discolouration of these family heirlooms and can restore the gowns to their original colour.
- Pre Loved Gowns. Look here!
On-line auction services, newspaper classified ads, and even church newsletters often have listings of wedding dresses. There are also second hand shops which regularly get very attractive wedding dresses in stock after folks have "cleaned out their closets." The price savings is enormous. Often gowns in excellent shape can be purchased for a few hundred dollars compared to their original price tags of several thousand dollars.
Before you step into a dress shop.
- Look at all the bridal magazines you can get your hands on. Identify pictures of gowns that you like. Keep in mind the certain aspects of your wedding day. Is it indoors, outdoors, summer, winter, formal, informal, is there are religious restrictions (eg shoulders covered).
- Sort our how much you are prepared to spend on a gown. You need to know this before you try on and fall in love with a gown you cannot afford. (You will possibly go over your budget. Keep this in mind).
When to Start Shopping
- Try to make your purchase 6 to 9 months prior to the wedding date. Give your self around a month to find the right dress. Do not leave it until the last minute. 6 to 9 months are need to because most gowns are made to order, may require intricate embroidering and the gown or fabric may need to be brought in from overseas.
Make an Appointment.
- Choose carefully and visit 3 stores. The more salons you visit, the more confused and frustrated you will become. After visiting and trying on many dresses you will not be able to remember which is which.
Shop Smart
- Make your appointments on weekdays. Bridal stores are less crowded, you'll get better attention and you won't have to wait to try on popular styles and samples. Weekends are hectic in bridal salons. It is worth taking a bit of time off work to make the right decision.
Be Kind to Yourself
- If looking for a dress is becoming a stressful unpleasant experience. You'll know when you close your eyes and all you see is white dresses. Take a break. Stop shopping for the day or give yourself a week or two off and concentrate on something else. Take your time and refocus.
Trust your bridal store / dressmaker.
- You are going to be a bride once. Some bridal gown stores will dress a thousand brides a year. You need to trust their experience. This may be the time to start asking some other brides of their experiences with that store. If you don't trust them find another store / dressmaker.
Take someone you trust.
- Take along a trusted family member or friend. It's hard to tell what a dress looks like from the back which is what most people will see for the duration of the wedding. Having someone along also gives you some "moral support" not to be rushed or pushed into buying a dress right away. Remember you are the one picking your dress. If you look at different places on different days try to take the same person(s) to each place to help you make your decision.
Lingerie.
- When being fitted for your gown, be sure to wear the undergarments that you will where on your wedding day. The most important thing about the lingerie you wear is to make sure it fits perfectly. Bulges and pinched lines are not attractive. Purchase your lingerie after you purchase your dress.
Get it in writing.
- This rule goes for all wedding purchases. When contracting the sale of the dress, make sure that you get the confirmed delivery date of the dress as well as the scheduled fittings in writing. It's best to get the dress early so that if there are any problems with the construction or fit, that it can be returned for a different new dress right away. As soon as the dress arrives at the shop make sure to try it on immediately at the shop. That way if there is a problem, you can bring this to the store's attention and have a correct sized dress shipped immediately.
Stop Shopping.
- Once you have chosen a gown stop looking. The seasons will change and other gowns will come into fashion. There will be so many other aspects of your wedding that will require your attention.