The wedding day has to be one of the most important days in a woman’s life. While there are a lot of preparations that need to be done for the wedding day, choosing the right bridal dress is something every bride worries about the most. To the groom, all the wedding dresses might look the same. But if you ask the bride to be that what she looks for in an ideal bridal dress she will let you know there are so many factors that come into play when picking the perfect bridal dress. What wedding dress style would suit her? What are the latest trends for Bridal gowns? What material should a wedding dress be made of? On top of that, the sheer number of design choices available in the wedding dresses makes it even more difficult to pick the right wedding gown. That is why we have come up with 10 tips that will make wedding dress shopping a lot simpler for you.
Decide on a budget for the wedding dress
In the US couples spend an average of $1000 on their wedding dress and the prices of bridal wedding dresses range from $280 to $1650. With such a wide price range to choose from it is extremely important to make a budget for the wedding dress before starting the actual shopping for the dress.
Wedding dress decision making starts with figuring out how much you can comfortably spend on a wedding dress without hurting your overall wedding budget. Because let’s face it although the dress is important there are other more expensive items on your wedding planning checklist that you will need money for. Try to consider as many options as you can before picking out the dress. There are three main options for you when you go shopping for a bridal dress.
- Renting from a wedding shop (Least expensive option)
- Buying a ready to wear wedding dress (Moderately expensive option)
- Or getting a custom made dress for yourself (Most expensive option)
In some cases, the bride’s family or the groom buys the wedding dress for the bride; while on the other hand, some brides get the dress at their own expense. But no matter what the case is you have to pick an option that best fits into your overall wedding budget. Avoid buying a wedding dress that exceeds your budget and if you are ok with renting a wedding dress that would be the most cost-effective option. But we understand that a wedding is a very special day for a woman and most women would prefer to buy their wedding dress. So if you determine a price range you are comfortable with you can avoid spending more on the wedding gown than your budget allows you to. After all, let’s face it the wedding dress is something you can only wear once in your lifetime so it would make sense to spend only what you can easily afford.
Choose a dress to suit the weather and time of the wedding
Weddings are often planned to take place during the most pleasant time of the year that is the spring season. But everyone chooses a different time and month to get married according to their preferences or the date when all the guests are free and available.
Knowing the time of the year in which your wedding is going to take place will help you in finding a suitable dress for your wedding. You should do your research and determine if the weather is going to be hot or cold in the month that you are planning to get married in. Once you know how the weather is expected to be at the time of your wedding you can pick the perfect wedding dress according to that weather.
Time of the wedding also plays an important role in selecting the right wedding dress for you. For the daytime wedding, gowns with light shades and light embellishment are suitable & for the night time wedding, darker shades with embellishment are suitable. If you are a summer bride, you may choose a thinner fabric and you can choose a warmer material for your wedding gown if you are getting married in winter.
Consider your wedding location and theme
If you have decided to go with a specific theme and location for your wedding it will simplify your wedding dress options to those dresses that match your wedding theme and location. In themed weddings, your dress material and color matters a lot and it should go with the overall theme of the event.
If you want to have an indoor wedding theme, the weather isn’t an issue in this case. And you can even wear more than one dress for the indoor wedding event as you have plenty of time for the ceremony. But if you want to have an outdoor wedding theme you will have to let the weather decide what kind of dress you would go for depending on if the weather is hot or cold. Normally white formal wedding gown is preferred in daytime weddings and for evening weddings a red dress or other colored dress is preferred.
Then comes the location you have picked for your wedding event, some popular wedding locations include beaches and local gardens. If you are planning a beach wedding, pay attention to the fabric and length of the dress you will choose. Usually short and light wedding dress will be better for beach weddings as they are easier and more comfortable to wear for the bride.
Of course, you can get married in the local court or church, which seems more ceremonial. So once you have determined where your nuptials should be held it should be fairly easy for you to pick a wedding outfit accordingly.
Start looking for a wedding dress ahead of time
Now that you have decided about the budget, location and time of your wedding, you can begin the search for your wedding dress in the following places:
- If you shop for a pre-made wedding dress online, that’s worth a shot. Nowadays, there are many wedding dress websites providing tailor-made dresses to fit your shape, even with customized sizes, colors and styles. You may find the right one that suits you.
- If you are on a very tight budget you can rent a wedding gown from a shop. You will need to make an appointment with the seller. And if you are renting a gown you have to make sure that the dress shouldn’t be lost or damaged. Otherwise, you may end up spending more than the rental cost of the dress. But then again a premade.
- Of course, a custom made wedding dress seems to be the better choice. Because you can design your own gown, and choose everything for your wedding dress by yourself. The custom made dress is going to fit you perfectly. But the drawbacks are that it will take a longer time to be made and it will cost you a lot more than the other options.
The bottom line is to start looking for a dress earlier so you can give yourself more time, to make a decision.
Look for a dress Pick a dress that suits your style
If you search for trendy wedding dress styles on Google, you will soon find out that the mermaid style wedding dresses are the top trend. Mermaid dresses are also regarded as the sexiest dress style of all dresses because of the way they can fit women perfectly and enhance their looks. Not to mention these dresses are super comfortable and hug your feminine curves. But being trendy doesn’t mean that you have to go with a mermaid dress for your wedding unless it matches your overall style and personality. Some brides who are on the skinny side prefer the sweetheart wedding dress, as they can use the extra features a sweetheart dress provides to make their silhouette perfectly.
For the brides with thicker arms and fuller figure, they may go with an Off-shoulder wedding dress. So that they can feel comfortable, and give guests a look that the bride is both elegant and sweet. So don’t get confused with the storm of gown glossary terms, try various wedding dresses styles and pick the one that matches your personality. Once you have Familiarize yourself with the different style options and find out which one suits you the best you can now continue to decide what type of the sleeves, neckline, and embellishments suitable for you.
Buy a wedding dress for your body type
Do not stick to the dress sizes you wear on day to day basis when getting your wedding gown. When you choose the wedding dress, just forget the size you normally wear and take professional advice from the experienced tailors and sellers. Finding out the right size for your wedding dress is never easy therefore more and more brides are opting to buy lace up wedding dress.
A lace-up gown allows you to loosen or tighten it according to your needs and you don’t have to worry about not being able to fit the gown at the last minute.
Of course, choose a good tailor to get your dress stitched if you are going with a custom made one because a wrongly stitched dress can be difficult to fit.
Choose a dress color according to the wedding theme and your skin tone
The most commonly used color for a wedding dress is traditionally white and ivory. But with that beings said no rule says every bride should dress in white on her wedding. To look enhance your overall bridal looks, you should choose the color that looks good on you. The right color dress will also compliment your skin tone and give you that bridal glow.
If your dress is white make sure that the theme is adjusted accordingly and background or the stage for your wedding ceremony isn’t white so it will make your dress seem too white. Not to mention your wedding photographers will thank you if you combine a darker background with a white dress as it helps in capturing some great bridal photos.
So our advice is that you try dresses in different colors before you pick the one you think looks the best.
Besides, you will probably have bridesmaids and mother to help you pick your dress and you can always turn to them for a second opinion if you are doubtful whether you picked the right wedding dress or not. You should also consider the color of your partner’s clothes while choosing your dress for a perfect brides groom combination.
Get help when you need it
In case you can’t make up your mind about a wedding gown you can always get advice from someone who understands you well and has knowledge about wedding dresses. If budget is not an issue, you can also take some advice from bridal consultants or boutique. As they are experts and they have experience in finding the right dresses for brides. Who knows maybe they suggest you to try on a dress that didn’t seem like your style to you but it might be the perfect one for you all along. But at the same time don’t let the bridal consultants trick you into buying a gown that’s either too expensive or one you don’t like that much.
Buy accessories and undergarments according to your wedding dress
Wedding dresses commonly come with a built-in bra. But there is always a possibility that the position of the built-in bra might not suit you. So a pro tip is as soon as you have picked a wedding dress go and buy some undergarments according to the dress to avoid running into any issues later on.
If you decided to go with a more simpler dress for your wedding then this is where you can make up for the simplicity of the dress by matching some nice jewelry and other accessories with your dress. The right accessories for your wedding dress can increase your overall elegance by ten folds. For example, if you are planning a wedding in a church, a veil is a very important and necessary accessory for your wedding dress. But on the other hand, if it is a beach wedding, most brides prefer to wear sea-themed accessories to complete their overall beach wedding look.
Keep your dress ready after you buy it
After you have bought a wedding dress, your wedding might still be a few days away. So you should know how to keep your outfit maintained and prevent it from getting any stains or creases. But in case your dress does get a stain somehow you should ask the seller about how to properly wash the dress so that you don’t damage the fabric.
One common question is can we hang the wedding dress? Because some wedding gowns are very heavy they can get negatively affected by hanging for long periods. Therefore the best way for storing a wedding dress is to put it in a cool and dry place, such as a closet or even under the bed. The worst place to keep your wedding gown is in the attic or the basement. Putting it in the attic will cause the wedding dress to be heated and faded. In the basement, it will catch mildew which is a form of fungus.
Please make sure that you have washed your hands properly before taking out your wedding dress.
So, prepare a checklist of these points and make sure you are not missing out on something important. Make your memories beautiful by being a little careful!