Wedding Dress Shopping

Ahhh. Oh my goodness gracious. Wedding dress shopping. Ekkkk. Have you watched “Say Yes to Dress?” I am in love with that show. All of those beautiful wedding gowns; some with twill, beading and lace; some more expensive than a car and some within reasonable range. What do you picture your wedding dress to be?

I had the pleasure of wedding dress shopping this past October with family and a close friend who, lets be real here, is family. We had an absolutely fabulous day. The day started out with getting ready for the big day. I bought a cute white jumper for the day and paired one of the bows from an Eliza J Dress.  It turned out to be really cute and comfy all at the same time. I highly recommend setting aside an outfit to dress shop in. It will boost your confidence and keep you on cloud nine. After All, you need to feel like a princess that day.

We had an amazing family breakfast at our house to kick off the rest of the morning. We then were on our way to my first dress appointment, at Little White Dress Shop. First off the atmosphere at Little White Dress, all I can say is so on point. It’s every little girl grown into a ladies heaven and dream. You are surrounded by dresses, cute couches, mirrors and jewelry. What more could you want? While I won’t get into the details of my dress and the exact one I picked (still engaged over here and my fiancé needs to be surprised), I will divulge my thought process and tips to help.

Prior to Dress Shopping:

1.Set a budget

When I say set a budget, I mean set a budget and stick firmly to it. Wedding dresses are expensive and when you are shopping for your dress you may be so in the moment and opt to up that budget. Of which you will regret down the line when you are over budget for the whole wedding.

2.Make a Pinterest Board

Make a Pinterest Board soley dedicated to wedding dresses. A great friend of mine, who is married told me that every bridal shop you go to will want to see your “Wedding Dress” Pinterest board. She was right and I was so happy I followed her advice and was prepared.

3. Research dress styles

Look at what type of dress you would like:

• Mermaid
• Sheath
• Tea-Length
• Mini
• Ballgown
• A-Line
• Empire
• Modified A-Line
• Trumpet

4. What type of fabric are you wanting?

Types of Fabric:

• Lace
• Chiffon
• Taffeta
• Charmeuse
• Crepe
• Satin
• Tulle
• Organza
• Dupioni

5. Is there a certain designer you want to stick with or are you open to any designer?

Do your research. Every designer has a little bit of a different style. While there are many designers I love, I went into my dress appointment not demanding a certain designer. I wanted to be open to new options.

6. Research Wedding Dress Shops

You have your budget and what kind of dress you are looking for. Look at wedding dress shops that suit your dress and price needs.

Example: Don’t go to a $$$$ wedding dress shop if your budget is $$.

Look at the wedding dress shops online and see what types and styles of dresses they have. If you aren’t wanting a BOHO wedding dress and that’s all the dress shop seems to have, veer away.

7. Book your appointments

While I found my dress in the matter of a couple hours, I am unlike most. Book 2 appointments for your first day. You don’t want to overwhelm yourself. I promise you, no matter how much you are looking forward to trying on dresses it becomes exhausting and a bit stressful if you aren’t finding what you are looking for. Book 1 appointment in the morning and one in the early afternoon. Then split up the day by booking a lunch in between with those people coming with. Have a glass of wine and just let yourself relax and enjoy the day!

Wedding Dress Shopping

The day is here and you are on your way to your first wedding dress appointment. Relax! I promise the world isn’t going to come to an end. I went into dress shopping with an open mind. I was determined to have a blissful day.

1. Keep an open mind.

As much research as you have done ahead of time I am sure you know exactly what you THINK you want, or at least I did and many ladies I talked to who went through the dress shopping process prior to me said the same thing. I went into dress shopping thinking I wanted one thing and ended up straying away from that just a little.

2. Listen to yourself and ensure your bridal gown stylist is listening to you too

It’s important when trying on dresses that you listen to what you are saying. I like this on my body but not that. I had the most amazing bridal gown stylist at Little White Dress Shop in Denver. Her name is Megan. I would highly recommend requesting her if you are in the Denver area dress shopping. Megan is a goddess. She knows exactly what she is doing and listened to me, more that I listened to myself. She stuck with my budget and pulled dresses from the feedback I was giving based on the ones I tried on. This is exactly how I found my dress.

3. Breathe

It’s ok to stay in a dress for a little bit. Walk around and breathe. I took full advantage of this step. It helps keep you, your mind and your body stay at ease.

4. Stick with your budget

You created a budget for a reason. Now stick with it. If your bridal gown stylist is trying to put you into dresses outside your budget kindly refuse. The worst thing you need to happen is to fall in love with a dress you can’t afford.

5. It takes time

While you would like to find your dress right away understand that it takes time. You may find your dress right away and that is fabulous, but if you don’t, don’t fret. Don’t impulsively make a decision just because you think you NEED to find a dress your first day. You want to love your dress and feel like a princess in it. You don’t get wedding days, everyday, you get them once. Enjoy the bliss in the process of wedding dress shopping.

Good luck dress shopping Babes!

XOXO