So engagement season (aka the holiday season) is officially behind us so I know there are a lottttta new brides out there who will soon be looking for their dream dress!
I thought it would be fun to share with you guys my top tips when it comes to shopping for your wedding dress, because I really got after it & researched my butt of when I was searching for mine (I tend to do that from time to time lol) I made a YT video (you can watch that here) on the whole shopping process, and also brought my camera along with me while trying on dresses! But of course I didn’t show you guys when I tried on MY dress…until now! I put together a little video of the first time I tried on the ‘one’ and not gonna lie it made me pretty emotional watching it all back! Finding the dress you will marry your favorite person in is just so special 🙂 Scroll down to the end of the post to watch!
So let’s just get right down to it.
Tip #1: Do Your Homework!
When I got engaged (or If I’m being totally honest when I knew an engagement was on the horizon lol) I started researching like crazy online to try and find dresses that I liked. And honestly – I think this helped me SO much to be more decisive when it came to actually trying dresses on in person (I did this for venues too and also found it extremely helpful). Obviously – you never really know what a dress is going to look like on your body until you try it on, BUT I think it’s so helpful when you not only know what vision you are going for, but know the bridal lingo to be explain what you want. For example, when I went shopping at the boutique I thought I’d find my dress (I did indeed find it there) I straight up told the consultant I was looking for a tiered ballgown with horsehair trim & a lace bodice. Which is exactly what I ended up picking 🙂 But I would not have known how to accurately describe what I was looking for if I hadn’t done my homework before. And this is fun HW, right ladies?!
So how exactly did I do this research? I was pretty much obsessed with theknot.com and their pages and pages of dresses. I would go on, throw on a couple filters to narrow down the choices (ex. ballgown & my price range) and start scrolling. Whenever a dress caught my eye, I would click on it, then ask myself what exactly did I like about the dress? Was it the bodice? The type of lace? The skirt fabric? And then I would read the short description of each dress provided so I could put a name to those details that really popped out to me. See? Easy! Also, as I was scrolling and scrolling and found myself clicking on dresses from the same few designers (specifically those from JLM, like Alvina Valenta, Lazaro, and Hayley Paige) and I would make a mental note of that as well – that comes in handy when you’re looking for boutiques to make dress appointments!
Doing this REALLY helped me not only narrow down & be able to describe what I was looking for, but it helped me be able to find the best dress boutiques in my area for what I was going for. Also, aside from being able to describe the kind of dresses you like, it’s really helpful for the consultant to know how YOU want to look! Really think about it..do you want to look classic? modern? regal? sexy? maybe a mix of all of the above? The more you can describe what you’re going for, the better the consultant help you find your perfect dress. I knew I wanted a dress that encompassed what I described above, but it was also important for me to find something that was a little out of the box. My dress had a polka dot skirt & a sparkly blush underlay (all words I would have NEVER thought I would use to describe my wedding dress LOL) but those touches ended up being the absolute perfect addition to the classic ballgown look I was going for!
Tip #2: Find The Best Boutiques
Remember when I said making mental notes of the designers you like comes in handy? Yeah, this is that part. So it’s one thing to try and figure out what kind of dresses you like…and a whole other ball game to find boutiques in your area that actually carry the kind of dresses you’re looking for. I also used The Knot a lot for this, as they have listings for all of these places on their site, and you can search by location. I would scroll through the different shops in my area, and then go to each of their websites. The main thing I would do is click to see their designer list – so I had an idea of what they carry. If they were all designers I didn’t really care for…there really was no reason for me to go there. (Or at the very least it could be low on your list, you never know!)
A word of advice for my new brides out there – I sooo encourage you guys to at least make one appointment at a smaller, cozy boutique that ideally only takes appointments for just one bride at a time. I found my dress pretty quickly (at my 2nd appt, which you’ll see in the video) so I didn’t go to many places but I did notice a HUGE difference between the two dress places I visited. My first appointment was at a much larger store (that is actually highly recommended in my area) and the appointment felt pretty rushed & impersonal. Also there were SO many people there (literally brides in big dresses had to take turns going down the aisle to the dressing rooms lol it was kind of a mess) and it was just kind of noisy and overwhelming – hard to really soak in the moment! When I found my dress, it was in a small, quiet little boutique and it was just me, my family, and the consultants there. It felt way more special & I felt like the consultants were really trying to help me find my dress, not just keep shuffling me onto the next one. Even if you don’t find your dress at a smaller boutique, it’s just so amazing to have that experience, and I would totally recommend it. Also…bring some champagne! I didn’t and wish that I had 😉
Tip #3: ENJOY IT
While wedding stuff can certainly get stressful (the last month gets a little intense!) the process SHOULD be fun!! I think people get so wrapped up in the small details that they lose sight of the big picture (um, you’re getting MARRIED!) and it just sucks the fun out of it. No matter what happens, at the end of the day none of the details actually matter – all that matters is that you marry your best friend and get to do life together. That’s what is important!! So don’t sweat the small stuff (like finding out 7 days before the wedding you don’t have bridesmaids dresses…yes that happened to me!!) and soak up every last second. Especially when wedding dress shopping – because it’s SO fun – and also you may find your dress super quickly like I did and not get to try on many dresses! Also if you do go in prepared (re: tip #1 & #2) it does make things go more smoothly. I can totally see how girls that try on tons and tons of dresses get kind of numb to the process and become overwhelmed. Do a little research, figure out what you like, and it should make the process go so much more smoothly and be totally enjoyable! Oh…and did I say bring some champagne??
If you are local, I found my dress at Jennifer’s Bridal in Hockessin, DE. Couldn’t recommend them more! And my gown is by Alvina Valenta, style 9551. (I did wear a petticoat underneath to make the dress bigger as well…because why not 😉 )
Best of luck to all the beautiful brides out there!! Would love to hear how your shopping experience goes!
xx Becca