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Tips for Finding and Buying the Wedding Dress

Tuesday, 10 February 2009 22:55

I have been stressing and stressing about finding the right wedding dress. Almost every day, I am looking in the magazines for dress designers and then looking them up online to see what dresses they carry. The problem is, it is too hard to go to every shop and try on the dresses and I want to make sure that I've looked through all of the dresses to find the perfect one. Plus, everyone has tips! One of my girlfriends went to New York, stood in line at 5 AM and fought through the madness of the Vera Wang sample sale. The good news is, she found an amazing dress and she looked great. The bad news is, New York is far, and the dress was a size 10 so everything had to be taken in. Let me just say, she got a lot of alterations done.

Recently, I started finding some sites online that said they would do the exact same replica of the dress for only $200. I was so curious, that I sought out to ask brides online if they had done this. Some brides replied saying that the dress they received was close to what they wanted, not perfect, but close. Other brides told me they had a horrible experience. I was so tempted to do this though because who doesn't want to get a $5000 designer dress for $200. At the same time, I had no idea what manufacturers I was dealing with in China so I wasn't sure. I read in some bridal book that many of the designers have moved their operations to China, so I thought it might be safe. One bride even told me that she heard Jim Hjelm made their dresses in China and then had them finished in England or somewhere else. But, I had no idea, and decided to nix that idea since I didn't want to have to worry and stress over it.

So, the search is on and I'm starting to go to a ton of bridal shops to look for my dress. In the process, I've learned a couple of things that I thought I would share with you ladies just starting out:

1. Bring lots of pictures: Tear out those pictures of gowns you see from the magazines and bring them with you. The more the bridal consultant knows about what you want, the better.

2. Try on everything: Try on everything. The more you try on, the better. You never know what style will look good on you. One of my friends tried on a dress that looked like a tiered wedding cake. On the rack, we all thought it was the ugliest thing you've ever seen. But, on her, it looked gorgeous. We were amazed! On the other hand, I loved the beaded gowns from Priscilla of Boston, but when I tried them on, they totally overwhelmed me. I was just too small for them and even 4 inch wedding shoes wouldn't make me tall enough.

3. Bring somebody who will give you candid feedback: This part is a must. It is your wedding and you want to look gorgeous, but bring someone who will give you real, honest feedback. I brought some of my bridesmaids and was so happy that I did since they told me the truth. When the gown did not look good, I knew it, but I appreciated it because I wanted to look my best. The next day, I brought my mom who was even more honest. It was great though because her comments helped me focus.

4. Be nice to the consultant: The sales consultant can be your best friend. She will find dresses for you that you may never have seen. She will add the veil and the bridal shoes. So, be nice to her! I saw brides that were horrible to the sales consultant and you could tell the consultant didn't care anymore. The consultant has had way more experience than you watching girls try on tons of dresses. Plus, she has seen all of the dresses in the store, countless times. So, if you are nice to her, she will most likely recommend and choose something you love.

5. Start early: Here's the final tip for today. Start looking early. When you count back, you need to buy your dress 6-9 months ahead of time. Otherwise, you'll have to pay rush fees for the delivery of the dress and for alterations. Why pay more when you can pay less? Also, who wants to have the headache of worrying about whether or not you have a dress for your big day. It's your big day and everyone will be looking at you, so go out, shop, and find your perfect gown!

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