How do I shop for a wedding dress?

scrumpy78 · 27 January 2012 at 11:03PM

Basically, as the title reads, where do I start? I am getting married April 2013, have a budget of under £300 ish, and a few ideas of styles I like/want etc. Im dieting, have lost 1/2 St already and have a further stone to lose. Should I try dresses on now, or wait til I'm happy with my weight? Do I only try dresses on within my budget (to avoid falling in love with an expensive one)? Do I try dresses on that I perhaps hadn't thought about style? I'm not relishing this part of it, have a 2yr old and a 9 month old so can't really spend days and days looking round, or travel that far? I'm quite happy to get one secondhand/sample or china. Help???!

jtr2803 · 27 January 2012 at 11:44PM

It's been a long time since I went dress shopping (but I am hoping to do it again later this year!

) but I would suggest finding a shop with a large range of dresses, and don't discount prom dresses either - many are well within your budget, and go and try on a number of different styles to see what you like the most. You quite often find that what you thought you would like, you don't and vice versa. Once you have done this you can search through Ebay/Preloved/Sample sales etc until you find one.

My budget will be similar to yours and that's how I am thinking of doing things

White_Sapphire · 28 January 2012 at 12:06AM

If you just have a stone to lose your body shape won't change significantly, so what suits you now is likely to suit you when there's a stone less of you. So, I personally would make a couple of appointments with dress shops, just to try on as many different basic styles as you can eg ballgown, A-line, fishtail, strapless, off-shoulder, halterneck..... Even if you don't think you really like the shape of it on the hanger, try it anyway. A lot of brides find that they go for a completely different style to that they had in mind initially.

When you've decided on your style, say for instance halterneck A line with minimal beading or embellishments, then keep an eye out on preloved, ebay (second hand ie private sellers), sample sales in bridal shops etc. Be very careful of Chinese ebay sellers; the pictures they use on the listings are almost always lifted from the designer's website and often bear little relation to what you will actually receive. There are a lot of horror stories, and you really are taking a very large gamble.

Also, as jtr2803 said, look at evening gowns and bridesmaids' dresses as well.

Phase Eight and Monsoon also have gorgeous wedding dresses for much less than most bridal shops.

You've got ages to decide, and find exactly what you want, so enjoy it!

x

NoAngel · 28 January 2012 at 7:29AM

If you're going to bridal shops I'd call in advance and chat about your budget. That way you're not going to arrive and be disappointed if they don't stock anything within your price range.

I found it was best to try on lots of different styles/materials to start with - then I could start ticking off the ones I didn't like until I knew what I wanted.

Roz_V · 28 January 2012 at 9:16AM

White_Sapphire wrote: »

Phase Eight and Monsoon also have gorgeous wedding dresses for much less than most bridal shops.

As do Debenhams, BHS, Very.co.uk & I'm sure there are others...

Jtr's advice is great - go and try some on and then search for something similar once you've decided on a style.

I was too shy to go proper wedding dress shopping but luckily I fell in love with a Monsoon dress (which is NOTHING like the style I thought I would have)

minerva_windsong · 28 January 2012 at 11:24AM

I would get some magazines, trawl through and find what you like and don't like - not necessarily a whole dress, it could just be a detail - and then use that as the starting point for looking at things. Then go to some shops and try stuff on to get an idea of what suits your body shape, with the idea of marrying what suits you and what you like, if that makes sense. Calling in advance to talk about your budget is a good idea as well.

After you've tried some stuff on, you can start trawling eBay/Preloved, looking at evenings gowns and bridesmaids' dresses, or even going to high street shops - I've seen some lovely white dresses from high street stores like Lipsy and Dorothy Perkins for about £40-60 (although they were mostly knee length styles), or as previously mentioned Debenhams, Monsoon, BHS etc do lovely bridal dresses in the £150-300 range.

74jax · 28 January 2012 at 1:28PM

scrumpy78 wrote: »

Basically, as the title reads, where do I start? I am getting married April 2013, have a budget of under £300 ish, and a few ideas of styles I like/want etc. Im dieting, have lost 1/2 St already and have a further stone to lose. Should I try dresses on now, or wait til I'm happy with my weight? Do I only try dresses on within my budget (to avoid falling in love with an expensive one)? I had a budget of £150.00-£200 but tried on loads of dresses so I could get an idea of what I liked. I tried them on up to £1000. I knew my budget though and when I fell in love with an £800 I wouldn't be swayed. My friends thought I was mad and that I should get it and pay a little a month (Getting married in June 2013) but I wasn't happy doing this. I hung out and watched preloved/ebay etc and eventually the exact dress came on ebay (right size, colour, length) for £150.00 I was very happy that day :T I think as long as you know you can only spend £300, it shouldn't matter that you find one you love for £1000 or whatever, you have LOADS of time to wait for it in the sales or to find a 2nd hand one. Do I try dresses on that I perhaps hadn't thought about style? definately, I was in the shop for 3 hours - we have food and wine and it was a fantastic afternoon. I tried on so many and eventually the one I fell in love with was the one a friend picked and I said 'urghhhh i'm not wearing that' :rotfl: it was just lovely on.I'm not relishing this part of it, have a 2yr old and a 9 month old so can't really spend days and days looking round, or travel that far? I'm quite happy to get one secondhand/sample or china. Help???!

I would make an appointment at a time maybe someone can look after your kids, take your breidsmaids/friends and have a relaxing afternoon, you won't be buying there and then so take you time and try as many styles as you can.

hp3 · 29 January 2012 at 7:51PM

I did the same as 74jax. I looked round numerous dress shops and tried on all the ones I thought I liked and none of them were 'me' I went to the last one and again didnt see anything, finally as I was about to give it up as a bad job the lady in the shop asked me to try one on she had picked out. I was that fed up I thought, why not, I wouldnt pick it but I've had no luck with the ones I picked. It turns out it is the dress I have got, its so beautiful on and very me, very different. The dress was £800 in the shop, I rang round all the stickists in my area to see who could give me the best price and managed to get it to £720 with alts and £50 shoes. I also kept an eye out on ebay and preloved, luckily one came up in a size close to me for £250 BNWT. Bought it and just need to pay £45 or alterations. You dont need to mention a budget to the shops, I never did I just made sure I got the dress details so I could look online. Even if your wedding is a while away start ASAP so you can keep looking on the internet if one comes up.

Good luck!

How do I shop for a wedding dress?

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