I decided to start a collection of posts to document my experience being engaged and planning a wedding. First up, dress shopping! I don't think I'm alone when I say that I love to watch TLC's Say Yes to the Dress; it's so fun to see all the beautiful dresses and to see how happy all the brides are when they find the dress of their dreams. I was no less excited when the time came to go find my own dream dress.
In an episode of Say Yes to the Dress: Randy Knows Best
(season 2, episode 2) Randy shared his top ten things to know before buying a dress. His tips are:
know your budget - it's ok to love the first dress - know your silhouette - be open to alterations - be open to different styles - keep location in mind - say yes and stop shopping - trust your instincts - leave room in the budget for extras - share your vision
I loved everything he suggested but a few of his tips really helped my dress shopping experience.
Know your budget. It's important to decide on a budget before you go, and to make sure you stick with it. It's not worth the heartbreak of trying on an over-budget dress, falling in love with it, and not being able to buy it. Make sure that you take alterations into account when you're trying on dresses. You could be spending about $500 on alterations, which would put you over if your trying on a dress that costs as much as your whole budget.
It's ok to love your first dress. I was one of those people who had to go to four different stores and try on 30 dresses. I ended up buying the very first dress I tried on at
Danielle's Bridal. I loved every dress I tried on at that store, but I was worried that if I just bought the first dress I tried I would miss out on another one. In the end, the first dress was the one I couldn't stop thinking about.
Danielle's is amazing - they have every style, amazing quality, and prices that you cannot beat. I loved my experience there and highly recommend it. (This is not sponsored, these are my own opinions.)
Be open to different styles. We've all heard how certain body types belong in certain silhouettes, and going shopping I had very strong opinions on the dresses I thought would look good on me. But the bridal stylists at the dress shops have a lot of experience and work with wedding dresses every day - they really have a knack at picking up on brides' body types and personal tastes. I ended up loving a lot of dresses I thought I would hate because I was willing to try different options they pulled.
Trust your instincts. It doesn't matter who you take shopping, you're going to get a lot of different opinions. Luckily, my mom and sisters all loved my favorite dresses but it didn't make choosing one any easier. Finally, after a few days of not being able to get my dress off my mind I realized it was the one. Even though every person I shopped with was leaning toward a different dresses I went with my gut and I'm so happy I did. No one is upset if you don't pick their favorite, they are happy for you when you choose the dress you love.
Say yes and stop shopping. When I went in for my first fitting I saw a girl trying on my second favorite dress. Not gonna lie, I was a bit jealous. It was a gorgeous dress and for a second I wondered if I had made a mistake; but as soon as I put on my dress I had that great feeling again and I knew I had made the right choice. Finding a dress is like finding a husband - once you pick the one, you stop looking. All you'll do by shopping after you've bought a dress is confuse yourself. Remember the feeling you had when decided on the one.
next wedding post: color palettes
