One of the most exciting parts of planning a wedding is choosing the right dress. For many brides, this is the best piece of their entire wedding look, along with their chosen bouquet and wedding bands for women.
Many women in Washington dream about their wedding gowns for many years, even before they meet their future husband and get proposed to. However, it takes more than just a good imagination to find the perfect dress for you. You can’t just simply go to a bridal gown salon without proper preparation.
If you don’t want to turn the most exciting part of your wedding planning into a stressful ride, here is some expert advice on how to make the entire process as smooth and enjoyable as possible:
1. Set a specific budget and stick to it
When making plans for your entire wedding, set aside 10 percent on the overall budget on your chosen wedding dress. But, you can look at this as simply your starting point.
If you’re more into fashion than any other elements of your wedding (food, flowers, music), you can switch things up a bit and allot a few more dollars on your dress while scaling back on other wedding essentials.
2. Don’t take a huge entourage with you
We understand that this is an exciting task and you’d love to take your girlfriends with you, but taking a big group to the salon for gown shopping isn’t recommended. Just take one or two of your besties or your sisters to help you choose the perfect fit for you. By doing this, you won’t feel pressured by all the opinions that will get thrown at you.
3. You won’t have much time to dress shop
Bridal gown salons are businesses, and they want to accommodate as many brides as possible in one day. Unless you’ve booked the entire salon for yourself for a whole day of fitting, chances are you’ll only get about an hour or so during your appointment.
So, to make the most of your time, go to as many salons as you can with your friends in one day. The night before, make a list of the styles you’re certainly not interested in, so you can just skip them during the fittings.
Designate one friend or a family member to take photos of you from various angles to see how the gowns will look on you. The experience may be far from the leisurely shopping day you’ve been imagining, but such is the reality of wedding gown shopping.
4. Move around while trying the dresses
You won’t just be sitting or standing on your wedding day. You’ll have to entertain your guests, dance, and do other things.
So, besides standing in front of a mirror to see how each gown will look on you, move around a little bit as well to see how comfortable it’ll be. While it’s important to look stylish on your big day, never compromise comfort.
Wedding planning is a lot of work, but it doesn’t always have to be extremely stressful. Don’t forget to have fun in the process. You’re preparing for your biggest day after all.