How to Choose the Perfect Bridal Dress for Your Wedding Day
Let's face it. The search for the perfect wedding dress can take up most of a bride's time in event planning, which is understandable considering that you will be wearing it for the most important day of your romantic life. And of course, there is the fact that being in a radiant bridal outfit definitely helps in being a radiant bride! Here then are the ABCs of how to choose the perfect bridal gown including its charming accessories like the bouquet, veil and garter for you.
A) Advance Planning
Unless you are planning on an elopement, you should have at least 6 months to choose your bridal finery, with sufficient time for alterations when and where necessary. Keep in mind that you still have other things to plan for, often, the myriad little details that make the difference between a good wedding and a fabulous wedding.
Of course, you must not become the monster-bride where your wedding dress is concerned especially when too much stress will take the fun out of the Big Day planning. Fortunately, you can adopt these tips to lessen the stress of choosing the perfect bridal outfit along with its perfect accessories like the bridal bouquet and veil. And don't forget the ever-present garter either!
1. Be realistic about your wedding day. You will experience your fair share of mini-disasters before, during and after the wedding ceremony, as most brides will, so you might as well roll with the punches.
2. Shop as early as you possibly can – perhaps even as soon as the "save the dates" invitations have rolled off the press. This way, you avoid the intense pressure borne of shopping at the last minute for your wedding dress. You might just end up with a choice that could have been better if only you had more time on your hands.
3. Seek the support of your family and friends. You will realize that even the tiny things – accompanying you on a comparison shopping expedition, to name just one – will significantly ease the burden of choosing the perfect bridal finery off your shoulders.
B) Budgetary Limits
Our modern consumerist society offers many options from the uber-expensive designer bridal gowns to the mid-range off-the-rack bridal dresses for the modern bride. Just determine your budget, look for your dream bridal dress in the store where you believe your budget will fit, and choose from among the available dresses. Or better yet, let your "something borrowed" be your bridal gown!
Options in bridal gowns and dresses that may or may not include the small but important details of veil, garter and bouquet are:
1. Trunk shows – If you want a designer wedding gown without the designer cost, then trunk shows are for you. You can choose from many designer gowns that have yet to hit the runways, often at a discount and with the help of professional fashion consultants.
2. Sample Sales – If you are willing to choose from among limited sizes of bridal finery on a first-come, first-served basis, then sample sales are for you. Although you cannot haggle for prices and you have many brides, like you who are looking to save on money, the selections are excellent considering that these are also designer goods.
3. Thrift stores – If you have a sense of adventure or if you are strapped for cash, then rummaging through the offerings of thrift stores will definitely satisfy either requirement.
You can always let your favorite seamstress execute your wedding dress together with its veil for you. Now, all you need to worry about is finding the right florist for your bouquet and the cutest garter you can find online.
C) Choose Your Color and Cut
If you want to look your best on your most special day, then you must choose the perfect bridal outfit based on your skin coloration and your body shape. The goal is to highlight your best assets and hide your worst liabilities, be it big breasts or big hips.
For skin coloration, the following tips for a wedding dress apply:
1. Warmer shade of white with yellow hues are best for very fair skin.
2. Cooler whites like rum white, silk white and champagne white are ideal for olive skin.
3. Dark ecru to light eggshell ivory fits medium-skinned brides.
4. Dark-skinned brides will look good in any white shade.
For body shape, you can keep these pairings in mind:
1. Hour glass figures look good in ball gowns, A-line dresses and sheath gowns.
2. Pear-shaped brides look best in empire, A-line or ball gowns with a simple halter or a plunging back.
3. Apple-shaped women will definitely appreciate a tea-length, empire or an A-line wedding dress with a heavy cinch at the waist.
4. Petite brides will do well to play around with the hemlines such as pillow, tulip or asymmetrical shapes.
As a bride, you have many things to consider when choosing your perfect wedding dress and the veil as well as the bouquet that goes with it. The most important thing however, is that you remember to enjoy the process of choosing, so that you can truly enjoy your bridal finery when the time comes t flaunt it!