What to Wear Wedding Dress Shopping: Do’s and Don’ts
Shopping for a wedding gown is a once-in-a-lifetime experience, but it requires some forethought and knowledge to feel prepared for the bridal salon’s fitting room. Selecting bridal gown pictures from Instagram is fantastic, but dress shopping also requires a few additional items you should bring to the salon.
What to Wear When Wedding Dress Shopping
When dress shopping, knowing what to wear can make your experience smooth and enjoyable. Here are some tips on what to wear when trying on dresses:
Wear Comfortable and Convenient Clothing
You’ll likely try on a number of bridal gowns during your bridal appointments with different bridal salons, so make sure you’re wearing something you can easily get in and out of in the dressing room. Consider wearing the undergarments you’ll be wearing under your gown on your wedding day when you’re out dress shopping.
Wear the Right Undergarments
The right lingerie or skin tone shapewear will prevent visible panty lines, making a world of difference between a wedding gown fitting well and fitting flawlessly. It’s also a good idea to go braless, or with a strapless bra.
Most dresses have a fitting bodice that offers more support than a typical bra, but you might want to have one on hand in case you decide to go with a different neckline. It’s important to make measurements while wearing exactly what you’ll be wearing on your big day, helping to minimize future adjustments past the initial fitting.
Wear the Right Heels
It’s best to bring the shoes you’ll be wearing on your wedding day to your dress fittings. This will allow the seamstress to take correct measurements and help reduce any further alterations down the line.
Additional Items You Should Bring When Wedding Dress Shopping
Bringing a wallet and a smile simply doesn’t cut it when you’re looking for a wedding dress, so make sure to bring those loved ones that make you smile and share the experience with them. Here are some additional items you should bring with you:
Inspiration Photos
The very first thing your bridal stylist is going to ask is what kind of wedding dress style you’re going for. Are you looking for a traditional ball gown or an A-line boho dress? Which wedding dress styles do you like, and what would be your perfect wedding dress?
Coming into a bridal boutique with reference photos of different styles you like significantly narrows the choice and makes it easier for bridal shops to cater to your desires and personal style. It would be even more helpful if you’d narrow thousands of dresses you like to your top ten favorite dresses, as it would help the stylist better understand what exactly constitutes your dream wedding dress.
For more information or inspiration, check out our seven different wedding dress styles that are trending guide for style-conscious brides.
Your Best Friends
Every bride wants to share her dress shopping experience with her bridesmaids, friends, and family members. However, bringing a huge entourage when picking a dress can be stressful for several reasons. For example, most bridal shops can accommodate four or five guests at the time, including the bride, so the number of people you can bring is limited.
The bigger the entourage, the more opinions you’ll get, leading to disagreements, so consider quality over quantity. Most bridal retailers also offer bridesmaids dresses, so it may be best to turn this into a shared experience.
Common topics for news reports include war, politics, and business, as well as athletic events, quirky or unusual events, and the doings of celebrities.
Questions to Ask Your Stylist
Bringing a set of wedding dress photos is extremely helpful, but it would help if you also inquired with your stylist about different wedding dress styles, which style would compliment your body type the most, and which embellishments and necklines work best with different dress types.
An Open Mind and a Positive Attitude
It’s also important to keep an open mind while searching for the best wedding dress. Your bridal stylist is a paid professional with plenty of experience and should be able to recommend the best wedding dress for your body shape. Always give their recommendation a chance in the dressing room.
A shopping experience attached to a very special day in your life is bound to be emotionally charged, so make sure that you bring a positive attitude. This is where the quality-over-quantity of your entourage also comes into play.
How to Prepare for Wedding Dress Shopping
Here are some shopping tips and tricks to make your wedding dress shopping easier. Please refer to our Ultimate Wedding Dress Shopping Tips + Guide for a more comprehensive list.
Know Your Budget
It’s always a good idea to set a budget for your wedding dress before visiting a bridal salon. Setting up a price point, which should encapsulate the dress and all the necessary alterations, will help narrow your options and help manage your expectations. However, getting carried away and overstepping your budget may severely impact your overall budget, hindering your wedding planning.
Know When and Where You Will Shop
Setting up the budget is crucial, as it will determine the range of stores you’ll visit, whether they’ll be high-end boutiques, chain stores, or small-time-designer shops. It’s important to note that larger cities, such as New York City or Melbourne, usually feature a larger assortment of retailers selling designer dresses.
Make an Appointment
After you’ve established your budget and the range of stores you’re willing to visit, it’s time to start scheduling appointments and trying on your gown for the first time. A general rule is to have all of your appointments scheduled close to each other so that you can make more accurate comparisons.
Scheduling appointments is important since they’ll ask you all the pertinent information regarding your wedding plans, such as your body shape, dress style you’re looking for, and wedding venue. The stylist will then use this information to determine which wedding dress would be the most appropriate for you.
Shop 9 to 12 Months Before Your Wedding
Start looking for the perfect dress nine to 12 months before your wedding. This may seem early, but it will take you some time to find a suitable wedding gown, and that’s actually the easiest part. Your stylist and seamstress still have to alter the dress and add various decorations, not to mention that you’ll have to go to a couple of fitting before your dress is wedding-ready.
Summary
Wearing appropriate clothing, undergarments, and wedding shoes to your bridal appointments is crucial, as it allows the salon staff to take your measurements correctly, minimizing any further alterations. It’s also important to bring a positive entourage and an open mind.
By following our shopping tips, finding a perfect wedding dress shouldn’t be an issue. If you’re in the market for something brick-and-mortar stores can’t provide, visit us at The Sposa Group — we offer a wide assortment of dresses of all styles, fit for all body types.
