At a typical wedding, all eyes are on the bride. Her stunning beauty is on display, and her dress will undeniably be a focal point of the event. If you are planning your wedding, you understandably may feel intense to find the right wedding dress for your event. Some brides spend weeks or even months trying to find the perfect dress. A few brides even purchase one dress and decide later that they want a different dress. You understandably want to find the perfect dress for your event, and you can more easily narrow down the options when you first select a desired style.
Focus on Your Wedding Theme
With so many styles of wedding dresses to choose from, it is not reasonable to expect all styles to suit the theme of your wedding. For example, a garden wedding and a ball gown wedding dress are not well-suited for each other. If you have trouble deciding what style or styles of dresses that you can consider based on your wedding theme, it makes sense to look at several wedding photos online of events that had the same general style or theme that you are trying to achieve for your event.
Think About Your Body Type
For each theme or wedding style, you will find that multiple styles of wedding dresses could work well. To further narrow down the options, you must think about your body type or shape. Different styles accentuate or draw attention to different areas of the body. Think about your body’s best features as well as the features that you would prefer to conceal. You can speak to a bridal dress consultant about the best dress types or styles based on the shape of your body and about any areas of your body that you would prefer to be concealed or at least not prominently accented by the dress.
Reflect on Your Personality and Comfort Level
Just as you select other apparel based on your personality and your comfort level, the same should hold true for your wedding dress. If you love to go big and bold with your wardrobe, it may not be reasonable to choose a simple dress with minimal or no adornments. While you want your dress to reflect your personality, you also want to feel comfortable in it. Remember that you will be moving around in the dress for many hours, and you may even be dancing in it. Your dress should be practical for all aspects of your wedding and reception, or you may consider purchasing a second dress to wear only to the reception if funds allow.
Remember the Season
Some brides overlook the season when purchasing a wedding dress, and this can be detrimental. If you are planning an outdoor wedding in the summer, a sleeveless or off-the-shoulder dress may be much more practical than a half-sleeve or full-sleeve style. In the winter, sleeveless or even backless dresses can be chilly to wear even if you are indoors for most of the event.
Set a Budget
You can typically find many dresses within your budget for the style that you select. However, if you demand a designer dress on a shoestring budget, this likely will not happen. Less expensive dresses may have fewer adornments and embellishments. If you prefer embellishments and need to shop on a tight budget, consider a consignment dress or a hand-me-down dress from a friend or family member. Remember that your apparel budget may also need to include shoes, a veil or hair accessory and jewelry.
Many brides get confused and stressed out when they try on too many dresses. It is common for brides to try on multiple styles that may not even be well-suited for their budget or event. It is easy to fall in love with a beautiful dress that looks great on you, and this can add to your confusion when the dress is not well-suited for the theme of your wedding, the season or your budget. When you take steps to narrow down your options so that you only look at wedding dress styles that conform to these guidelines, you can more easily select a dress that is ideal for all aspects of your wedding.
