When you get engaged finding your wedding dress is one of the most nerve racking things, whether or not you have been dreaming of your wedding day since you were a little girl or not. No one can get rid of those nerves, but I can give you tips to be prepared and easier to find your dress. Know you may ask how to do you know about all of this? If you have heard my story I manage White Lace Bridal and Formal Wear, which is when I decided to go back to school and get certified as an event planner. So here are some top tips on how to prepare and handle the day of your bridal appointment.
1. Make an Appointment with the Bridal Stores in your area.
Lots of people want to travel for their bridal appointments and I totally understand if you don’t have every many or good bridal shops near you. But if you do try the ones that are closer to you first. You can same money from traveling to and from bridal/alteration appointments. The more money you save for travel the more you can put into your wedding dress and wedding plan in the future.
2. Have a Budget.
This is one of the hardest parts of wedding planning is making a budget. It is hard to look at all the money you will spend for one day. One tip on making a budget is to list things with importance. If pictures, venue, and your dress are more important than flowers, food, DJ, and everything else that goes into your day then put the majority of your budget to that. If your dress does not make it to the top three that is totally okay. I would recommend at least trying to budget $1,000 that gives you a decent budget to get a good quality wedding. Just about every Wedding designer has a line that runs around the thousand-dollar price point.
3. Have a good timeline.
Timeline is important for a lot of your wedding planning. Once you find a venue and find a date the next thing to do is get your dress. For those who are more patient than I and have a longer engagement, you won’t be in a rush. The recommended time to get your dress is one year to eight months. This will give you time to alter your dress and depending on designer even order it in a shorter length saving money in alterations. Now for those of you who magically got your venue for a sooner date, but now puts the rest of your timeline at a critical point, here is what to expect at a bridal shop. Some shops will let you purchase dresses off the rack, in that case it you have to look for the color and the size that you want.
4. Be open to new things.
When getting ready to dress shop I would recommend looking online whether it’s on Pinterest or shop Instagram, this will give you an idea of what you are looking for. When you are looking just narrow down a feel you want for your dress, you don’t have to figure out fit or details until you try some on. A good chunk of people starts looking online and think they found the perfect dress but when they put it on it isn’t what they thought it would look like. So, when you are looking online try to open minded, be willing to try on anything so your consultant can narrow in on what you are looking for.
5. Our Entourage.
When prepping for your bridal appointment some people go overboard with who they bring. It is a special day and you want everyone that you care about to be with you but try to narrow it down to around 6 people. It can become hard to hear your own thoughts when you bring a lot of people with you. This will also help to really look at who’s opinion you really matter to you. Make sure to remember this day is about you, if at any moment you feel overwhelmed you can stop and take a night or day to think.
In the end it’s is you wedding, it is your day, it is your decision. Pick a dress that make you feel happy and like a bride. Make sure that is the dress you picture yourself walking down the isle in.
Here is a sneak up of upcoming bridal style for Chicago Bridal Market 2019.
Good luck on this amazing journey and the beginning of a crazy ride!