Sunday, March 24, 2024

Latest Posts

How Far In Advance Should I Buy My Wedding Dress

When Do You Need To Get Your Wedding Dress Altered

Trying My Best Friends Wedding Dress

We recommend coming in for your fitting two months in advance, but not less than 1 month before to have your dress altered. Then, because everyone is trying to lose weight, we suggest having your final fitting no earlier than two weeks before the wedding.

We have an experienced team of contracted seamstresses who have worked on hundreds of wedding gowns. Odalis is the main seamstress and she takes time with you in our shop to pin you, and then returns the gown to make sure it fits well before you take it home with you.

Please remember to bring your dress, shoes and any undergarments you want to wear with you to each fitting. You donât need to bring the veil and accessories, unless itâs easier to keep them all together and if you want to see how it all works together. We want to make sure itâs right and itâs exactly what youâll be wearing on your wedding day.

What Is A Wedding Dress Fitting

A wedding dress fitting is an appointment with a seamstress or fitter to have the dress altered to fit correctly and sculpt the gown to the body. Brides typically need three fittings before the dress is ready to be worn.

Every dress should be altered, even if it’s only a little, to ensure proper fit. “You can splurge on a pricey dress, but if it’s not altered properly it won’t look any better than a gown that’s a tenth of the cost,” says Terry Hall, fashion director of New York City’s Kleinfeld Bridal. Case in point: dress alterations are important, so make sure to leave room in your budget for them. Depending on what needs to be done, you can expect to spend anywhere from $50 to $1,000 on alterations.

The entire process is typically done in two to three fittings, the first of which lasts up to an hour. Your bridal boutique will either have an in-house seamstress who regularly works with the shop’s gowns or they will be able to recommend a trusted tailor to do the job.

As you break out the measuring tape, here is everything to know when it comes to bridal alterations, according to three experts.

Meet the Expert

  • Terry Hall is the head of retail and business development at Amsale New York and former fashion director at Kleinfeld Bridal.
  • Tina Zimmerman is the current director of alterations at Kleinfeld Bridal.
  • Nicole Sacco is the former director of fittings at Kleinfeld Bridal and a Say Yes to the Dress star.

Bailey Mariner/Brides

First Wedding Dress Shopping Step

Wedding organizers all agree like your dress, its never to early to decide on your wedding venue, as one will affect the other. A warm weather beach wedding? Then consider a lightweight boho wedding dress. If you choose a more formal venue, such as a country estate, then you may want to start searching for a princess silhouette. Do you get the idea? Pin down you venue, and your wedding dress style will follow.

Don’t Miss: Wedding Venue Comparison Spreadsheet

The Best Time To Buy Your Dress Is Six To Nine Months Before Your Wedding

When you buy a dress at most bridal shops, that dress is put into work specifically for you . In addition to the four to six months needed to make the dress, you want to factor in about two weeks for shipping and two to four weeks for alterations. Note: Alterations are almost always necessary to make a gown fit you 100%. Its also nice to have the dress in your closet and checked off your to-do list at least a month before the wedding since typically there are lots of other last minute details that will be pressing toward the finish line. Per usual, there ARE exceptions to the above and you can get a dress in a shorter timeline, but if you want ALL of the dress options available to you to choose from, six to nine months is a good rule of thumb, with couture or more intricate gowns possibly taking even longer.

Whats Your Venue Like

Unique plus size wedding dresses for the curvy bride

Its important to think about your venue before you go wedding dress shopping. If youre having a religious ceremony, you dont want to have too much skin on show, so you might need to shop for a bridal cover-up too.

If youre marrying in a rustic barn wedding venue, you probably want something a bit more boho to suit the surroundings, whereas a stately home wedding venue suits a more traditional ball gown.

Don’t Miss: Wedding Spreadsheet Excel

When To Buy Your Wedding Dress

Some of the collections from Aprils Bridal Fashion Week will begin to arrive in stores in January, and many salons take year-end as an opportunity to remove any older styles from the previous year, so January is a great time to see a fresh new assortment in stores, says Gabriella Risatti of Gabriella New York .

How Many Fittings Will I Need

How many fittings you’ll need may all depend on the number of alterations required and how much your body changes during that time. “The gown will start to take shape when the fitter starts pinning and tucking the fabric and sculpting it to the bride’s body,” says Nicole Sacco, former director of fittings at Kleinfeld, in regard to the first fitting. “At the second fitting, the bride should have a better idea of how the gown will fit.”

Often the alteration process can be complete in just two fittings, but Zimmerman says she tells her brides to prepare for three. “Its important to remember that your wedding dress was ordered according to the largest measurement , therefore, it is likely it will not fit properly at your first fitting appointment.” Either way, schedule your final fitting to take place one to two weeks before the wedding since your body won’t change much in those final weeks.

Read Also: Wedding Bands To Go With Solitaire

Be Realistic About Your Budget

Go into appointments with a game plan: Stay. On. Budget. That doesn’t mean you aren’t able to be flexible with how much you are willing to spend, but having a top-line number in mind will keep your overall budget in check and leave room for the other looks you’ll need surrounding the ceremony. If you’re still unsure about where to cap your spending, ask yourself what price tag would turn your “dream dress” into a gown that’s not for you.

Keep in mind that the price tag on your gown doesn’t include alteration fees, accessories, your veil, shipping, sales tax, or any post-wedding dry cleaning and preservation. Keep all expenses in mind when deciding what you are comfortable spending on a wedding dress.

Sample Sale Season Is A Great Time To Purchase Your Wedding Gown

FINDING MY PERFECT WEDDING DRESS

Weddings are expensive . So, in order to potentially save some money, you may want to take an opportunity to look at some wedding dress sample sales. Many bridal retailers in major cities present two sample sales per year, most commonly in the summer and around January in the early winter.

Wedding stores are trying clear out last seasons inventory to replace it with the new fashion for the upcoming year. You can potentially score your dream gown for up to 90% off!

If you plan to attend one of these sample sales, do some research on the wedding retailers you want to check out, for some may have specific sale dates and appointment requirements. Although this seems like the ultimate way to go, here are some things to be mindful of.

Most of these sample sales are typically final sale, often have little to no sales associates to help you, and tend to be very crowded.

Also, make sure you figure out the correct size for wedding dresses. They tend to be slightly different than normal clothing sizes from the department store.

This is on a first come first serve basis, so be prepared with certain designers or styles of dress in mind. If you find your dream gown, great! Just know that all of these purchases are nonrefundable.

You May Like: Wedding Band To Go With Solitaire Engagement Ring

Total Delivery Time = Processing Time + Shipping Time

Processing Time:Processing time is from you place the order to the product leave our warehouse.Since all dresses are made to order on UWDress.com, so processing time for dresses is usually 15-18 days, and it is usually 3-7 days for shoes, handbags and all the other accessories.

Shipping Time:The shipping time is from shipment to your destination.It depends on the shipping methods you selected. Currently we provide Express Shipping and Standard Shipping.You can see each shipping time from the following form.

Methods

Spread Out Your Bridal Boutique Visits

You might be tempted to block-book a day of visiting every bridal shop in your area – but think carefully before you do this. You want to have plenty of time at each appointment and not feel rushed, and you want to be able to clearly remember the dresses you tried on. Youll get fatigued if you try to cram in too many in a day!

Also Check: How To Address Wedding Invitation To Family

Does The Shop Charge For Appointments

Some bridal boutiques charge for appointments – this is to deter no-shows, and in some cases for extra package details like luxury fitting rooms, bubbly and gift bags. Find out if the shop charges, and if its just a deposit redeemable against a purchase, or if you can buy an upgraded appointment so you know exactly what youre paying for.

The Ultimate Guide To Finding Your Wedding Dress

Unique plus size wedding dresses for the curvy bride

The idea of wedding dress shopping either fills you with excitement or dread. Whichever way youre feeling weve got all the tips on how to deal with it, and to make sure your shopping experience is a super successful one .

1. Prepare

Before you start making appointments, do a little researchon designers and prices and find out what style of wedding dress appeals to youmost. Research gowns on Irish websites and make sure to check outreal weddings – these are a brilliant way of seeing how great the gowns look onreal brides. When you know what youre looking for, find a stockist, call themup and make your appointment!

2. Dress for comfort

A lick of make-up and freshly washed hair can go a long wayto making some brides-to-be a little more confident when it comes to weddingdress shopping, but really, the beauty products should stop there. Dont gowild with eye make-up or foundation and know that fake tan is a real no-no formost boutiques. Wear something you can slip in and out of easily and pop a strapless bra in your bag. If you feel more comfortable in shapewear, bring that with you too.

3. Use yourImagination within reason

4. Research your shape

5. Trust the SalesAssistant

5. But trust your own instincts too

Dress by Alvina Valenta | Photo by Michelle Prunty Photography

6. Dont feelpressured to buy

7. Be ultra cautious shopping online

8. Know, and stick to, your dress budget

9. Pare back your entourage

Dress by Justin Alexander | Photo by Tomasz Kornas Photography

Read Also: Farm And Fleet Registry

Choose Your Hair Accessories

It’s also time to find your veil so you can get an idea of your entire look, from head to toe, when you have your gown fitting. For a casual dress, go with a complementary short blusher or cage veil. If you’re wearing a ball gown, you might want to choose something more dramatic and grand, like a chapel- or cathedral-length veil.

What Hairstyle And Makeup Will You Have

If you hate having your hair up, and you know you want long, loose waves on your wedding day, consider that when dress shopping – you dont want an overly embellished neckline your hair will tangle in. If you want a chic wedding updo, look at dresses with lots of detail to show off!

If you know you want vintage-inspired wedding makeup, with a bold red lip and sleek winged eyeliner, look at dresses inspired by the same era so your dress wont look at odds with your makeup.

You May Like: Venue Comparison Worksheet

I’m Worried About Wedding Dress Shopping

Ladies, listen up. We are forever banging on about having your day your way and if shopping for a dress at a boutique isn’t working out for you then let’s find a way that will. Have you tried the high street? You can get some incredible wedding dresses all year round from stores such as Phase Eight, Monsoon, even ASOS. And what about ordering straight from the internet? You obviously need to make sure the designers are reputable but with the likes of Grace Loves lace, ordering your dress online is now super easy. And if you’d like to hear all about what it’s like to own a bridal boutique and get extra tips on how to have the best experience you can then head over to our podcast and listen to this episode with Maddi from The Bridal Boutique Warwickshire. You can also find bridal boutiques up and down the country that we wholeheartedly recommend, we know you’ll be looked after well.

How Soon Should I Buy My Wedding Dress

FINDING MY WEDDING DRESS!

Is it ever too soon to buy a wedding dress? If you’re wondering when to buy a wedding dress, Zolathe wedding experthas all the answers right here.

Putting together your wedding dress timeline can be quite intimidating, to say the least. There are seemingly endless options to choose from, a billion-and-one different wedding dress styles, and an infinite amount of fabrics to sort through. Who knew there were so many different types of white?

The most important question to determine is how soon do you have to find that perfect dress for your special day?

Read on for our go-to guide on when to buy your wedding dress and how to make the dress shopping process smoother.

Recommended Reading: How To Address Family On Wedding Invitation

When Do You Need Your Wedding Dress For

It can take between eight and six months for your chosen wedding dress to arrive in store. Thats not to say you cant find the perfect wedding dress and plan a wedding in three months, but you need to let the shop know your timeframes and allow as much time as you possibly can to give yourself as many options as possible!

Are You The Right Fit For Custom

Customizations and the costs associated with them come at the discretion of each individual brand and designer. If you want a change made to a dress, it never hurts to ask, but be prepared for the changes you want to make to render the gown a custom piece, which automatically kicks the price up a notch, or 10.

The process of designing a custom wedding gown is long and requires vision, patience, and a true understanding of what you wantalong with ample imagination. You likely will not see your completed wedding gown until your first fitting, so trust in your chosen designer is essential. A bride with a clear vision, and one who has enlisted the help of a stylist, is typically best suited for this process. The bride who tends to be indecisive or impulsive with fashion is not right for the custom design processand that’s okay.

Also Check: Wedding Spreadsheets

Latest Posts

Popular Articles

Stay in touch

To be updated with all the latest news, offers and special announcements.