Excitement, you are about to look for the most important dress you will ever wear! Read my guide to help you find your perfect wedding dress.

Budget

If you’ve read my blog ‘Wedding Shopping’ then you will already have a budget that you are happy with for your wedding dress.

If you haven’t then this is the first thing to do before even looking at what’s on offer. With a budget you will know what type of boutique is going to cater for you. One of the first things a boutique is probably going to ask you is your budget, so it really makes sense that you know your minimum and maximum spend. One last thing don’t forget to factor in alteration costs if you are looking to purchase a ready-made wedding dress.

Timings

When do you start wedding dress shopping? I would say that you should be looking to start in earnest about a year before the wedding and perhaps spend about a month or so looking at the boutiques you have chosen. Don’t be tempted to start too early, this will just become tedious and then you will have to start all over again when the new season is released. If you leave it until 6 months before the wedding you will be cutting things a bit fine.

Budget Thresholds

There is so much on offer now it can be really daunting to know where to start. With a budget this will narrow down that search.

I think that budgets fall into the following thresholds: –

£1,000 and under

£1,000 to £1,500

£1,500 to £2,000

£2,000 and above

£1,000 and under

You are probably looking at the budget end of the wedding dress market, so this will be a mass produced, ready-made wedding dress. Some higher end boutiques do offer sample sales from time to time so this could be the ideal time to snaffle yourself a bargain. Watch out for those alteration costs though.

£1,000 to £1,500

You are looking at giving yourself a little more wiggle room with boutique choices; again you are probably looking at a ready-made wedding dress. Most, not all, at this price point will be mass produced and will have names that suggest they are designer dresses so just be on your guard here and don’t be afraid to ask the boutique owner. Those pesky alteration costs may still apply too.

£1,500 to £2,000

I would say this is the most popular price point for brides, so you are now opening up a much larger choice. You are now entering the market of ready to wear and made to measure; there is plenty on offer, which is lovely but also might be a bit daunting. Don’t be fooled there is plenty of mass produced, ready-made stuff at this price point. They are often masquerading as designer gowns but in reality, they are not. The key is to research the boutique and what they have to offer and above all don’t be afraid to ask questions about the stock they hold.

At this price point, you will find some beautiful boutiques, who stock designers who are real people or you may even be seeing the designer in person; how fab is that.

£2,000 and above

This is another very popular price point, but you should be looking for a wedding dress that isn’t mass produced. At this price point you should be looking for something that isn’t stocked in 20 other shops and the further you move away from £2,000 the more exclusive you should be getting.

Top Tips

It’s so exciting trying on your potential wedding dress and it’s also easy to get carried away. I’ve heard all sorts of stories of boutiques offering ‘buy it now’ deals, once you leave the boutique the deal is gone. This is a tactic I personally abhor, frightening you into purchasing something and heightening your FOMO; so many have done it, regretted it and cannot take the dress back.

If this happens to you, walk away; if they want your business, they will honour that price, if they don’t then you have escaped lightly.

Another hard sell tactic in order to make a quick sale is to say that a buy it now as seen wedding dress can be let out or taken in. Well to take a dress in is certainly easier, but if that dress is huge on you, taking it in a lot will make the alterations an absolute headache and much more costly.

Letting a wedding dress out; well on most mass produced wedding gowns, the seam allowance is minimal so in reality you are looking at about 3mm wiggle room on each seam. Be warned when promises like this are made. If it’s too good to be true, it normally is.

Who to Take?

It’s so lovely to have your bride tribe with you when you are shopping for your wedding dress; or is it? Having lots of people with you can be really confusing as everyone will inevitably have a different opinion.

My advice would be to go on your own or take just one other person with you; you will have the time and space to think about what wedding dress you want on your wedding day.

By keeping your dress under wraps, you really do make an impact when you are seen for the first time. As a photographer I love the emotion of the bride tribe when they see you looking just perfect. If they have seen everything the big reveal will be a bit of an anti climax.

One Last Thing – HAVE FUN!!!!