How to Choose a Wedding Dress

Buying a wedding dress can be an arduous process. On average, a bride will try on about 16 or 17 gowns before finding the perfect dress. Start the process at least seven months prior to the wedding if you are having the dress made.

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Wedding Gowns

1. Cut out pictures from bridal and fashion magazines, shop online and look at old family photos to zero in on your preferred style.

2. Ask friends and family for references on dressmakers and designers if you are having the dress made

3. Bring a friend whose opinion you trust to shop with you at bridal stores. Include your mother if appropriate.

4. Bring shoes with the same size heel you expect to wear at the wedding.

5. Look through gowns on the rack and attend trunk shows. You could save a lot of money.

6. Try on a variety of dresses.

7. Discuss alteration charges with the salon, once you choose your dress.

8. Allow six months for dressmaking, if the dress is being made for you.

9. Be ready to pay about 50 percent of the cost of the dress as a deposit.

10. Take home a fabric swatch to match with your shoes, veil and accessories.

Tips & Warnings

• Avoid taking too many friends shopping with you. They might never agree on the same dress, and you might end up confused and frustrated.
• Expect to pay $1,500 to $5,000-plus for a dress from a designer.
• Alterations on a store-bought dress usually run about $200.
• If the dress is being made, give the salon a wedding date that is two weeks before the actual wedding. This trick will ensure that the dress will be ready in plenty of time.
• When asked to make a deposit on a dress, inquire about deposit refunds. Most deposits are not refundable.
• Avoid being talked into buying a dress that costs more than you can afford.

[Erika]

on 5/16/2007 Be open minded! You may have your mind set on a certain material or cut or designer ... but once you get to the bridal shop, try on other dresses that the sales clerk recommends. The neckline you favor in your every-day life may not be the best look on you for your wedding gown. That said, if you do veer away from the dress you thought you'd end up with ... sleep on it. There is no need to make an impulse purchase. Go home, thin kabout it, and even come back to try the dress on a second time.

on 6/30/2006 Make sure your dress is comfortable. The last thing you want to do on your wedding day, is to spend it counting the minutes until you can get home and take the dress off. Make sure you can move in the dress!

on 3/13/2006 Before splurging on an expensive dress that you will only wear once, ask your family members if there is a family dress that you could wear. While it may not be exactly what you had in mind, families will rarely go to all the trouble to clean and store an ugly or cheaply made dress.

on 11/22/2005 Try to pick a dress that is comfortable. The dress may look like a million bucks, but if you're not comfortable, it will show. You should be able to breathe, twist, bend, sit, dance, and eat and still feel comfortable.

on 11/22/2005 Take a camera with you when you try on different dresses. It give you the opportunity to see how you look in the dress versus how it appears when you are looking in the mirror. Additionally, you may want to research dry cleaners and wedding gown preservation charges prior to the wedding so that you can have your dress cleaned and preserved right away before stains set in.