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Wedding Dress Shopping Tips

by | Mar 9, 2024 | Uncategorized

1. BEFORE YOU START
a.  Do your homework
–   Start researching once you’ve booked your venue and lock down the date for your special day.
 –   The season and vibe of the venue could determine the “style & suitability” of your dream wedding dress  –  beach, bohemian, fairy-tale,  gothic, relax laid back, rustic, wow factor or whatever you fancy.
 b.  Set your budget
 –    Having a budget is helpful when deciding where to shop.  Online or at bridal boutiques that caters to your price point.  
–    Many brides visits stores to try out gowns that are way above their budget, setting themselves up for disappointments if they try on a gown that they love but can’t afford.  Thats when it become almost impossible to find a dress they love within their budget and then their desperate search for a cheaper version which makes the wedding dress shopping experience a nightmare and unsatisfactory.
2. WHERE and WHEN TO SHOP
a.  Local Wedding Shops (10-12 months)
–    If you’re shopping at your local wedding shops, book appointments for viewing about 10-12 months to the wedding.  That should give you ample time to check out a few stores and not be rushed into ordering your dress due to time constraints.    
–   Most labels delivery is 6 months from date of order + you might need a few weeks for alterations, so 8-9 months to your wedding date is a good time to put in your order.
b. Custom Design (check designer timeline)
–   If you’d like a custom design wedding gown – do check with your chosen designer their timeline.  I know couture designers usually need at least a year or more to create wedding dress locally due to smaller pool of staff.
c.   Mon Belle Bridal custom design (6-8 months)
–    I will work with you to custom your wedding dress with production done overseas by our professional wedding dress production partner.
–    Its however long it takes you to decide + overseas production team need 5 months to create your wedding dress from scratch + we need to factor in delivery time too. Some brides knew exactly what they want and will order on the spot and others will require a longer time to decide.

d.   Online shopping

–    If you’re shopping online, its usually a quicker turnaround but I do often advise bride not to leave it too late especially in our current chaotic shipping uncertainty.   –   Also should you have issues with your gown when it arrives, you might need time to return/exchange or alterations .

 

3. WHO TO BRING FOR YOUR FITTING

–  Your 1st trail fitting is the most exciting time of your wedding dress journey.  You would like to bring as many family and friends as you can.

–  It is best to bring only 2-3 family or friends as with too big a crowd, there will be too many opinions and can be quite daunting an experience.  Some shops might have a limit on the number of people you can bring so do check with them when you make your appointment.

–  Bring those who knows you well and are honestly keen to help you select the dream wedding dress of your choice and honest with their opinions.