‘Your’ wedding dress. How do you choose it?

It is a bit like when you find the one you love, or when you walk into your new home…you just know.

But the question is, how do you get to that point?

I would suggest starting to look at wedding dresses around 12 months before your wedding. You may want to visit a few different places and shop about or you could find your wedding dress in the first shop you visit. If you do, don’t think it is too soon, it happens! Think, shop to buy…

Different bridal boutiques stock completely different bridal designers and therefore if you make a couple of appointments in your local area, you may come across similar bridal styles, however, you will not come across the same wedding dresses. Most bridal boutiques have their own websites and social media platforms too, follow them and get a feel for them. If you like the look of what you see or get a good feel for a certain boutique, make an appointment and get yourself booked in.

As I have mentioned in a previous blog, when you start trying on wedding dresses, keep your options open. You could start by thinking about your everyday style. What do you like wearing? What do you feel suits you? Think about this and tell your bridal stylist. Your bridal stylist will then be able to show you some wedding dresses based on what you have described. You will then get a feel for this particular style and how you feel in it. They may also pull out a few ‘wild cards’ even so, when you try different wedding dresses you will then become more confident and gain more clarity into what styles you do prefer.

The venue that you have picked may also have some influence on the style of wedding dress you choose. For instance, if you have chosen the golden sands of the Maldives to exchange wedding vows you may opt for a beautiful flowing gown made from a soft lightweight lace or chiffon fabric, whilst a grand stately home or a family church would undoubtedly welcome a more traditional ballgown wedding dress. Even so, this does not mean that you have to ‘fit’ your wedding dress in with the venue. It is your wedding, your dress, your choice. Besides, more often than not, not all brides end up with what they originally envisaged themselves wearing!

When you visit your chosen bridal boutiques, you will be surrounded in the most stunning wedding dresses and accessories. You will try on a few or a lot, but when you get that connection with a certain dress, when you get that feeling… you will know!

Below are a few Q&A’s we are commonly asked:

See previous blog ‘Enjoy Enjoy Enjoy!’ to see how you can if you want to. Although, preparation is not a must, just be open minded. Also, don’t be nervous, you will love it!

How long is a piece of string? You can pick up a wedding dress in our ready to wear collection from £500. However they are never here for long! Or, you can choose your wedding dress in the boutique, get measured up and have your wedding dress made specifically for you from £1000 – £3000. It is your choice and you will not be under any pressure to buy or receive a ‘hard sell’ from Clare Suzanne Bridal.

We ask for a 50% deposit in order to start the process and get your wedding dress into production. The remaining balance is due when your newly made wedding dress arrives in the boutique…. eek!!!

On average, wedding dresses take approximately 6 months to be made. Also bear in mind, your wedding dress would need to be in 4 weeks before your wedding for your final fitting to allow for any minor alterations that maybe needed. In some cases, dresses can be put on what we call a ‘rush order’ and can be made and arrived into the boutique within 12 weeks, however this will incur an extra cost.

At Clare Suzanne Bridal, we provide you with a bridal gown bag where the wedding dress can be kept on the hanger and zipped up at no extra cost.

I hope this has answered some questions for you. Let me know if you would like any further info or if there are any other bridal topics you would like me to cover!

Bye for now,

Clare Suzanne x