Fashion Merchandising Degrees

You might be thinking, how can a total stranger give me tips for buying my wedding gown?  Many women have been planning their perfect storybook wedding since they were young girls.  Some girls may have even torn pictures out of bridal magazines, but when it comes right down to it there is much more that goes into this big decision.  When you were young you had no idea that you would fall in love with the beach in Hawaii and decide to have a destination wedding.  What if you decide to have your wedding in the morning, would you still wear the same gown as you might for an evening wedding?  Check out these Top 10 Tips for Picking out the Right Wedding Gown.

1. Match the dress to the style of the wedding. If you are having a beach wedding you won’t want a full-length gown with a ten-foot long train.  If you are having your wedding in the morning you will want a different dress than if you are having a formal evening wedding.
2. Pick a cut of dress that flatters your figure. When you were 15 and planning your wedding you may have fallen in love with the Cinderella dress, but now you have spent years working out and you’d like to show off your curves with a mermaid dress.  If you have a larger bust line you may not want to go with a low-cut dress.  Try on several dresses and listen to the consultant on what shape will flatter you best.
3. Choose a color that suits your coloring best. Do you have a peaches and cream complexion with red hair?  Then most likely a white dress will wash you out.  Look for an ivory or soft pink dress.  Wedding dresses are not just white anymore.
4. Know your budget before you start looking at dresses. There is nothing more heart breaking then finding the perfect dress only to check the tag and find out that it costs double what you can afford.
5. Sleep on it. No, not the dress.  The decision.  Don’t buy the first dress you try on.  Keep looking.  Most people only buy one wedding dress in their lifetime.  Enjoy the process and the hunt for that perfect dress.  Don’t let pushy sales people talk you into something that you may not want.
6. Get a second opinion. Keeping in mind that the ultimate decision is yours, get a second opinion.  Find the dress that you think might be “the one” and then go back to the store with your mom or a friend and try it on again.  Make sure that you’ve let some time elapse so you can see if you are still really excited about the dress.
7. Buy at the right time. Keep in mind that a custom made dress could take up to ten months to make, but don’t buy so early that major changes could occur.  Don’t buy more than a year before the wedding.
8. Shop online for a bargain. Feel free to check out online companies, but never send a check ahead of time.  Bridal gowns are a major purchase and you never know when a shop can up and close their doors and then you would be out a lot of money.  Use a credit card that has a guarantee or charge back policy.
9. Don’t give up on a high-end dress. Check out eBay if you want a particular designer.  The dress may be used or it might have been a break up situation, but you might fall into a great deal.
10. Know when to stop shopping. If you have purchased the dress that made your heart sing, don’t keep looking.  You don’t want to buy another dress and get stuck with two dresses.  And you can’t return a dress that has been altered to fit you.  Don’t think that you can sell it either because you’ll only get half or less of what you paid for it.

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