4 Big mistakes to avoid when choosing your wedding dress

The world is full of absolutely stunning wedding dresses, and sometimes it can turn out to be challenging to find the right one for you. We advice that before you start your wedding dress journey, write down your non-negotiables: firstly, things that you are absolutely sure that you want to have in your wedding dress: sleeves/no sleeves, certain shape of neckline, certain silhouette, etc. and secondly, how you want to feel wearing it: sexy, cute, relaxed, etc. Keep the list with you when you visit bridal boutiques and go back to it if you ever feel overwhelmed. And once you embark on your journey to find your wedding dress, keep an eye on these mistakes that  many brides unfortunately end up making so that you know to avoid them.

1. Visit too many bridal boutiques 

Every once in a while, I meet a bride who has visited five boutiques and tried on more than 50 dresses (once, I met a bride who had tried on more than 100 dresses!) and they tell me they are overwhelmed after all the options they have now. It might seem like a good idea to try as many wedding dresses as you can before choosing the one so that you can be absolutely sure that you are choosing the right dress for you, but believe me, it’s not.

It’s actually a terrible idea. If you allow yourself that much choice, it becomes harder and harder to choose between different dresses. You start to question your own opinions and get afraid that you will make the wrong decision. Limit the number of boutiques you visit to three, and choose your wedding dress from your favourites in those boutiques.

2. Be tricked by the mirror

You can look absolutely amazing in that super-tight-fitting wedding dress with a plunging V-neckline, but would you feel comfortable wearing it the whole day in front of all your guests? I used to buy five inch heels because they were so beautiful and I looked great wearing them. The truth was that I hated wearing them, as they were so uncomfortable and made me self-conscious walking on an uneven surface. Be honest with yourself. If you feel self-conscious in a wedding dress, regardless of how amazing you look in it, it’s probably not the right dress for you.

The dress that you look gorgeous in and feel comfortable wearing does exist! Just keep looking, or go bespoke.

3. Buy the wrong size

You might find a gorgeous dress from a sample sale, that feels a bit snug but is such a bargain. Or decide to just order your dress in a size smaller than what you are at the moment, as you recently started running and are planning on losing weight before your wedding day. This can end up being a huge mistake. If you think that “This dress will look absolutely gorgeous if I just lose a few pounds” it’s not the right wedding dress for you.

Buy a dress that makes you feel comfortable and confident in your current shape. You don’t need the extra stress of absolutely having to lose weight in order to fit into your dress. Some dresses can’t be made bigger, but almost all of them can be made smaller if you end up being a size smaller on your wedding day.

4. Be swayed by your guests

Your family and friends are accompanying you to your bridal appointment for a reason. They know you the best and love you the most. They will have opinions about what styles look best on you. They will also have biases about what they think you should wear on your wedding day and what they like in a wedding dress. One of the biggest mistakes you could make is to lose your own voice during the bridal appointment and only hear your guests opinions, positive or negative, and you end up choosing a wedding dress that they liked but you yourself weren’t sure about. This is guaranteed to make you regret your choice. I’ve seen it many times when I meet brides who already bought one dress before finding their way to Indiebride London. To understand this better, read our blog post, Choose Your Bridal Appointment Guests Carefully.

Trust your own instincts. Stay true to your non-negotiables that you wrote down before visiting any bridal boutiques and avoid these mistakes, and you will do great and find the dress you’re looking for!

- Miina -

Photography: Caitlyn Raymond

Model: Charlie