Choosing a wedding gown - What to do…

SO, you have just gotten engaged and are ready to start the process of planning your wedding!

And the part that will be (or should be) most enjoyable for you as the bride is choosing your gown.

Being in the industry for over 20years, I have seen my fair share of dramas when it comes to your big day.

I thought I would share some of my tips of what to do when choosing your gown, to ensure smooth sailing towards the altar without unnecessary stress.

Tip #1 – Before you start

I normally recommend choosing your venue before choosing your gown. I am always more for the idea that what gown you choose will be slightly influenced by your venue. Of course, you will be the centre of attention (a little bit more than your groom) but you want to know that the look of your gown will sit perfectly on you as well as with the look and feel of your venue.

Tip #2 – The search begins

Look through magazines and do searches on the internet to find providers that have gowns that you love the look of. Choose a few different places to check out, but try to avoid looking at too many as this may confuse you a bit. Take along a trusty friend or family member (someone who can give you a brutal honest opinion!). Try not to go along with a huge entourage – again as lots of different opinions will confuse you as well.

Tip #3 – Enhance your body shape

Choose a gown for YOUR shape. The biggest mistake that brides make is choosing something that was not right for their shape based on fashions, and trends. You, yourself, have to feel comfortable and confident and think you look fabulous!

Tip #4 – Embrace the attention on you

Choose a gown that you are wearing, not something that is wearing you.

A lot of brides get overwhelmed by how gorgeously detailed a gown is and get hung up on it. Some brides suit classic simple styles whereas others suit lots of embellishment. You don’t want to be wearing a gown that is completely stealing your spotlight for all wrong reasons!

Tip #5 – Decisions, decisions…

There will only be ‘the one’ gown that you will feel perfect in, but it could be subconsciously influenced by all the other factors of your day as well. You have to feel 100% happy with your gown, knowing that you will look beautiful and feel comfortable in it. It has to tick all the boxes and you will know that it is perfect.

LAST WORDS

Most importantly, remember that this is supposed to be a gloriously happy and exciting day!

In the end, what matters most, is you and your man, walking off into the sunset hand in hand to start your wonderful life together. I have loved every moment of being married to my handsome husband, Geoffrey, and our wedding day was only just the beginning.

Enjoy it!

Look below for just a few of our favourite real brides we thought chose the most perfect gown for their wedding day.

Let us know what you think and if you have any questions, we are happy to help!

Kris Teychenne 

(Photo by Moda Fotografica)

Michelle Sprogis

Samantha Gibbens

(Photo by Photos by Jay)

Lauren Rilstone (nee Klienig)

Cindi Roennfeldt 

(Photo by Blumenthal)

Phoebe Proudfoot

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Wonderful extras

On your wedding day, your wedding gown will be one of the stars. The gown itself will be gorgeous, but there are loads of options that you can have to really accentuate the design, work with your theme and finish off your look. The brides below have opted for some classic (and not so classic) extras that work wonderfully.

Rachel Hamilton accessorised her gown with a lime green sash and a pretty floral print parasol. Gorgeous choices for a spring garden setting. 

One of our couture brides, Holly (Nolan) Kendall, chose to have a soft latte coloured sash around her waist. With all of the elaborate and delicate lace appliqued onto the gown, something like this helps to bring all of the different elements together to a focal point, with the added bonus of being very flattering by cinching in the waist. Her diamante hair comb was also a beautiful touch.

Michelle Sprogis chose one of our favourite diamante brooches from our stores. This brooch (which we call the 'Spider brooch') works fabulously with so many looks, but particularly well with the 'Velvet Ribbon bodice' which Michelle wore on her special day. 

We have featured our couture bride Kris Teychenne before, but I could not resist the opportunity to put her in this post again. She chose a headpiece (instead of a veil) which is something a lot of brides are opting to do. For those who do not want a traditional veil this can be a stylish alternative. We have also had a lot of brides who wear their veil for walking down the aisle, then switch to a headpiece for the reception.

Lauren Neil looks so pretty in a headpiece with face net.

Another one of our couture brides, Jade Hawkins, looks stunning in her gown, with a rich green velvet ribbon sash and a green headpiece as well. Both worked perfectly with her flowers and her colour theme.

(Photo by Infinity Photography)

Another extra feature which is very 'in' right now is the one shouldered flower corsage. Laure Dickson-Battye teamed her gown with our soft bella georgette corsage over her left shoulder - gorgeous! 

And lastly, our couture bride Cindi Roennfeldt accessorises her gown with a flower in her hair and a cute little bub in her arms - what an adorable look!

(Photo by Blumenthal)

  

Check out more real brides on our website