8 things to consider before shopping for a wedding dress

It takes quite some time to find the perfect wedding dress, you need to go through a lot of fittings, which involves dressing and undressing numerous times, finding the right style, the perfect shoes and accessories. It's a whole process really.

There isn't a way for you to make it any easier, so suck it up and get ready for the search of your dream dress.

Here, however, are a few things to make the search for your wedding dress a smooth and practical one:

Wedding dress budget

Decide on the budget you are willing to put for your dress. Try to leave a bit of room for an increase in the budget, in case you find something you love that is above what you expected to pay.

Decide where to shop

Look for shops in your city, if you have the option of travelling, also look for shops in other cities. Compose a list of the shops you like and fit your budget then check out their online store. Surely you won't have time nor energy to go to 20 bridal shops, so pick your favourites and start with them.

Be open-minded

Before you find your dream dress, try on different styles even if you think it'll never look good. You might be surprised! Keep an open mind with the cuts and shapes of the wedding dress and don't turn down any ideas. There is a big chance you will find something fabulous, but you never expected yourself to wear. A dress is not what it seems on the hanger.

Never Settle

As much as you need to keep an open mind, don't ever settle for something you are not 100% comfortable with. Even if your family and friends think a dress is perfect for you, you are the deal-breaker. If you hate it, move on and find yourself something else. This is your wedding day; your look and your comfort are the things that count.

Choosing the size

Don't buy a dress a size smaller or a size bigger, buy a dress that fits you perfectly in the present, I know your weight will probably change between now and the wedding. That is why you need to go in for a final dress fitting two weeks before your wedding.

When to start dress shopping

The phrase, 'The sooner, the better' was invented for a reason. Once you have your wedding dress ready, a huge load will be removed from your endless wedding checklist. If you are free tomorrow, then book an appointment and head on down. Go for the earliest opening, that way the salespeople could start with you as opposed to being their last appointment before the end of their day.

Who to take with you?

The people who you are most comfortable around, however, shouldn't exceed three people. That way you won't have too many clashes of opinions and you would feel more relaxed. More importantly, your crowd should be people who know your style perfectly, so they can give you an honest opinion, whether or not the dress you picked reflects your personality.

Always take pictures

Remember to take as many pictures as you can while shopping for your wedding dress. When you look at too many dresses through the day, it's good to look back at them a day or two after. It'll also give you an idea of how the dress looks on camera for your future wedding photo session. Some dresses look amazing in real life but not so much on camera and vice versa.