Wedding Talk

So, this is the start of what is bound to become rather a collection of wedding related blog posts. I have annoyed many people already by flooding my social media full of wedding related posts- but i don't really care. Its important to me and it is an exciting time, i hope only to marry once, so why shouldn't i get excited about it.

Of course for most people, the dress is the big deal. I booked to try some dresses on a few weeks into our engagement, just to get a feel for what i thought i may like. No matter how well you think you know your body and how well you think you dress- always try some on. It turns out a dress i had eyed up for months- didn't look right on, and one i picked out thinking it wouldn't suit... well it looked amazing. I took my two girlies with me, people i knew would give an honest opinion, but i would recommend not taking any more than two people. At the end of the day the decision is yours- too many opinions can be very confusing.

So after trying on many and trawling through the internet, i still did not know what i wanted. As many wedding dresses start from £800 onwards, i knew i was looking at a more budget variety. Here comes the debate. There are plenty of websites and ebay sellers who offer the same dresses as other designers, but at a highly discounted rate- sometimes less than £100. Why so? Well these dresses are made in china and are basically copies of the designer dresses. Ask about these on a bridal forum and expect a huge debate. from what i have seen, many people buy these dresses and find that the dress is spot on, the perfect dress at a fraction of the cost. However they carry a risk, for each happy bride there is another whose dress turned out to be less than satisfactory. Anyhow i had decided EVENTUALLY that i wanted one of two dresses. Both of these from a bridal store were in the region of £1000- somewhat out of my price range, however online from these Chinese copy cats  i was looking at between £100-£200- much more reasonable.

Being a fashion student i figured- what the worst that could happen? i thought if the dress comes and i don't like a part of it, ill upcycle it, ill rework it until it is right, i have the skills necessary. And then while searching online i found a woman selling my dream dress, my £1000 dress.... for jsut £200! It was too good a deal to miss! However she would not post it, and to cut a very long story short, im very lucky that my wonderful bridesmaid was happy to drive 2 and a half hours away to pick up my dress. (Thank you Helen!!!). To top it all off, when i tried the dress on it fitted like a glove, i could not be any more thrilled! 

So for me, the wedding dress part of my wedding planning, went quite smoothly. I am now the proud owner of a genuine Mori Lee wedding dress, and i know i will feel not £1000 but a million pounds on our special day.

My advice for dress shopping

Number one- always go try some on.Pick some you like and some you hate. try them all on, book 10, 20, 30 sessions. Just try on everything

Number two- go with your gut. I didn't have the big "Oh my god its the one!" moment. i didn't cry. But then i never had that moment about my partner either, i just knew. I knew he was the right person, and i knew this was the right dress. It looked great, and it was super comfy, what more could i want. I think people put too much pressure on themselves finding "The one" when it comes to the dress. Its a dress. Just a dress, wear what you like and what makes you feel good- don't stress.

Finally its a dress you wear once. It does not have to cost the earth. By all means if you have a huge budget, buy through a bridal store. But if you don't there are options! Buy off the rack from a bridal store, buy second hand or buy copies. If you buy second hand, insist they dry clean it first- this saves you a job. But think of it this way, you know this dress has been worn for mere hours, and you are paying for a fraction of its original cost! What a bargain! And if you choose a Chinese copy, be savvy. 

 Personally i would suggest buying through ebay as ebay usually favour the buyer in any dispute, so you know you are protected. Also only buy from sellers with near 100% feedback, again you are more likely to have any disputes resolved as they don't want their feedback destroyed! Finally have a back up plan. Your dress may arrive and not be perfect. Either keep the cash to one side to buy another dress if it all goes wrong, or make good friends with a seamstress!!

Hope this helps any brides to be!

Kayla 

xxx