Did anyone have misgivings about the way they looked on their wedding day?

[NoBiggie]

Or did you all feel super confident?

I am getting married soon (2 weeks) and am self conscious about many parts of my appearance and have started becoming obsessed by it. I know it's not the be all and end all but:

My dress is a touch too small still (thought I could lose more weight- a fool.) shop can't let it out any more and it fits but pulls a bit.

I'm self conscious of my arms which will be on show.

I always hate my hair- I have a hairdresser coming but still can't decide on the style and I'm a complete fluster.

I'm stressed about everyone taking photos of me and me hating them all.

I think the guests are all going to be expecting a beautiful bride and they'll just be a bit "meh" when they see me. I'm already jealous of other brides looking beautiful in their special day and I haven't even had mine yet! Has anyone else felt less than perfect on their wedding day? I feel under so much pressure from myself to look the best I ever have and I can't meet that expectation.

Could you face doing a Very Low Calorie Diet (like Shake That Weight) for the next two weeks? If you stick to it you could loose at least half a stone which would make you feel more confident with the fit of your dress.

Is your usual style simple? I'd suggest that if it is don't go for an overly complicated hair do, a simple French pleat or a good blow dry would both look elegant. Think about what will work with the jewellery you have chosen and a veil, if you are wearing one.

Try not to worry about the photographs, you will be glowing with happiness on the day and that will be evident in the photographs.

The most important thing is that you spend your day 'in the moment' and really enjoy yourself!

I bloody hated my dress.

Didn't have time to go proper dress shopping. Just...Urgh.

I was very happy on the day but very resentful about the frock, which is weird, as I don't normally care about such things.

Don't try not to be yourself. My hair etc meant I didn't look like "me". I looked hot though. ;)

I do genuinely think you look beautiful when you're happy.

Thank you all for your replies and votes of confidence!

To the poster who mentioned a slimming way that's a great idea I'm going to look into that.

I'm also on a low calorie diet and doing a gym class a day in the (futile, at this late stage?) hope that I can make some difference in the remaining time. It's good to know that you all think it's ok to have imperfections- I am not normally this insecure about my appearance I think it's the pressure to look "perfect" and we'll meaning friends and family keep saying things like: "Ooh it's all about the dress!" Etc and I just want to curl up and hide!

I've spent a fortune in control pants as well but don't pick the dress up until next week so can't try them with it until then...

Slimming wrap not way!

One of my friends is very average looking normally, but she looked stunning on her wedding day. I truly mean it. Part of it was down to the professional make up she had applied but most of it was down to the fact she was so undeniably happy to have found love and to be marrying her ideal bloke. The sheer amount of joy radiating from her really transformed her into one of the most gorgeous brides I have ever seen.

It was a big wedding with lots of little touches to pick out but what I remember from it is just how happy she looked and how beautiful that made her. It's making me well up now, just thinking about her on the day. I'm so pleased she found her prince; she so deserves him.

Assuming you're looking forward to the getting married part of the wedding day, I wouldn't worry about it. It's amazing what a difference happiness can make to a person's looks. You will be a beautiful bride. Promise.

Drinking several cups of green tea always helps me shift excess weight/bloating really quickly, particularly if I have two strong cups last thing at night before I go to bed.

I didn't like my wedding day, I am ashamed to admit I spent most of it with gritted teeth. DH wanted a big fairytale wedding whereas I wanted a very small quiet wedding with five people there including us. I went along with it as it made DH happy, and it was worth the gritted teeth to see him enjoying it so much. I felt like a little girl playing dress up but everyone raved about how you could tell I was glowing with happiness, and how beautiful I was .
I did love the ceremony though, we had a cathedral wedding in the country we were living in at the time and the Bishop who married us was a good friend of mine, that gave me the confidence for the rest of the day.

I have been to a lot of weddings and have never seen a bride who wasn't beautiful, you will be beautiful OP

have a look at the Harcombe diet (the men's version is easier to understand!) and do the day starter, its healthy and you do lose weight on it.

Yeah I think I looked the best I am ever going to. Good make up, hair and loved my dress but I think largely because I was beaming from ear to ear throughout the day. I suffer massively from resting bitch face and I really hate having my photo taken notmally
For hair I went for a kind of unstructured pinned up curls (probably a piper name for it!.) On basis it was up and out of the way, it looked great and was something I could never do (bit if you are paying and all)

I wish I hadn't worn costume jewellery and a tiara I'm happy overall with my dress, hair etc

Congratulations op

I wasn't happy with the way I looked. I feel I look better now, eight years and two kids later. But it was a lovely day and I suppose the marriage is more important than the wedding.

I didn't love my dress, (still don't) and had put on a load of weight but I really don't care as I had the most amazing day and still have the most amazing husband.

Your day will be what you make it, don't stress the incidentals, apart from marrying the person you love everything else is a bonus.

Military diet should work

I hide our wedding album on a very high shelf, I hate my pictures. I was a stone or two overweight and it was a stupidly hot day for Autumn, the venue was too hot and I had to do a stupid receiving line before they would let me go outside for some air. I had to ask a bridesmaid to flap my dress as I worried I would pass out. In all the pictures, my lovely professional curls were like droopy rats tails and I'm dripping in sweat. My mother leaned over at the top table, showed me a photo on her camera and said "you don't look too chunky on this one!"
The main thing is I survived and am married for better or worse worse seems to be winning but that's another story. People had a good time at the wedding and no one else said I looked shit. We can laugh at the photos when we are old but until then, they are gathering dust well out of sight. Try not to stress about it too much, it's more important to be committing to the right person, best of luck to you.

I am getting married in three months and have similar worries, OP. My plan is to try to remember I hate all pictures of myself at first but that after a couple of months they suddenly look fine, so I'm aiming to not worry when I first see them. (And also to ask the photographers to photoshop out my double chin!)

Oh, and get eyelash extensions done!

Please don't make yourself ill by trying extreme diets in the run up to your wedding.
This should be a wonderful day in your life - the day you publicly stand there and commit to the one you love. No one gives a monkeys what you weigh or if your arms haven't been airbrushed out. Photographs should be about 'recording the moment', not some kind of model shoot.

I'd never be mistaken for a model of any kind, but I love my wedding photos as I didn't try to be anyone else - this was about me and dh sharing a fab day with all the people that mattered most to us. The happiness just shines through.

My hairdresser had just learned how to do ghd curls
Which clarifies how long ago it was!
They did not last past the car journey and my mum had to be on hand with a hot brush (remember those?!)

Enormous dress picked by my mil the whole shebang was really her day.

The photos I look radiant, happy, best day of my life so while it wasn't what I'd pick it was a fantastic day and I got married.

I sold the dress last year for Macmillan nurses.

Best day of my life

Being the centre of attention can be v weird and uncomfortable for some of us, and there is silly pressure on "the bride".

My dress was too tight as I put on weight in the run up (I overeat when stressed!) and really uncomfortable, DH didn't like it () I felt like you do about my arms (which in retrospect were actually reasonably slim!) hated my hairdo, and did make up (badly) myself. I come out in a rash when nervous and that happened too.

Photos look OK though!

Your wedding will be full of people who love you, and who wish you well. They won't care about your arms, they will just want you to be happy

You'll be so busy on the day you won't even have to e to think about your looks. I carted a lipstick around in my bag all day for touching up and I didn't even have time to go the loo, never mind check myself in a mirror until about midnight! Everyone will be lovely to you and tell you're lovely so don't worry. When my niece got married she had pi!ed on a few pounds and it took 3 of us and a bar of soap to get the zip up on her dress, still looked great!

It is really immaterial how you actually, objectively look.

Everyone who comes will say you look wonderful, beautiful, absolutely radiant with joy!!!! hun it's amazing.

When you look at the photos you will see a fat lump.

Until you reject these societal beauty norms and learn to love yourself.

Top tip: stop consuming any form of visual media, this includes television and any magazine.

Spend the next two weeks concentrating on loving yourself for the things which you know are excellent about you, and which your husband loves you for.

Forget about the fucking dress and makeup shit. He's marrying you, not a bloody cookie-cutter WAG. Has he seen you in your PJs? yes. Does he still want to marry you? yes. So he's unlikely to bolt for the doors if your dress it slightly a bit too tight!

OP if you feel self conscious about your arms etc, you could perhaps go for a lace bolero to cover up. You could also try body make up contouring/fake tan, or if you have Longish hair try a down hairstyle such as soft curls and veil to make sure that you're not leaving your arms bare and highlighting areas you're not happy with.

I don't think I've ever felt super confident about how I look. I scrubbed up "okay" on our wedding day. The top of my dress was a wee bit big for my then-slender shoulders, after about an hour my hair was flat as a pancake (as usual) under my little hat, I went to bed with my nail varnish still tacky and woke up with the pattern of the bedsheet threads imprinted on my nails with no time to redo them. I have awful crooked teeth and sticky out ears at the best of times so am no beauty!

None of that mattered on the day itself. It was a truly brilliant day. And my DH thought I looked beautiful.

I would go for natural hair & make up, not too different from how you usually dress. That way, you will feel more relaxed, better than trying to be someone / something totally different from normal