To think brides often get their dress wrong?

[FreeMantle]

I have always thought this actually but no one else seems to have noticed.
My lovely friends, who pride themselves on dressing very well, seem to chose a dress that doesn't suit them at all. Skinny ones go for the tightest column dress ,so they look like beans. My large busted ones are falling out of massive strapless meringues.
The latest is my size 8/10 cousin who without an inch of fat, has wide hips. So of course she's gone for a full on strapless mermaid. Making her shape look totally out of proportion.
Obviously she'll be beautiful as a bride but why that dress?
I am now looking for one for myself . Despite being short and athletic everyone seems to love a huge ivory fluffy tulle princess type dress on me. I look like a dumpy fungus. It's thin straps and tight bodice totally emphasise my lack of top half. And yes, I'm tempted.

I don’t like the dress choices of most brides, but I’m not a traditional wedding dress fan.

And I abhor strapless anything on anyone. I’m a size 6 and you wouldn’t catch me dead in a strapless dress. They will date as puffy sleeves in the 80s did.

Haven't RTFT but I absolutely loved my dress and looked fricking amazing!!

YANBU...I've recently been wedding dress shopping and I've seen way to many pics of brides in dresses that they just didn't look comfortable or even happy in... Maybe this is also a comfort thing as well as what shape suits you. I seriously hope I've got mine right ... I love it either way.

After almost a whole year of looking my dress shopping tips would be - 1) Go to www.wed2b.co.uk, preferably on a weekday. You can try on as many dresses as you like, no hard sell, and often the same dress in different sizes. It'll help you at least get ideas of what you like. You don't need an appointment, can just drop in. 2) Look at non UK designers like Grace Loves Lace or Lillian West for something less structured and that you can actually move and dance in. No fishtails or meringues and hardly any strapless. If you want boho try www.etsy.com (also great for accessories). HTH someone dress shopping is a scary minefield!

Another thing to bear in mind is that your opinion might not be the same as other people’s.

I live abroad so I went dress shopping with a couple of friends I don’t know all that well, so I took a lot of pictures of the dresses I tried on and sent them to my mum, bridesmaids and a few other friends.

What I learned is that different people like different styles. The dress my friend said was absolutely far and away the best was the same one my mum and dad thought was awful.

Fuck what anyone else thinks. It’s not about them.

Mine was strapless and I looked shit hot. I’m tall and slim and have great arms and shoulders and small boobs so it was the perfect style for me. Those of you who say they suit no-one have no clue!

I wore a short ivory dress from Coast for my (informal) wedding - to this day I'm the only bride I know who shunned the wedding dress! People should forget about meringues and wear an outfit that suits them.

Mine was strapless, I was a 14/16 at the time. I didn’t really have any idea what I wanted and ended up being railroaded by DM and DSis’s into a big meringue type thing.

I hate my wedding photos and think I look ridiculous, I was nearly 5 stone heavier than I am now which doesn’t help either.

Used to work in a bridal shop and I always steered brides towards the styles that would suit them. Most of the times they listened and ended up with a flattering dress. Sometimes though, they would bring friends along who supposedly knew about fashion and would choose dresses that would have suited themselves but not the actual bride.

I think every bride that seems comfortable in her dress looks fabulous. The whole wedding dress thing is such ridiculous theatre anyway - and if the bride is enjoying it then that's great.

I've seen a few bridesmaids looking horribly self conscious in matching dresses that they know don't suit them. .. it does make me happy when a bride cares enough to give them some choice too.

What about on "don't tell the bride"when the groom chooses the dress?

So just for fun what year did I get married based on my dress?

When my daughter got married our first stop dress shopping was a big wedding warehouse type place where she tried on every different shape. Mermaid with shoulders and sleeves and a slight train suited her best so at subsequent shops, we only tried on that style.
I know she’s my daughter but her dress was lovely.

stayathome 1993?

Oh god for the love of fuck, just let women wear what they want. Be it a strapless wedding dress, a wedding dress with sleeves, or a great big fuck off merengue of a dress.

I'd like Glug44 to come back and explain exactly what is so hilarious about a bride wearing glasses on her wedding day, too.

I looked great in my strapless dress. I’m also tall and slim with good arms and there was definitely no back fat or boobs trying to escape (it was a straight cut across my chest, not plunging). It was also ivory, not white, with loads of red in it! I loved it and still do.

The condemnation of ‘strapless’ doesn’t seem to take different styles into account I don’t think.

Based on the women beside you I'd say c.2000 stayathomegardener

Oh yes. Forgot to mention I also wore glasses. Disaster, clearly!

**Morphene - sorry I’m not sure I understand your comment, do you mean to say is the groom considered in the brides dress choice, or that we’re focussing too much on the dress and not the suit?

The brides I meet are definitely focused on wearing something their groom would love but from experience and working with lots of ladies I think the groom predominantly wants his bride to feel lovely and if she feels it, she’ll look it - state of mind is a big factor, if you feel uncomfortable it’s most definitely written all over your face.

The grooms outfit and how he feels is of course important (it’s not really what this thread is about) but ultimately I don’t think they feel the same pressure as the bride and perhaps that’s why there’s a lack of emphasis on this?

Many brides are unfluenced by who they bring along to their appointments - sometimes wrongly sometimes rightly, I had a lovely bride last week looking for something light and slim fitting for a wedding in Thailand, she left with a tulle ballgown completely embellished with lots of beadwork, the opposite of what she wanted and in reality perhaps not the best dress for humid Thailand but her entourage loved it, she loved it (looked fab as well) and lots of brides think “well when else can I wear a dress like this” and go for it, it’s very much a personal choice

stayathome some mid ish season Friends/Jennifer Anniston vibes going on there.

This was mine. My figure was very similar to the model at the time. I looked awesome!

stayathome mid to late 90s?

Stayathome
1992?

1995👍

Ooh, pretty close! It reminds me of my auntie’s dress. (I hope your marriage has gone better though!)