Wedding dresses (I don’t like any)

[MrsBBx]

I have been to 3 different bridal shops now and tried on about 10-15 dresses. I know the style that i want (fishtail not princess) as they suit my frame the most. The problem is, although a lot of the dresses were ‘nice’ non of them blew me away or stood out enough for me to buy them. When i think of the crazy costs of wedding dresses i don’t feel i can justify spending that kind of money on something that is just okay.

Is the bridal feeling a myth, am i really fussy 😂
Or have i just not found my dress?

you just haven't found your dress, maybe try a different style just to see what it looks like on

I agree with Dragon - try something different. It may confirm that you definitely want fishtail but it may surprise you. My DD ended up with a completely different style and ivory instead of white. Could tell the right one straight away as she looked relaxed in it.

@DragonWillow
I have tried on some other styles but they didn’t really suit me.
I felt really comfortable in the style i like, and they were quite flattering, but i felt like most of the dresses were very generic and nothing really stood out.

Definitely try other styles.

The main lesson I learn from many hours of diligent and intensive research (Say Yes to the Dress 😉😆) is that so many women had very fixed ideas of what style they would feel good in/would suit then best and very often that was just an academic approach what they actually wanted was something entirely different. The dress that was right made them feel beautiful regardless of whether or not it was right on paper, and when they found it they knew. The heart knows what the heart wants!

I got the Ronald Joyce Hayden - I actually ended up buying the 'try on' dress, I hated the through of spending £1800 on a dress, they had a sale of the ones everyone had tried on and got it for £250!!
I absolutely loved the dress, and the price made it even more loveable.

Try loads of different styles! Also think about whether or not the colour actually suits your skin tone as that might be putting you off without you realising it.

Try on different styles, colours and remember you don't have to buy from a bridal shop - you can get lovely dresses from anywhere! My dress was a mistake - I went to a bridal shop and narrowed down to three choices. I returned with my bridesmaids to help me make the final decision and the shop assistant fetched me two of the dresses, saying another customer was trying on the other one and she'd fetch it for me shortly. When she went to get it, she accidentally picked up a different dress and brought it in to me. I tried it on and boom! It looked stunning and I got it! It had everything I said I absolutely didn't want, yet looked incredible on. So maybe take someone with you to make random suggestions and see if you like anything

Monsoon has some lovely dresses in their bridal collection (or they did last time I looked).

@QforCucumber that sounds amazing! My friend actually has this dress (or very similar) for her wedding. I bet you looked stunning in it.
I was hoping to find a sample dress. I asked in one of the shops but all of their samples were 3/4 sizes too big and they said they wouldn’t recommend buying a dress more than 1 or 2 sizes too big for me 😭

I never even tried dresses on for me they were all too frilly, too much sequence, too much net and too many bows.

I'm so blooming fussy.

I ended up with a bridesmaid dress and loved it. It was very simple and very me.

Keep looking .

Thank you for your suggestions everyone 😊 i think you’re all right there mist be something not quite right for me about the dresses i’ve tried on so far. If only i could put my finger on what it was! Lol
It was definitely worth the time trying on different styles/designs as i’ve really narrowed down what i feel comfortable in (style/fit/colour of the dresses).
So i think i just haven’t found ‘the one’ yet. There are much worse problems in the world than a dress I’ll wear for one day, but i do hope to find something i love

But a designer dress second hand. That’s what I did. I looked amazing in a beautiful dress for a fraction of the price.

@Ninkanink @RavenclawsRoar @2pinkginsplease

I will definitely have a look at some high street bridal lines as I haven’t done that yet. I think ‘say yes to the dress’ has a lot to answer for 😂 I can’t imagine crying over a dress or my mom throwing a tantrum because I didn’t choose a giant ballgown lol.

Was anyone allowed to browse the dresses in the shops you went to? I described what i wanted and the shop assistants brought me ideas. They were pretty accurate to be fair, but maybe if i looked myself i may have liked the look of something different like you’ve all said.

@Holidaytan i like the sound of this. Where did you buy yours from?

I was feeling the same as you, tried on so many dresses and never got the 'feeling'. In the end my mum and bridesmaid picked one for me to try on, it was a wildcard (strapless and fitted) but I knew it was 'the one' as soon as I put it on. So I would echo what others have said about being open minded and trying different things, maybe ask the people on the shop what they would put you in etc.

[quote MrsBBx]@QforCucumber that sounds amazing! My friend actually has this dress (or very similar) for her wedding. I bet you looked stunning in it.
I was hoping to find a sample dress. I asked in one of the shops but all of their samples were 3/4 sizes too big and they said they wouldn’t recommend buying a dress more than 1 or 2 sizes too big for me 😭[/quote]
Where are you based? There are a few amazing dress 'warehouses' here in the NE where you could browse freely - they allowed me to find a style I liked, I'd tried on some in a similar shape but fully lace and it was too busy,

I'm quite big busted (32H) and a size 10 so actually thought the high neck on the Hayden wouldn't work, but it was perfect. The dress I bought was a 14 and an amazing local seamstress altered it to fit me wonderfully.

@OatyLatte i’m glad you found your dress i hope i do too

I got mine from Facebook. Planning to sell it on also. :)

You've just not found the one yet. I was a bit dubious about everyone saying when you know you'll know but it really is true.

I found mine at a shop that only does sample dresses off the peg. They had a range of sizes from 6-22+ and let me browse through the racks to pick out what I liked.

Think about the ones you've tried on and try and pin down exactly what it is you like about them and knowing what you don't like is equally important. You should have an idea now that you've tried that many on what you prefer in terms of neckline, back, fabric, detail etc. That should help narrow it down a bit more.

Most importantly if you're not in an immediate hurry, don't rush. It's okay to take a break from looking for a bit. It might help your thoughts settle.

When I tried mine on I said 'I feel comfortable' and ultimately that was what I was looking for. I still tried a different one on straight after but then immediately said I wanted to put the previous one on again as I knew that one was it for me.
Say yes to the dress has a lot to answer for because I didn't get emotional, there were no tears, I just had a gut instinct and that's all you're really after.

www.monsoon.co.uk/nellie-floral-lace-bridal-dress-ivory-84013746.html

This was mine and I spent loads having it altered so that it fitted perfectly.

@QforCucumber i am based in the East Midlands.

I think part of the problem for me is that all of the samples are miles too big for me. Thats something I’ll have to deal with as most samples i believe are around a UK size 12/14 (im a size 6) and 5”2. It’s just so hard to visualise what they would look like if they fit.

You need to try ones you don't assume you'll like!! I was persuaded by the team in the shop to give different styles a try as you never know what will suit you until you try it and they were right! I too was going for the fishtail type, what I got in the end was close to that but slightly more a line

Adriana Pappell dresses are worth looking at - with the right accessories some would look very bridal, they're a much lower price point and beautiful.

Agree with the PPs' advice to try some wild cards in terms of fabric as well as shape. I ended up going for something that is the absolute opposite to what I'd planned to buy. The main difference is not so much the shape but the fabric - totally plain as opposed to the lacy boho fabric I had imagined.

@marleyandme i agree with everything you’ve said. I think i’ll try again in month’s time to give me a bit of time to clear my mind and start again (with a clearer idea of what i want to try on).

I think it might be a good idea in the mean time to look at some designers i like online, and choose some shops that stock those dresses.
Last time i just went to a local shop and just hoped for the best. When i told them what i liked, they only had one dress that had a similar neckline to the styles i like.

I will also look definitely have a look at second hand designer gowns.

Have you thought about getting one made for you? Mine cost £300