I think I am starting to like these reader questions. It’s getting me to flex my brain a bit and help people out there who need some tips and advice for their special events.
My boyfriend just asked me to marry him and goal is to get married in a few months. I am hoping for a late fall wedding but we have not finished much preparation. I was any ideas for when is the good time to buy the wedding dress?
Congrats!!! That’s so exciting that you are engaged! I’m sure you guys are still in your happy phase and trying to get started on your planning for the wedding.
Courtesy Carolina Herrera
As for your question regarding when to buy a wedding dress…
According to some of my recent wedding dress salon visits, there is about a 4-6 month wait for your custom fitted gown once you make a decision and put a deposit down for THE dress. This is if you decide to go the traditional wedding dress shopping route…you’ll have to backtrack your time to find out when you need to get out to the salons to try on some dresses. Obviously, if you know yourself well enough that you’ll be somewhat indecisive, make sure you start your shopping early enough to make some of these deadlines for ordering.
If you are lucky enough to be in a sample sale city, LA or NYC, or are willing to travel you can try to make some of the major designer sales going on during specific times of the year. Unfortunately, the Monique Lhuiller sale just passed for the winter, but they’ll be back in the late summer time frame. Have no fear though, there are so many great dress designers out there for all sorts of budgets, and you have to be patient enough to wait to go to sample sales. My client just bought herself a beautiful sample sale gown for $800!!! It is possible to get something great at a budget price.
A third option would be finding a dress off the rack. Places like J Crew, Nordstroms, Macy’s, etc. will have some line of bridal looking dresses, or just start carrying white or off white dresses in the Spring / Summer.
I guess my final answer would be, it depends. Try to decide what type of dress shopper you are…casual, traditional, budget and bargain shopper? I firmly believe that you don’t have to shop trends for wedding dresses. I’m totally in favor and a fan of a classic look and I believe you can find that at any point of the year, even at sample sales or just retail store sales. Keep your eyes open and don’t get discouraged. You’ll be so happy you took the time to find something that will be perfect for YOU!
Hope that helps.
Please send questions to: blog (at) typeaplanning (dot) com. I would love to respond to you and provide some advice on your planning and event needs.
