The Wedding Dress

They say that the minute you try on ‘THE ONE’ you will know. That maybe true but what with so many wedding websites reporting on the latest trends, designers flashing their beautiful designs at you on Facebook, Wedding blogs publishing articles on ‘Real Life Weddings’ and advertising their sponsors through beautifully set up photo shoots and wedding dress websites throwing bargain after bargain of fabulous gowns in your face, it can get a little confusing and make you doubt what you really like before you even set foot in a Bridal Shop. Which, if you are a bride to be, you most likely will visit at some stage whether you buy your dress from one or not.

If you are going down the online route, I’d still recommend you book an appointment and try on the style of the dress you fancy … just to be sure it suits you and you like you in it.

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My Wedding Dress Story

I spent more than enough time checking out styles, designs, shapes and colours before I even tried on a dress. After talking with my Fiancé I had a pretty clear picture of our theme and what kind of day we want. From those discussions, my own thoughts of our Wedding Day and from the time spent researching dresses, I knew what type of dress I wanted and I definitely knew what I didn’t like or want … which sometimes is half the battle.

When I eventually took the leap from sitting on my couch looking at dresses online to actually trying on dresses in a Bridal Shop, I wasn’t surprised that the dresses I preferred were the styles I’d favoured from my research. I’d been told that sometimes the dress you least expect to love is the one you choose, that wasn’t the case with me. I think that knowing your body shape, knowing what style you like and being open to suggestion are very important when choosing your dress.

I took all these factors into consideration but the most important thing for me was that I wanted a dress that was me. I don’t want to look like a completely different person on the day I get married, I want my Fiancé to recognise me when I walk up the aisle. I want to look like me and keep my style. I don’t think it matters whether your dress costs €200 from a charity shop, whether it was designed by the best and cost €10,000 or whether it was passed down from your mother. The most important thing is that you love it and you love you in it.

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So how many different styles of Wedding Dresses are there, what are they and what body shapes do they traditionally suit?

I’ve counted nine different styles of Wedding Dresses with most dresses made from either Silk, Satin, Lace, Chiffon, Organza, Tulle or Taffeta. A popular choice for brides nowadays are lace wedding dresses. Most will use a mixture of these fabrics and might also have feathers, beading, applique, sequins and ribbons added to them. To understand which body shapes these nine styles of Wedding Dresses suit, you must firstly know what body shape you are. You can use this handy little diagram to work yours out if you don’t know already.

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image source: stlyezit.com via westfield fashion services

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For measurement purposes this diagram is also a handy reference guide

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image source: preownedweddingdresses.com

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And now for the Wedding Dresses …

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The Mermaid Wedding Dress – Suits Hourglass and Rectangle Shapes

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 The Trumpet Wedding Dress – Suits Hourglass and Rectangle Shapes

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The A-Line  Wedding Dress – Suits the Inverted Triangle, the Rectangle, the Pear and the Hourglass

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The Princess Wedding Dress – Suits All Shapes

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The Empire Wedding Dress – Suits All Shapes, Height also an Advantage

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The Sheath / Column Dress – Suits the Hourglass but even better the Rectangle

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The Ball Gown Wedding Dress – Suits All Shapes

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The Tea Length Wedding Dress – Suits All Shapes, Height an Advantage

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The Mini Wedding Dress – Suits Rectangle and Hourglass Shapes, Slim Legs an Advantage

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My favourite Bridal Designer this year has been the talented Top Bridal and New York Designer Claire Pettibone. I just love her romantic, earthy, fairytale, woodland, impish styled creations (I think I’ve used enough adjectives there!).

For more information on her work you can click here for her website. Then of course you have the well known and Top Bridal Designers Jenny Packham, click here for her website, Vera Wang, click here for her website and Monique Lhuillier, click here for hers,  you’ll see why they are considered Top Designers from their designs … beautiful.

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Back home in Ireland we have many talented Irish Designers nationwide. Two of the Top Irish Designers here are, Sharon Hoey, who has some beautiful Wedding Dress designs, you can visit her website here and Patrick Casey who’s website you can visit here, be prepared to be awed by Patricks work. So future brides enjoy being inspired ! … 🙂

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For more wedding inspiration visit our Wedding Page.

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Wedding dress images sourced from Pinterest.

Main photo by Dmitry Rodionov – CCO Licence

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PIN: Wedding Journal – The Wedding Dress

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