So ladies, as we have mentioned before, we know that it can be daunting when planning your wedding. So we want to help in any way we can to advise and recommend the best way to do things. We recently asked our Instagram followers what they want to know and we thought that all bride to be’s will be thinking the same things so why not tell you all there is to know about choosing your dress…

When is best to start looking for ‘The One’:

And FYI we mean ‘The One’ as in your dress…as much as we would love to help, we don’t have much advise on finding the other kind of ‘The One’.

We would say that the magic number is 12 – Give yourself 12 months and everything will run as smoothly as possible.

Give yourself a month or two to find your dress. It is such a big decision you really do not want to rush it so the more time the better if you ask us. Our dresses then take 6-8 months to be made (such an exciting wait, we promise). We ideally would like your dress to arrive at least 3 months before your wedding so that you have time for seamstress fittings for those final tweaks.

The run up to your wedding will always be a little chaotic and busier than expected so by having a little extra time on your side it just takes away a little of that pressure (And most importantly avoid any frown lines before the big day!).

Is this not how every bride spends the run up to her big day?!

Should you choose your dress before everything else?

There are so many different aspects to organise so as a guide we would say that the ‘big’ things like venue, photographer and florist need securing first and then it is onto the fun part…The Dress!

We would advise that you should choose your dress before bridesmaid dresses, flower design (especially bouquet design), cake design and any colour theme that you are incorporating in your venue décor. I mean there is nothing wrong with having ideas in mind but before you get your heart set on them it is certainly best to decide on your dress. There are so many bridal gowns now with a hint of colour (May sound strange but trust us, it works!) and you need to bear this in mind as there is nothing worse than loving a dress but realising it clashes with your whole colour theme. It makes much more sense to choose your dress first and then you can even pull details from it through your theme. Maybe add some similar lace to your décor or the same sparkle to your cake…Why not, its your one day to do it!

Is it possible to have too much choice?!

What size are the dresses in store?

In store we have samples of the dresses that we order and in some cases, we even have 2 colour options (That’s how you can tell which our favourites are…). These are usually in size 8 – 14.

When you try the dresses on its unlikely to fit perfect but that is where we come in…We are on hand to pin the dresses for your shape to give you a realistic feel for how they would look in the perfect size for you. 

“Think of us as your fairy godmothers! That is what we are here for!”

We take a lot of care when choosing sample sizes and must base it on what the most common sizes ordered are, what the designer suggests and what will work best for our brides when trying on. Our main priority is for our gorgeous girls to see themselves in a dress that fits them as well as possible for a sample. This does not mean that if you are a size 4 or a size 16 the dresses aren’t for you! The dresses can always be pinned in or let our slightly so don’t let the sample sizes put you off, we can make it work for you no matter what size, that’s why we are here!

Do you need to know what style of dress you want before trying on?

Absolutely not! We know that a lot of brides put themselves under a lot of pressure to know all about dresses before they visit us but please don’t worry you do not need to! Don’t get me wrong, if you know exactly what you want then great but more often than not even some brides who have set there heart on a dress can change there mind when they start trying on…That’s just how it goes!

We are on hand every step of the way to help you find the perfect dress for you so leave it to us and just enjoy yourself. We start your appointment by asking you to browse the whole collection and then choosing a few favourites to start with. Once you have tried them on we will suggest some more dresses to try and even maybe push you out of your comfort zone to make sure you know exactly what you want (Trust us, it works!) We advise that you try a few different shapes and once we know what we are looking for we try a large selection of dresses that seem suitable and hopefully find you ‘The One’ <3

We would suggest that you do a little research into the stores that you visit, this is purely for your benefit. Even if you don’t know what you want you need to make sure that you like the style of dresses that each store has so that you don’t waste your time and feel like you aren’t getting anywhere in your search if you don’t like what you try on. Make sure that you look at the stores social media/website and get a feel for their ‘vibe’ before booking in. Each store specialises in their own style and although there will be a large selection of different dresses you need to make sure that there is something about them that gets you excited to try them on.

Yes that’s right, shoulder trains on a wedding dress! Who would have thought it?!

Do you need to bring anything to your appointment?

We pretty much take care of everything for you, but we would always suggest wearing nude underwear if possible. The best kind for trying dresses is a NO VPL nude thong but if that’s not your style anything nude with no elastic waistband would work too.

You don’t need a bra as all of our dresses have ‘Secret support’ (I know, how amazing!) and we have a block for you to stand on so that you don’t need heels, trust us it is way more comfortable.

Just come along with your guests ready to try on some fabulous dresses and hopefully find exactly what you are looking for!

And of course be ready to make some fabulous memories with us…

Is it normal to be nervous?

Whilst we completely understand why some brides feel like this it makes us so sad because we want you to be nothing but excited for your experience! Like you probably have, we have also heard the horror stories of brides not enjoying themselves and even the dreaded ‘Pretty Woman’ feeling, which is not acceptable at all!

But please do not worry, we do things different here…We are a family business who genuinely are here to help and guide you to make the perfect choice.

As glamorous as the dresses and the store is, we are down to earth and here to make memories with you. We are here to make changes to the industry, we’re passionate and unique in our own ways which is why we understand that not every bride is the same and not all brides want to look and feel the same on their big day.

That is why we decided to specialise in unique dresses for unique brides and that is where the fun began!

We can even make you feel good in gloves and a mask! You have nothing to worry about ladies…Just think of it as your something blue 😉

What designers do you stock?

Yes we are biased, but we really do have the most fabulous dresses from the best designers!

We have our fabulous Israeli designer Riki Dalal – They actually have 3 collections to choose from: Riki Dalal Haute Couture, Noya by Riki Dalal and Liri by Riki Dalal (You will be spoilt for choice, trust us) Both romantic and glamorous they really are beyond anything you have seen before.

Anna Georgina is our South African designer and trust us when we say that his (Yes you read that right, it’s a guy but he named his brand after his lovely mother, how sweet!) dresses are just unreal! Believe it when we say his designs are out of this world. His collections are described as ‘Sensual’ and ‘Cosmopolitan’ and they are exactly that. 

Last but not least we have our newest Australian designer and they were worth the wait! Our fabulous collection of gowns from Zavana, Zavana Couture and Wedding Society are firm favourites with our girls for their unique take on the typical bride. Stylish, sexy and sophisticated they have everything you could wish for…

I would love to choose a favourite, but it is impossible as they are all so stunning! So, I guess you’ll have to decide for yourself…

How does payment of the dresses work?

So, on the day you say ‘Yes to the dress’ it is a 50% deposit and the balance is not due until your dress arrives into store.

(This could be you!)

Once the dress is ordered, they make it to the size best suited to you and then it arrives with us 6-8 Months later. We then check and steam your dress before calling you to let you know it has arrived (Honestly one of the best parts of the job!). You then come into the store to try your dress ahead of your all-important seamstress fittings. Your balance is due within this appointment where we would usually also finalise your accessories to complete the perfect look.

What is the price range of your dresses?

Our dresses start at £1500 and range up to around £2600. We then have our Haute Couture and made to measure collections that start at around £2700+.

If you have a price bracket in mind it is not a problem at all for us to stick to it, simply mention it during your appointment and we will do out best to stick to it with the dresses you try. After all, we would hate you to try one on and fall in love if it isn’t realistic. You want to enjoy the whole experience and the price has to be right for you so don’t worry about letting us know, we are here to help.

Do you stock any other kind of dresses?

We absolutely do! We have an entire floor for both Prom and Bridesmaid dresses…

Just like our bridal collection we aim to find something a little different for you gorgeous girls!

Prom collections usually run from December – May and lucky for you bridesmaids continue throughout the year.

We would love to say that we specialise in dog tux’s too (mainly so that we could spend our day cuddling puppies!) but unfortunately for us we do not ☹ Well not yet anyway…