Every wedding dress I tried + why I didn't buy it
It’s been two weeks at this moment since I got engaged, and I am surprised to say, we have pretty much planned the whole wedding. There are some big things which aren’t done like table settings and alcohol but mostly we only have the fun final details like napkins and photo displays to do.
As part of this process, me and my mum decided we had to have the experience of trying on wedding dresses in a bridal shop. I had my vintage dress from Etsy ordered at this point. I tried on lots of dresses which I really didn’t love - until one I really did. I won’t tell you too much about it, but the second I put it on, it made me uncontrollably smile. I was trying to keep reserved because I had my vintage dress bought and I really didn’t want to fall in love with a new one - so I was trying to find reasons not to love it. However, there were some details to the dress which felt really personal and perfect for our wedding, I felt beautiful in it and long story short - we ended up getting it.
I really battled with myself for the first days about the fact that I really wanted a vintage one (and I still have one on the way). I realised I had lots of hang ups about a new dress being shallow and unnecessary - and perhaps some of my subconscious judgements of others being turned on myself (he who casts the first stone and so on). I talked to my mum about my worries, and she reminded me that you get to do this one time, and you need to feel right, and there’s nothing wrong with that. I love my vintage one still, so I think I might get it turned into a tea dress that I can wear on my honey moon and beyond. I may also do this for my wedding dress, I am yet to decide - I saw someone on my feed do a beautiful transformation of her dress into a corset top and skirt which I am really tempted into, because realistically a gown won’t get worn again!
With all this said, do you want to look at some of the other dresses I tried?
(I also want to say, these aren’t objective criticisms but personal opinions - there is nothing wrong with any of these dresses for the right person, these were just the things I felt made them wrong for me and my wedding).
This was the first one I put on, and it made us both a little emotional. It’s the dream princess dress - full skirt, florals, a little pink. I loved the blush shade and felt that it complimented skin tone. I thought it was lovely and modest which is important to me. However, I felt a bit like I was wearing a costume; the fabric in the skirt was a bit too much, especially with the fabric on the neckline. I thought it was all beautiful, but distracted from me and weighed me down. I also felt the pattern size was too big for my features, and again distracted from me. I also felt I wouldn’t be able to wear my hair down with this one as there was so much going on already
I was really drawn to these extremely simple dresses; I love modest styles, and there is something quite impactful in their lack of detail. I loved the silhouette on my hips, which I feel reflects my narrow silhouette really well and doesn’t overwhelm me.
However, on reflection, I felt that next to my ingenue features it fell a little flat, as well as being too mature for where I am in my life - and my relationship. Mine and Arthur’s love story is one of innocence - we were 14, we fell in love running about in the woods, and grew up together through school and beyond - its not a classic, adult story whereas this is a classic, adult dress. I was really drawn to these in store, but the second I walked away I found that I didn’t particularly care if I went away with it or not.
Furthermore the first dress pictured had a really low, see through back which just is not for me. It just felt far too revealing for church and for my own preference (even though the front is beautifully modest). The second dress as a lovely back as you can see in the mirror, which was much more conservative but a little revealed counteract the modesty - this felt much better to me. One issue with both dresses is that I didn’t want to be thinking about my tummy all day - I am not someone who is insecure about my body, but I didn’t want any reason to become insecure on the day like nervous bloating under a tight dress! I just want to feel relaxed and at ease in whatever I wear.
You can see my distaste for this one on my face! I wanted to try a couple of sexy ones just to challenge myself - you never know what you are going to feel until its on your body and I didn’t want to shoot myself in the foot by not giving it a go. However, I was spot on in what I suspected I would and wouldn’t like.
I did love the beading on this dress - the top added a little blush colouring to the dress which compliments my features, and the shapes are really lovely. However, the v-neck was WAY too low for my comfort zone - as I am quite short it makes me look shorter and feels out of place. I also thought the train on this dress was really boring, and it made it look unfinished to me. The waist line was also way too low for me - it just shows how your body lines can make such a difference - it was so low in fact that it was pushing on my tummy and again making it show way more than it needs to just due to bad fit.
I thought the back of this dress was so beautiful, and I think if they had a smaller size I might have even liked the front even more. However, this is SUCH a sexy dress - very fitted to the body with shoulders out is just too much for my personal modesty tastes, but it was completely fun to try on.
I asked to see this dress with the front pinned which wasn’t done all that well so imagine this without the plunge! I love the blush colour of this one, it’s slightly unique and nice on my features. The pattern is a much better size, but still maybe a little big against me - I feel your eye is drawn to the skirt rather than to me. I think the skirt size of this one is really nice - the silhouette I absolutely adore. It does still have shoulders out, but this is counteracted by a covered chest and an a-line skirt so it feels more girlish and a little more modest to me whilst still modern and fun. There is a lot I love about this dress, but it wasn’t quite the one
I truly hated this, I am struggling to pinpoint why exactly. The neckline was in two parts it felt layered, which felt too suggestive to me, as if you had a corset underneath which was peeking through. I think this would be way more appropriate for someone with a fire root - someone who likes luxury and sensuality, but it’s so not me. I did like the lace on the bottom of the dress, and I liked the bow on the waistline. I think the different elements of the dress feel a little random, and didn’t create a cohesive picture.
Loads of you on instagram really like this one, but I really didn’t! Looking at it in photos I can see how you guys are seeing the girlishness of the lace perhaps, but I thoroughly did not like it in person. The neckline felt really heavy on me - it’s like the dress is wearing me. This particular neckline was in a couple of dresses and just feels too old fashioned against me - its neither a low, round neckline, nor a high, narrow neckline so its just blah against my frame. I think this would be way better for a medium/wide type as it has some openness. I also thought the waist wasn’t well defined - even though in silhouette, it comes in at the waist, the lace pattern extends the eye downwards so you actually miss my waist which is (in my opinion) one of my best features. I also have a thing against sparkle - I think this comes from my mushroom style root - it just leans a little modern for my liking I think and takes away from the elegance of a dress.
There is quite a bit that I like about this dress. I love the size of the lace - although I wasn’t too keen on the way it is 3D - they felt a little stuck on to me. I liked the shape of the skirt, which wasn’t too poofy. Similarly to the last dress, I felt that the waist wasn’t quite defined enough for me, and it has that open neckline which isn’t all that flattering - although I think its less bad in this one because the fabric is lighter and less heavy.
Those were all the dresses I tried, but didn’t love. If you’re looking for a wedding dress, but not sure where to start in finding one which suits your body shape, you might want to check out our body matrix styling guides which breakdown the best lines for your body matrix type.
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I cant wait to see the one you bought ! It sounds perfect !