Why You Shouldn’t Book Too Many Wedding Dress Shopping Appointments

Ahhh, one of the best parts of planning your wedding – finding your gown! Okay, the best part for most people. I do realize that it can be stressful for some (if you are that person, read on to learn how to minimize the stress). If you live in or near a big city, or are wanting to travel to one to find your dress, you are going to find yourself with many boutiques to choose from. My suggestion: only book a couple of appointments. That’s it. One, two or three (at absolute maximum).

WHAT. Two? ONE? One boutique?! But like, how will I find my dress? Read on, sister.

The ultimate truth: Wedding dress shopping is a more intimate and vulnerable experience than you might think it will be. While it is fun, it is physically and mentally exhausting. So much thought, care and energy goes into reviewing each and every gown to ensure it is ‘the one’. This is my number one reason for not booking 4-5 appointments in a day to try and “knock out” your shopping. 

Additionally, you might find ‘the one’ on your first visit. It happens often! C’est la vie, my friend. And another truth: its okay. Say it with me: “It’s okay”. If you find it, and you still have 4-5 places to attend, you are going to feel obligated to see out the rest of the day. 1) You may have hefty cancellation fees to pay if you do not attend the rest of your appointments and 2) many brides feel they are letting their guests down by not giving them a full shopping day **Side note, you definitely should not feel that way and I promise, if they love you, they are just excited for you to say yes – no matter the location. 

Seeing out the rest of your appointments is going to be exhausting (as mentioned above), but it will also give you what I like to call ‘dress blur’. If you have 4, 5 or 6 appointments in a day (girl, I’m exhausted just typing that), you could have tried on anywhere from 30-60 dresses that day! That’s A LOT and will absolutely cause some sort of confusion. It’s going to make you question if you really did love that first gown, or maybe you just loved it because it was one of the first few you tried on. You’re going to end the day totally exhausted, tired of people and opinions and you’ll need to go home and think about the day, review dresses and try again next week after you’ve had 10 hours of sleep and a champagne bubble bath.

I love a good scenario so lets play out a couple of wedding dress shopping options for you:

Wedding dress shopping scenario #1

You book 2 appointments for a Saturday, one beginning at 9am and one at 12pm noon. You go to Appointment #1 and its a lovely experience. You find some amazing gowns and one that you just absolutely fall in love it. You can envision yourself on your wedding day and it just feels so right. (For funsies, let’s do a scenario in a scenario!)

Fitting #1

This gown is it. It’s all the things and makes you feel like a million bucks. You want it, need it, can’t live without it. Certainly can’t leave without it. You brought along Mom who says you look incredible and if this is it, let’s buy it! You only have one appointment left in the day, so you decide to pay their cancellation fee and instead you receive peace of mind with finding ‘the one’ and you get to celebrate at the boutique with champagne, and then again at lunch with Mom since the rest of your day is now cleared.

Fitting #2

This gown is it. It’s all the things and makes you feel like a million bucks. You want it, need it, can’t live without it. You do still have one appointment left and just to be certain, you feel like you should attend. You complete Appointment 2, and while there were some amazing dresses it just does not compare to the dress at Appointment 1. You leave and call back the boutique that hosted Appointment 1. They say YAY and tell you that you and Mom can come back later that day at 5pm to grab measurements and quickly sign the contract. You are tired but it was an exciting and productive day! 

Scenario #2

You book 4 appointments for Saturday at 9am, 12pm, 3pm and 5pm. You’ve got all your girls: Mom, MIL, Sister, MOH and 2 bridesmaids who were very insistent on attending. Appointment 1 is loud and exciting, and while it’s a little overwhelming you are still having fun. You find some amazing gowns and one that you just absolutely fall in love it. You can envision yourself on your wedding day and it just feels so right.

Fitting #1

 This gown is it. It’s all the things and makes you feel like you won a million bucks. You want it, need it, can’t live without it. Bridesmaid 1 who invited herself says “But we just started! We have to go to all the other appointments just to be certain”. You brought along the whole crew, and you feel bad to make the fun stop so early, so you decide to go to Appointment #2. Appointment #2 is great, but none of the dresses there compared to the first store. “We’re halfway through, power through it, babe” says Bridesmaid

Fitting #3

You are getting tired, but sure, why not.

Fitting #3

is not fun. It’s super loud, the dresses aren’t great and the opinions from your large bridal party are really starting to wear on you. Your sister had one too many drinks at your quick lunch stop and is being super extra about everything. You are T I R E D, but mom says you need to go to your last appointment of the day, and you shouldn’t have booked so many if you didn’t want to spend the day shopping. You can’t stop thinking about the gown at the first store and you’re sad you didn’t just say yes then.

Fitting #4

You go to make mom happy. It’s fine. Place is cute. People are nice. Dresses, yep. But you are zoned out. They all look the same. There’s no emotion because you’re exhausted. Your party is tired, too, so at least they’re quiet but it means the energy in the room is non-existent. You probably would have loved some of these gowns if you hadn’t been totally zapped. You leave. You’re questioning your life choices. You need a dark room and silence. You decide not think about wedding gowns for an entire week and the color white triggers you. 

Okkkkay, so that’s a bit dramatic. Only slightly, though. Wedding dress shopping is ab.so.lute.ly exhausting. Seriously, don’t overwhelm yourself with it! Research your shops beforehand and find one that vibes with you. Look at their feed, see what they carry. Let the “pre feeling” fuel you. If you find a place that just speaks to you, you are probably going to find your gown there. 

Try to avoid going to places because they are having a sale, or it has the most Google Reviews, or your friends sisters college roommate got her weeding dress there and said you should. Make sure you have some sort of connection to them before booking the appointment, and I can almost guarantee you that they are going to have a bridal gown you love. 

Happy dress shopping! If you’re around the Houston area or planning to travel, be sure to check us out to make sure we are a right fit for you. If we are, book an appointment, we’d love to meet you!