Choosing THE Dress

You may have noticed but Latter-day Saint members cover up a little more than the average person. No, we don't wear turtlenecks and floor length skirts everywhere we go but we do believe in dressing modestly (Click here for more information on LDS dress and grooming standards.) Dressing modestly is a sign of respect for our bodies. Wedding dresses are no exception especially if you are marrying in a Latter-day Saint Temple (Click here for information on LDS temples.)
 It is very hard to find a wedding dress with sleeves and a modest neckline outside of Utah and Idaho. Very very hard. Luckily we have an amazing and wonderfully talented family friend who was willing to make my wedding dress (along with Brooke and Jaime's dresses too!) I still had to figure out what looked good on me however. So I went wedding dress browsing. We went to a big ol' wedding dress store that had heaps of wedding dresses in all sorts of styles. It was almost like going on Say Yes to the Dress but not quite that huge of a selection and you had to pull your own dresses. I tried on dresses of all sorts and it turned out a style similar to my dream dress looked  not so great on me. I tried on A-Line, ball gown, and lacey. I even tried on a dress named "Princess Jasmine." Then I found it. A dress that I could hopefully ask to be made just for me, except with sleeves...and lace instead of all the intricate beading that would take a million years to do and we only had 15 weeks.



So here's what I learned in trying on dresses:
1. Pull styles that you don't even want to see on you. Try on different silhouettes. Big poofy to slender or mermaid. Just do it! See what you like and what looks good then invest more in that style.

2. Take pictures of what you like. Necklines, waistlines, backs, fronts, bodices, I could go on and on. Take pictures or at least notes to remember what is flatter and what you feel good in. You can piece it all together and find or make the perfect dress for you.
3. Sit down in the dress. I don't mean roll around on the floor but sit down. See if you can breathe or if it's even comfortable while sitting.

4. Try on a veil and ones at different length, layer and style. Even if you don't want one, it could change your mind or keep your decision. It's good to have those options.

5. Write down the dress item numbers and designer so you can look them up online, at another store, at the same store but another day or whatever! Make sure you know what you've tried on especially if you like it.
6. Eat!! Carrying around heavy dresses and putting them on and taking them off gets tiring. Eat something good and filling before you go. Not too filling though, you want to feel good in those dresses and not uncomfortable from a full stomach. Bring a small snack and take a break in the middle of dresses if you need to.

For more information on LDS marriage click here!