Are you thinking about buying your wedding dress online? If you're thinking about purchasing a wedding dress online, you'll want to pay close attention to our tips for how to buy a bridal gown from a website. With just a few quick tips, we're going to not only save you money on your wedding dress, but we're going to make shopping online for your dream wedding dress a fun and easy process!
We've had countless brides visit our bridal dress shop in Connecticut in a panic because the wedding dress they bought online didn't look anything like the picture, didn't fit, was of poor quality, or even worse, it didn't show up at all. Just like you, we are bridal fashion lovers and we like to save money, however before you waste your time and explode your wedding budget purchasing a wedding dress online and looking for a deal, be sure to get our tips for what to know before you buy a bridal dress online so you don't get burned.
Off the Shoulders Long Sleeves Lace Wedding Dress by Justin Alexander
KNOW BEFORE YOU BUY
You deserve to look and feel your best on your wedding day, and sadly we've had many brides come into our bridal dress shop in tears. They are upset and frustrated because their online wedding dress shopping experience didn't go as planned. What they thought would be a quick and simple process while saving money along the way, turned out to be a disaster that only added stress leading up to the wedding day. And it ended up costing them more in the long run!
We hear from our brides that when they buy a wedding dress online the dresses take forever to arrive and shipping is often delayed. When the dresses do arrive, they look nothing like the pictures on the website with key components and details missing, incorrect fabric, or not close to the photographs in the website listing. They are also reporting to us that when the wedding dress does arrive the sizing is way off from what was described. Because the fit is not great, they end up spending more money on bridal alterations than they did on the bridal dress itself.
Making it even more upsetting, most times the wedding dresses purchased online are non-returnable, so they can't get their money back when something goes wrong. Before you make this most important wedding fashion decision, pretty please get our expert bridal dress shopping tips for how to buy a wedding dress online from a website.
ONLINE WEDDING DRESS SAMPLE SALE
If you are a budget-conscious bride who loves a fashion deal, then shopping for a wedding dress sample sale online could be a good way to purchase a designer wedding dress at a large discount. What is an online wedding dress sample sale, you ask? Bridal stores often host sample sales when they need to clear out their inventory to make room for new bridal gowns. The samples are the dresses that brides try on to eventually find the one that they are going to order for their wedding. In order to bring in new samples of new bridal dress styles, stores need to offload their samples.
In addition to offering our sample dresses for sale in-store, we, at The White Dress by the shore also host our designer sample bridal inventory online for brides who would prefer to purchase their wedding dress from an online website. There are a few important tips to consider before purchasing a wedding dress online - you certainly don't want to end up with buyer's remorse!
GET THE FREE GUIDE
Before we share our top three tips for shopping an online wedding dress sample sale, be sure to download our free guide all about bridal sample sales so you can learn all the insider tips to help you determine if shopping a wedding dress sample sale is right for you.
TIP 1: DO YOUR RESEARCH
Before your buy a wedding dress online, do you research. This is the most important tip for brides to know before wedding dress shopping of any kind, but especially before shopping an online bridal sample sale.
You want to do your research to be familiar with a bridal store's inventory and to get familiar with what bridal styles and designers you like. If you are shopping for a wedding dress sample sale online, you need to have already tried on wedding dresses in person. This is crucial to know what necklines and skirt shapes you prefer.
We would never recommend blindly purchasing a wedding dress online that you have not tried on at least a similar silhouette, if not that exact dress design to know you like the look and fit on your body.
In addition to researching wedding dress styles and bridal designers, you also want to know who you are buying your dress from. Don't take the chance of being scammed or risking your bridal gown never being delivered. Be sure that the website that you are purchasing the sample dress from is reputable and honest. Be sure that you fully understand the website's policy and procedures, especially around returns before you make your purchase.
TIP 2: KNOW YOUR MEASUREMENTS
The next most important step to take before purchasing a wedding dress online is to take your body measurements. You will need to take your measurements and compare them to the measurements of the bridal gown that you are buying to ensure that the gown will fit.
There are three important body measurements to take before deciding what size wedding dress you need. You will want to measure your bust, waist and hips. From there, you can check your measurements with the measurements that are listed online with the dress you are interested in to make sure it will be a good fit.
Keep in mind that you can generally alter the wedding gown down two sizes and up a half to one size. While it will all come down to your personal body measurements, from our bridal experience, wedding dress samples are usually best for busts that are a C cup or smaller.
Also, remember that bridal sizing is much different than everyday clothing sizes. You may be a size four in your day-to-day clothing, but that can translate to a bridal eight or ten. Most sample wedding dresses will be a size ten but it all depends on the inventory that a bridal store purchases.
You should focus more on the wedding dress measurements when shopping an online bridal sample sale than the actual dress size.
3D Floral Appliques Wedding Dress With Off The Shoulders Straps by Blue Willow by Anne Barge
TIP 3: BUDGET APPROPRIATELY
The last tip to keep in mind when shopping an online wedding dress sample sale is to budget appropriately for your bridal fashion. No matter if you are shopping for your wedding dress in person or online, you should always have a budget you are comfortable with in mind before you begin shopping.
If you are buying a sample gown online to save money or to get a great deal, make sure that you are factoring in additional charges and costs besides the wedding dress itself, including shipping, alterations, repairs and cleaning. Since this is a sample dress that most likely has been tried on before by many different brides, you will want to budget for gown cleaning ahead of wedding day, which generally costs between $200 and $300, depending on your location. Make sure you have your wedding dress professionally cleaned by experts who are familiar with cleaning wedding dresses, do not trust just any old dry cleaner.
You also will need to factor in alterations expenses, which generally cost between $450 -$1000, depending on your location and what needs to be done to the gown. Remember, the amount spent on the wedding gown is not always in alignment with what alterations will cost. It all depends on the amount of work to be done, such as adding a bustle and hemming the dress to the right length. At times, your alterations on a sample gown may be as much (or more) than what you spent on your bridal gown!
If you would like to know more about how and what to budget for your wedding dress, be sure to download our free wedding dress budget and pricing guide. Many brides are often shocked to learn how much wedding dresses can cost, so we would always encourage brides to determine their budget before they begin shopping for their wedding dress.
We would love to help you find the wedding dress of your dreams, no matter what style of wedding you are planning. If online shopping is not ideal for you, and you live in the New England, New York or Connecticut areas, book an appointment and come visit us in our bridal store in Clinton, CT. We can't wait to work with you!
xoxo, TWD Lovelies