Planning a wedding can be daunting, unless you are a wedding planner, of course. When it comes to getting engaged the long road of planning and knowing what to budgeting for your wedding dress might be tough without the advice and help of others. We hope that reading this can put your mind at ease, and to start you on the right foot in your search for the perfect wedding gown.
Over the years we have had many questions from our recently engaged brides who are beginning their wedding dress shopping experience:
What do I budget for my wedding gown?
How do designers come up with the price of the gowns?
Why are some gowns that have a lot of detail, arent that expensive and others are clean and seem to cost more?
We totally get it. The bridal world has a language all its own and there is a lot to learn and absorb. So to help our brides to be, we are going to break it down wedding dress budgeting for you.
Wedding gown pricing is generally determined by two factors:
1. Fabric and 2. Construction
Here are some examples:
Both of these gorgeous Hayley Paige gowns are similar from afar when you look at them, but when you really look at them up close the detail on the bodice is different. Both gowns have a v-neck with straps, a low back, a full sparkle tulle gown and illusion under the arms and across the v-neck. However, Lauren by Hayley Paige (left gown) has a fully beaded detail on the bodice, where Fiona by Blush by Hayley Paige (right gown) has just a Chantilly lace detail on the bodice. Since there is a difference in these two details it affects the price of the dress. Due to the intricate level of detail on the bodice, Lauren is in the $4,500-5,000 range where Fiona is in the $2,500-3,000 range.
Here we have two fully lace fit to flare gowns, but they have different price points? Why?!
Sanibel by Ines Di Santo (left gown) is priced between $4,500-5,000. Sanibel is carefully hand-beaded on top of its intricate lace. Rainey by Justin Alexander Signature Collection (left gown) is priced within $1,600-2,000 and is lined with a beaded fabric, instead of hand-beaded. Therefore, the Ines Di Santo full lace gown is more expensive than the Justin Alexander Signature Collection full lace gown.
Antonio Gual Kiki (left gown), is priced at $3,000 - $3,500 where the Made With Love Georgie (right gown) is priced at $2,000 - 2,500. Both are v-neck simple gowns, so what makes them different in price? The Antonio Gual is a woven Shantung fabric with boning within the bodice. The gown's fabric and the construction of the bodice create a more crisp and structured feel. The Made With Love gown is constructed of stretch knit crepe fabric and as a result, has much less structure. The difference in fabric and construction is what creates the difference in price in these two gowns.
Okay, so these gowns are both constructed of crepe fabric, and they look very similar, so what makes them so different?
The Made With Love gown, Lottie V2 (left gown), is priced at $2,000-2,500, where the Jenny Yoo gown, Marley (right gown), is priced between $1,000-1,500. The difference is where the fabrics are sourced from and how the gown itself is made. The Made With Love gown has boning in its bodice with an intricate design, creating a more complicated construction. The Jenny Yoo gown is made of a synthetic stretch crepe fabrication. The design of the gown is much less complicated.
Ready to create a budget for your wedding dress?
Click here for access to our Wedding Dress Budgeting Worksheet! It is our gift to you as you embark on this exciting journey to find your perfect gown!
Have any other questions? Feel free to reach out.
Ring us - 860.669.4596
Email us - info@thewhitedressbytheshore.com
Text us - 860.552.2054
DM us - @thewhitedress
Congratulations and happy planning! We can't wait to be a part of your bridal shopping experience.
xoxo, The TWD Lovelies