Save Money on Your Wedding Dress

Weddings can be extremely expensive. Most people are not aware of all the expenses that you can incur when planning a wedding. You can save a lot of money if you just know where to purchase certain items.

Your wedding can be just as beautiful and enjoyable, without spending your life savings. I found many ways to trim wedding expenses.

Purchasing your Wedding Dress from somewhere besides a traditional Bridal Shop can save you hundreds, if not thousands of dollars.

It's hard not to overspend when you are shopping for your Wedding Dress. It's the most important dress you will ever wear and you want it to be perfect.

But do you really want to spend hundreds, or even thousands of dollars on a dress you will only wear one time. When you owe thousands of dollars on a wedding that is long over, you may be sorry that you didn't budget a little better.

Getting the perfect dress without going bankrupt is possible. There are several ways to find a beautiful dress at a reasonable price.

When we purchased my daughter's Wedding Dress, we spent over a thousand dollars on it. This dress had intricate beading and a gorgeous train. It was a beautiful dress and she was in love with it, so of course I couldn't say no. She ended up wearing the dress for less than 2 hours, at which time she changed into something a little more comfortable. It was in "Like New" condition after the wedding.

A couple years after the wedding, my daughter was trying to de-clutter her apartment and wanted to get rid of the dress. It was hard to let it go, since it was so beautiful, but she couldn't see any reason to keep it. We had hoped maybe her sisters might use it if they ever got married, but they made it clear that they wanted their own dress when they tied the knot.

We ended up putting it on Craigslist and sold this beautiful $1100 dress for $450. The lucky girl who purchased it, saved $650.

My point is, that you can obtain a really beautiful, expensive dress for a fraction of the cost if you don't mind that it has been worn by someone else. I have also seen many dresses on Craigslist that weren't even worn, due to a wedding being cancelled. So if you are looking for a dress, you might keep an eye out on Craigslist.

,Another way to get the Wedding Dress of your dreams, is to google them online. There are many beautiful dresses offered online that you can purchase for a fraction of the cost of a local boutique. A good friend of mine who's daughter was recently married, found her wedding dress on Amazon.

I know you want to try your dress on before you buy it. There is a way to make sure the style you choose is going to fit your figure and look absolutely perfect on you.

My friends daughter went Wedding Dress shopping to the local Bridal shops. She tried all the styles that she thought she might like and found that the Empire style was the most flattering for her body type. After trying on this style at several Bridal shops, she found the one she liked the best.

All that was left to do then was to find a similar dress online. There were several that were very close to the one she had found in the Bridal shop. Her final choice was an Empire Wedding dress offered on Amazon for $99.99. When the dress arrived she had to have a few alterations which her cost her around $80, but that is something you have to do with any dress you buy.

The dress was beautiful on her and after alterations was only $180.00 as compared to the $600-$1000 in the local Bridal shops. It's a little more work, but well worth the money you will save.

Hourglass - Shoulders and hips are about the same size, with a smaller waist.

Rectangle - Shoulders, hips and waist are about the same size.

Pear or Triangle - Small bust, narrow waist and fuller hips and thighs.

Inverted Triangle - Large bust, narrow hips, thin legs and a fuller waist.

The A Line or Princess style of Wedding Dress is flattering to most body types. The fuller skirt can hide a larger bottom or make a smaller bottom look fuller.

The bodice for an A-line comes in many styles and you should choose the one that flatters your bust. If you have a larger bust, you will want a V-neck or sweetheart bodice that will flatter your bust, not make it look larger. A smaller bust will be flattered by either a sweetheart or a straight bodice.

The Ball Gown Wedding Dress is such an elegant and feminine style.

This style of dress will flatter pear shaped or slender shapes. The full skirt will hide a rounder bottom and give a fuller look to a thinner bottom.

The bodice should be chosen according to the size of your bust. Choose a V-neck or sweetheart bodice for a larger bust. Either a sweetheart or straight bodice will flatter smaller breasts.

An Empire style Wedding Dress works well on many body types, but is particularly flattering to a pear shaped body.

This style of gown enhances the smaller bust. The waist on this type of dress starts just under the bust and flows slightly outward, camouflaging the hips and thighs.

The Mermaid style Wedding Gown accentuates a woman's curves. This is a very sexy style for woman that are comfortable with their figure. You can find the Mermaid style with or without straps or sleeves.

The size of your breasts will determine if you want a straight neckline, low-cut or Sweetheart neckline. Remember larger breasts should have a scoop or Sweetheart neckline. Smaller Breasts will be flattered by either low cut or sweetheart neckline.

If you are comfortable with your curves, you may wish to show them off with this body hugging style.

If you like the Mermaid style but aren't quite comfortable with all your curves, you may want to consider the Mermaid style with a lot of lace on the bottom. This dress will give you the Mermaid style, while hiding some of your curves and is really a beautiful and feminine choice.

If you are planning a less formal Wedding, you may want to consider a less traditional Wedding dress. There are many beautiful choices that are more casual while being just as beautiful.

Maybe you are having an outdoor or Beach style wedding and you want something a little more comfortable and unique.

Depending on how formal your wedding is and what you are comfortable wearing, you will find a dress that you will love.

If you are looking for something less formal, maybe a lighter, shorter dress. You will find that a Tea length or mid-calf is an another option.

I think this is an elegant choice, without being quite so formal. I was not aware that there were so many choices in this length.

This style could be worn for an outdoor informal wedding as well as an indoor or more formal wedding. If your having a small personal wedding but still want to dress up a bit, this would be the perfect choice.

If your planning to wear a headpiece for your wedding, you can find very reasonable choices if you shop around. Don't buy them at the Bridal shops, you will pay way too much for them.

A Wedding Veil can cost $100-$300 dollars, depending on where you purchase it, adding another unnecessary cost to your wedding expenses.

I found a beautiful Rhinestone Wedding Veil for my daughter on Amazon. I think I paid about $15 and she loved it. We saved about $100.

Tiara or Hair Clip

If you want to add a Tiara or Hair Clip to your headpiece you can find them at Hobby Lobby, Amazon or Ebay for a very reasonable price. We paid about $15 on Amazon and it was every bit as nice as the ones we saw in the Bridal shops.

Your going to need a slip or petticoat. With or without the hoop, this is a necessary expense that you probably didn't consider till you went to buy your dress.

Ordering your slip or petticoat from an online store or auction site will save you another $50-$60.

When you start to add up all the accessories that you will need, it can be hundreds of dollars more than you had planned on. All these accessories can be purchased for a fraction of the cost of purchasing them at the Bridal Shop.

Even if you decide to buy your Wedding Dress from a Bridal shop, at least consider buying the accessories online. You will still save a few hundred dollars and they will be just as good of quality as the ones in the store.

Be smart, save yourself some money. You will be glad you did.