Planning your wedding is probably one of the most overwhelmingly exciting things you will ever do in your lifetime. You want everything to be impeccable on your special day, and your wedding gown is not an exception.
The process of choosing a wedding gown can be very confusing. There are several designs for you to choose from, and you could be experiencing a bombardment of ideas from all over; your friends, mother, and even your fiancé.
Browsing ideas on the internet is like taking a plunge into an endless rabbit hole. You stumble upon thousands of images and ideas on Pinterest, Instagram, and popular wedding blogs, and making a choice can be harder than you anticipated. Don’t worry, we are going to share ideas that will make the process easier for you so you can focus on making your big day as special as possible.
One of the things you are likely to grapple with is whether to choose an off-the-rack gown or buy a custom-made wedding gown. Let’s see the difference.
Off-the-rack Wedding Gowns
Also known as Ready-Made, Pret-a-Porter, or Ready-to-Wear, Off-the-Rack wedding gowns are wedding dresses that are manufactured and mass-produced in standard size ranges. A bride buys a gown that is already designed and made, without the chance to make customizations. All it takes to have this for your wedding is to walk into a wedding shop and pick a gown that checks your bare minimum requirement boxes and fits within your budget.
Couture Wedding Gowns
A couture wedding gown is a specially made wedding dress that is custom-made for a particular bride. They are one-of-a-kind gowns that are specifically made to fit the style needs, figure, and budget of a bride-to-be.
Although many wedding dress designers attach the couture label to ready-made wedding dresses, this isn’t the case. The color, fabric, and details of the couture dress can be customized according to your occasion like for destination wedding or eloped or as per the bride’s taste.
With the wide variety of off-the-rack gowns readily available for purchase, why do some brides still insist on having couture wedding gowns? Here’s why;
1. Uniqueness
Some brides want their wedding and wedding gowns to be exceptional and a representation of who they are as a person. They want to feel completely special and unique on their special day. Couture dresses give you the perfect chance to look different from any other bride. If you want to join the 14% of brides who would wear a colored dress, why not do it if that’s what YOU want?
2. Perfect Fit
Almost every bride who chooses a couture wedding gown mentions how perfectly their dress fits them. This is one of their principal reasons for going down that road as every woman is shaped differently in their own unique way.
It can be difficult to get an off-the-rack wedding gown to fit you, and many of these gowns require heavy alterations to get the fit exactly right. On top of this, alterations are not cheap either with prices ranging from $250-$700 depending on the boutique.
With a couture wedding gown, you can get a design that assumes the shape and curves of your body magnificently, complimenting your features and making your day that much more special.
3. Fits Your Style
Your designer will work with you to ensure every aspect of your gown is uniquely you, injecting any particular style elements into your gown from the fabric to the pattern and tail length.
You can have whatever you like added to the gown so long as it is within your budget, and it can be done within the correct timeline.
Which One Should You Pick?
Whether you purchase a custom-made gown or an off-the-rack dress depends on a number of factors. These factors, however, will boil down to your personal preferences and budgetary considerations. Consider these factors to make the right choice;
1. Your Size
Shop for a perfect dress that fits the size of your body. Don’t risk shopping for a smaller off-the-rack dress even if you are planning to lose weight a few weeks before the wedding. If you can find a good ready-made dress that fits your requirements and is well within your budget, it can save you the hassle of coming up with a design. Go for a couture wedding dress if you can’t seem to find a ready-made one that fits you well.
2. Your Wedding Theme
Sometimes, you may want to have a bridal attire whose design details match your wedding theme. This may be difficult to achieve with an off-the-rack gown. You may want to customize your gown to match the decor of your wedding.
3. Your Budget
It’s your special day, and you want to make it as amazing as possible. However, you don’t need to break the bank to purchase the right wedding gown for you. Putting all other factors into consideration, the prices of off-the-rack gowns and couture gowns may vary considerably. Research extensively and stay within your financial limits.
4. Your Style
Couture wedding gowns offer you great versatility and allow you to inject your personality and creativity into the design. If you are looking for the gown of your dreams, this is the right path for you. Take the time to think it over and make an informed choice. Look at the different designers in your area and see which one will suit you best.
Final Thought
Before you get confused and exhausted looking for a wedding gown, take some time to consider what you want for your big day. This should be informed by your budget, your style, the theme of your wedding, and the size and shape of your body.
You can’t go wrong with either a couture gown or an off-the-rack wedding gown if you have made these considerations carefully. No matter your choice, we are sure that you will look remarkable on your wedding day, and stun all those around you!