Exclusive:
Former Apprentice star and bridal expert Shannon Martin has shared her top tips when shopping for a wedding dress – a lot of brides make the same mistakes and are left in a panic before the big day
A businesswoman and bridal expert says there are several mistakes brides make when trying on their wedding dress.
Your wedding day is all about committing to your partner for a lifetime, but high ranking on most bride’s wedding priority list is the dress. While trying on beautiful dresses is such an exciting and special experience, it can also be quite daunting; there’s a lot of pressure for it to feel perfect for the big day.
As well as trying to find the perfect gown, the endless fittings and stunning gown can cost a hefty penny. So, feeling comfortable and being able to enjoy the experience is important. Former candidate on BBC’s The Apprentice, Shannon Martin, is on a mission to ensure that brides don’t fall into the trap of making mistakes when choosing their wedding dress.
The businesswoman, who owns Dotty Bridal in Huddersfield, West Yorkshire, says that all too often brides will order a gown a size down in a bid to “loose weight before the wedding” – but she insists this is the worst error you can make.
Dotty Bridal prides itself on catering to women of all sizes. Shannon has launched a campaign to encourage brides-to-be to accept and love their natural body – no matter their shape or size. The business woman says she experiences brides worrying about their weight every day.
For years there has been pressure in the wedding industry to look your very best on the big day – which often means some brides feel like they need to get in better shape. Shannon said: “There is so much pressure on brides to lose weight, and why? Quite frankly, they will get married and put it all back on, everyone does!
“People ask me all the time if they need to lose weight before they come in [to the shop] – it’s awful.” Shannon said while there is no shame in wanting to looking amazing on your wedding day, planning out how to loose weight is an “awful” idea. She explained that brides often feel like they need to loose weight just to try dresses on.
She insists that brides “do their research” and make sure they find a wedding dress shop that will alter dresses to them, rather than the bride altering themselves to a dress. “I can find you a dress no matter what size you are and it will flatter you,” the owner of the UK’s ‘Bridal Retailer of the Year’, said.
The businesswoman from Yorkshire explained that brides tend to order their dress two sizes smaller for their wedding day in hopes they will fit into that size. “It’s the worst thing you can do,” she added, and explained that dresses can be adjusted two sizes, up or down, but should be ordered in the size you are when trying on.
Shannon added: “You should go in as you are now – the dresses can be taken up or taken out two sizes. The worst thing people can do is order a wedding dress sizes too small – they order a size 10 when they are a size 14. They [brides] do it to get down to that size, but then there is a massive panic when they don’t, as we have already got the dress from the supplier and can’t order another in time.”
She continued: “Wedding dresses don’t have any stretch on them – people don’t realise. They will see celebrities with dresses painted on but the dresses don’t have stretch in them.
“I’m here to make you look incredible in a wedding dress, whether you have lost weight or put weight on. It’s my team’s responsibility to be trained and have the knowledge in personal styling, to dress the bride to suit their body shape as they look now. We think others in the industry should be adopting the same approach.”
The wedding dress expert advises brides to start shopping 12 to 18 months before their wedding day. She explained: “You don’t want to panic – if it does take you a little bit longer you don’t want to then be rushed into a decision but then you don’t want too much time as you may go off it. It takes about six months for the dress to come in and have your alterations.”
Dotty Bridal has launched a campaign specifically aimed at tackling an industry still rife with the ‘Pretty Woman’ scenario where many women find themselves snubbed when seeking their perfect wedding dress and met with the ‘we have nothing for you here’ attitude.
It comes after a newly engaged woman excited to go wedding dress shopping was left feeling “so anxious” after being “looked up and down” as bridal shops “couldn’t be bothered with her” as a plus-size bride.
Shannon Martin said: “We’ve launched this campaign to celebrate individuality and uniqueness. We want all brides to feel celebrated, empowered and beautiful. The worst thing for me would be for a bride to walk through the door and not feel we have something that speaks to her, that makes her feel incredible.
“I want every bride to feel special and we go out of our way to achieve that. For any bridal boutique who makes a bride feel like she’s not enough, that’s a huge failure. There is no ‘right’ way to look or dress on your special day, there is beauty in variety – and that’s what our campaign is all about.”
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