Expert Advice - picking a gown

I am starting a new feature of my blog, called Expert Advice. I'll feature wedding vendors I work with frequently and ask them to donate their expert advice.

So my first blog about this will be concerning brides and wedding gowns. Now I bet many of you probably think "oh it's because of ME that Cameron is writing this..." In a way it is, but no one in particular...I see dress issues almost every week, so I thought I'd offer my heartfelt advice.

My expert advice on this subject is to keep it real! Choose a dress that has a similar style and shape that you are comfortable wearing normally. Brides underestimating the importance of what I call DRESS REALITY. Here are empirical facts followed by some tips.

• a bride will wear this gown all day, likely 12 hours or more
• most brides will have to dance in this dress for HOURS at a time
  
• a white gown will get dirty & wrinkled (I'll come back to this one)

Wedding Gown Tips:

1. Undergarments: buy one, buy two, buy 6 different styles, but go ahead and purchase the expensive bra if it means you'll feel secure and comfortable in your gown. TRY UNDERGARMENTS ON WITH YOUR DRESS. This seems obvious but I can't tell you how many disappointed brides I've seen who can't wear those blue panties or who are disappointed their bra shows in certain places... take the final dress fitting seriously and try it all on. remember: support, support, support!
   
2. If you NEVER, ever, ever in your wildest dreams consider wearing a strapless dress in your normal life, don't wear one on your wedding day.
3. If you fall in love with a strapless dress (it happens), make sure to have it altered TIGHT to your torso or chat extensively with an alterations specialist about sewing in support, see Undergarments, above.
   
4. Buy a dress that flatters your shape. Simple. Now stick to it.
   
5. Don't freak out about a little wrinkle or a little dirt. Let's face it, a white dress is going to get dirty and if you walk down the aisle in a 100% white gown, you've probably created stres for yourself & others. On the other hand, don't roll around in mud to get great photos prior to your big debut (do that later).
6. Trust in the dry cleaners... my dress was brown all along the bottom and -POOF- white again. Amazing!
   
7. Consider the Bustle. I can't stress this enough either. In my experience every bustle falls down. Seriously, every last one. My own bustle fell down approximately 6 times throughout the night, despite my efforts ahead of time. This can be annoying for the bride. Solution: have a friend attend the final fitting and actually bustle your dress with their own two hands, watching doesn't count. Stress the importance of a strong bustle to the alterations department, even if it means some small clear buttons on the outside of the dress...
   
8. Dance in the dress at the store. I'm not kidding.
   
9. Don't trust mother nature. Buy a nice sweater or a nice wrap, just in case.
   
10. Spend the money. I don't want to advocate buying a $100.00 dress or buying a $7,000 dress. Just be realistic about your dress budget. Don't blow your budget on a garment that you wear once and that doesn't fit right but on the other hand, don't try to be too frugal because chances are, you won't like the way you look.

Ladies, choose your dress wisely, it is one of the most important decisions that you will make and yet it can be one of the most costly, so plan accordingly. My advice, buy early, pay in installments.