Top Wedding Dress Shopping Tips for 2025
As a small, woman-owned business with a keen eye for detail on what our brides are looking for, we've collected some share-worthy data when it comes to the best wedding dress shopping tips for 2025!
After booking what might be your 1st, or even your tenth bridal appointment (well, let's hope not your tenth!) in search for your perfect wedding dress, somewhere between 15 to a 15 million thoughts might be racing through your mind. Wedding planning stress – we get it!
Or maybe you're just tired of the prepping/Pin-ing/researching/shopping and want to buy that darn dress already. Either way, you're probably in search of some real-world wedding dress shopping tips and advice to make the process as smooth and easy as possible. Seriously, why does everything have to seem so complicated?
With over a few years in the bridal gown business under our belt now, it’s safe to say that we've seen it all at Hand-Me-Gowns, from super success stories to some mishaps along the way. We've seen the fully prepared bride-to-be find their dream gown when they least expect it. We've also seen them be totally impressed with a wedding dress style that they once casually overlooked. This is why we wrote this post on what to know before wedding dress shopping, so that you can be totally prepared and ready to meet your dream gown, with minimal drama and lots of amazing memories.
11 wedding dress shopping tips
We're lookin' at you, all blushing brides-to-be! These are 11 top tips on how to prepare for wedding dress shopping. Use this list of our top Dos and Don’ts and make your next bridal appointment a memorable one for the books, where you can finally take home that wedding dress of your dreams.
Do: Know your dress shopping timeline
Do: Book your bridal appointment
Don't: Bring too many people to your appointment
Don't: Over-shop for your wedding dress
Do: Honor your wedding dress budget
Don't: Forget your underwear
Do: Be flexible with your appointment time
Do: Trust your gut
Don't: Hyper-focus on the details
Don't: Arrive on an empty stomach
Do: Communicate!
1. Know your wedding dress shopping timeline beforehand
One of our first wedding dress shopping tips is to know and plan out your shopping timeline. There's no need to do a task like dress shopping too early and especially not too late. You just need to know your window of time and do a bit of planning.
According to all the bridal gown experts (ahem, not to mention yours truly), the best time to start shopping for your wedding dress is six to 15 months in advance.
Your shopping timeline doesn't have to be super long either because believe us, many brides will find their perfect wedding dress at their first appointment. So our tip here is to just give yourself enough time not to stress, plus get those gown alterations done in time for the Big Day, and you're good to go!
2. Book a bridal appointment
Seems obvious, but we gotta say it. If you want a great wedding dress shopping experience, then you have to book an actual appointment at a boutique.
Our Hammonton New Jersey bridal shop is by appointment-only. This is because we prepare for each and every bridal appointment and curate a personalized experience for all brides that come to our shop.
These details are in place to make your time at Hand-Me-Gowns exponentially more special, where you'll feel like the queen that you are while shopping for your dream wedding dress. You aren't just a "walk in" with us.
We offer three different types of bridal appointments: A Full Bridal Appointment which lasts an hour and a half, an Accessories Appointment of 30 minutes, and a Quick Bridal Appointment of 1 hour. Our Full Bridal Appointment includes snacks and drinks, a playlist made just for you, and the full hour and a half working one-on-one with one of our bridal stylists who will help you find your perfect dress. Our showroom comfortably seats 5 guests, so you can bring your shopping dream team along with you.
Top tips for wedding dress shopping: Booking a bridal appointment is a MUST
3. Don't bring too many people to your appointment
Who you bring to your bridal appointment is one of the best wedding dress shopping tips that we can give you. There's wisdom in bringing only a few people with you for this momentous time, and making sure that they are people you trust.
Why? It’s a common occurrence to see brides get talked INTO buying a dress they aren't 100% certain about, or OUT of actually purchasing a bridal gown that they really love. In the case of shopping for your dream wedding dress, having less voices in your head and at your appointment is truly ideal. That being said, the magic amount of people to invite wedding dress shopping is anywhere between 2-4 people.
We’ve seen brides get so overwhelmed by all the different opinions and perhaps conflicting energy that it takes all the fun out of the day. The fewer trusted cheerleaders by your side, the better.
4. Don't over-shop for your wedding dress
Even good things can get exhausting, so don't suck all the fun energy out of your experience by overdoing it. Which is why one of our biggest tips on wedding dress shopping is to not over-shop!
If you pick your bridal boutiques thoughtfully, then one to three appointments should be plenty to see what you need to see and find your dream designer gown. Many of our brides will find a preowned dress on their first try, so there's really no need to plan for months and months of wedding dress shopping! You can free those weekends up with other things on your wedding to-do list, or just relaxing and mentally preparing for this big life change.
5. Plan your wedding dress budget
Setting a budget for your wedding dress is so important, so don't be afraid to stick to your guns and set and honor how much you’re willing to spend on your bridal gown.
One of the biggest wedding dress shopping mistakes that we see brides make is forgetting to plan and budget for getting their gown altered. Wedding dress alterations are pretty much an inevitable task and extra cost (over 90% of the time) and you don't want to stress out with an added last-minute expense, right? So, just make sure to factor alterations into your total wedding dress budget.
On the note of wedding dress budget and overall costs, we just want to add in here that the dreamy and drool-worthy super cheap bridal gown you've been eyeing online probably isn't $300. We hate to break it to you, but if it's cheap and seems too good to be true, it probably is. That's why we recommend setting a realistic budget as part of your research process when preparing for wedding dress shopping.
The truth is, the average cost of a wedding dress right now in the U.S. is between $1,700 to $2,500. This is the number for completely new gowns, not secondhand or preowned gowns. So if you find a gown that you love that is priced lower than $1,700, then know that you’re getting one in the more affordable range!
With the pre-owned option, quality wedding dresses don’t have to cost a fortune anymore! Wedding dress at our boutique are marked down 30-50% of their original price.
6. Don't forget your underwear!
Oh pretty please, wear underwear to your bridal appointment. The fact of the matter is that you won't be able to try any of the gowns on without any underwear, so one of our biggest tips for wedding dress shopping is always to bring a good pair of undergarments to your appointment!
Time and time again, we've had brides rush to a shop across the street to buy a packet of undies in a pinch, so don't let that happen to you. Bonus points if you wear sleek, neutral-colored underwear, because that type of undergarment will help you easily slip into all those beautiful gowns.
On top of wearing underwear, there's a few more items to bring wedding dress shopping that will make your appointment go smoothly. We recommend nipple covers or a strapless bra as your upper undergarment wear. Other items like a hair tie or hair clip, a nice outfit, and a comfy pair of socks are other things we recommend you wear to your bridal appointment.
What to know before wedding dress shopping: bring a pair of neutral-colored undergarments.
7. Be flexible with your appointment time
Saturdays are obviously the busiest times for wedding dress shopping, but why not consider doing this on an off-day? If you can swing it, mid-week is actually one of the best times to book a bridal appointment.
Our South Jersey bridal shop also takes last-minute bookings, so know that you don't necessarily need to book an appointment months and months in advance. But, you have to keep in mind that dress alterations may be needed, which is why we recommend purchasing your wedding dress at least 6 months before the Big Day so that you leave some wiggle room to make any alterations.
8. Trust your gut
Another big mistake that we can make wedding dress shopping (or just in life) is to not trust our gut. If you're not feeling it, but maybe your entourage is, it's your dress at the end of the day, so make sure to go with your gut when buying your dress. You'll be the one wearing it, so you don’t want to feel anything less than your absolute best.
This is where the flexibility factor comes in which we'll touch upon later, because sometimes your gut will say YES to a wedding dress and it might be a little different than what you had pictured in your head! Don’t worry, it's normal and all part of the process.
Pro tip: Send over a Pinterest mood board of wedding dresses and styles that have caught your eye when you book your bridal appointment with us, and we'll work with that as a jumping off point to get you matched with your dream gown.
9. Don't hyper-focus on the details
Another one of the biggest wedding dress shopping mistakes that we see brides make is hyper-focusing on the details.
At your bridal appointment, be prepared to be completely wowed by a dress that might seem unconventional to you. We've seen it happen countless times, folks. Kinda like when you had a checklist (top 5 green flags, perhaps?) for the perfect partner, and just like that you're completely happy with someone who doesn't check all the boxes but does check some new boxes. Instead, focus on the feeling that you have when you are wearing the gown, rather than hyper-focusing on the specific ideas and plans that you had in your head.
Lots of our preowned designer bridal gowns that we offer at our boutique will look great on you, so let yourself be surprised and open to a completely unique wedding dress of your dreams. You'll never know until you try it on.
10. Don't arrive on an empty stomach
Now, back to some practical tips. Hangry is not what you want to be for your bridal appointment, so make sure to eat something beforehand so that you can shop with ease.
And if you're craving a little something sweet during your appointment, don't worry, because we'll have snacks ready for you and your entourage to help keep you energetic for your appointment. We love making our brides feel happy and at home, which is just one of the reasons why Hand-Me-Gowns is your go-to bridal boutique!
To help make wedding dress shopping special: expect some sweet treats to enjoy at your bridal appointment with us
11. Communicate with your bridal stylist
Wedding dress shopping is not the time when you want to hold back, so it's important you communicate with your bridal stylists throughout your bridal appointment.
When trying on a gown, don’t be shy to tell your stylist what you like and/or don't like about a certain dress so that they can show you the best wedding dresses according to your taste. Our bridal stylists are absolute PROS, and are there to listen to what you’re looking for in a perfect gown.
Hand-Me-Gowns Bridal Shop
We started Hand-Me-Gowns as a both AND option, meaning that we strive to provide all of our brides with sustainable and affordable wedding dresses, while giving them the star treatment at the same time.
So don't be shy, because your dream gown awaits! Schedule your appointment today and get ready for some magic to happen.
Sustainably Yours,
Hand-Me-Gowns
xoxo