Finding your dream wedding dress is a pivotal moment in the wedding planning process! If you’re anything like us, you’ve been imagining yourself walking down the aisle since you were a little girl. It is the most magical experience to put on the gown and know in your heart that you’ve found ‘The One’.
However, when it comes to bridal boutique sizing, the experience can sometimes be overwhelming, turning up to the boutique unsure of whether you’ll find the right dress for you. Understanding the nuances of bridal sizing is crucial to finding the dress that not only complements your body but also makes you feel like the radiant bride you deserve to be!
The basics of bridal sizing
First things first, we must make it clear – bridal sizing is different from regular clothing sizing! No matter your size from any high street brands or luxury fashion designers, this won’t necessarily marry up to the size you will be in bridal. Unlike everyday clothing which commonly isn’t tailored, wedding dresses are all beautifully tailored and therefore sizing can often feel smaller and so it’s not uncommon for brides to find themselves wearing a ‘larger size’ in bridal gowns than in their regular attire. From experience, our brides knowing this in advance prevents any unnecessary worry or concern when it comes to your sizing.
To throw in another spanner, bridal sizing often varies from one designer to another. As all of our designers have their own sizing charts, it is crucial that we measure you in the boutique to ensure we order the size which is closest to your body measurements. Even if you’ve tried on a wedding dress in a different boutique and have a rough idea ‘what bridal size you are’, we would still recommend visiting our boutique to try on dresses specific to our designers.
It’s all about the fit
Girls, you’ve heard the phrase ‘size matters’, but in this case, it really doesn’t! We cannot reiterate this enough, it’s essential that brides focus on how they feel in the dress and how it suits them. At Hannah Elizabeth Bridal, we are all about dressing for your body shape so you can forget the number on the tag! When your gown is altered to fit you personally it is no longer a standard size. And we promise, it makes no difference to how you’ll feel when you walk down the aisle!
We’ve seen first-hand that brides can get caught up on the number in the label of the dress. We have witnessed the negative impact that focusing on this can have on a brides shopping experience. As bridal specialists we know that the key is to focus on your initial feeling of how the dress might make you feel – amazing, a million dollars, the most beautiful version of yourself? This is where we want to focus! Leave the sizing and alterations to us experts.
Further, it can truly impact the overall wedding planning experience. We’ve had brides purposefully insist on ordering a size smaller, despite our recommendation, which in turn puts so much pressure on themselves to downsize from their usual attire, simply based on the bridal sizing. This can lead to a stressful and tiring planning experience, with the only goal being to have a dress with certain size digits!
There is nothing quite like a dress that fits you like a glove and we can assure you that with our measuring process and your bridal alterations your dress will end up with the perfect fit for you! Now no longer a standard size, we can promise you the moment you walk down the aisle, you will not be thinking about the number in the dress label. You’ll be surrounded by everyone who loves you, gazing down the aisle at your husband/wife-to-be without a care in the world for your bridal size.
Dresses within our boutique
It is absolutely worth highlighting that in an exclusive bridal boutique like ours, we do not stock the same dress in multiple sizes, despite wishing we would! As independent boutiques, we have to purchase every single dress that hangs from our rails for our brides to try and as you can imagine, it is not financially feasible to have every dress in every size. With this in mind our focus is to be able to offer our brides a wide selection of styles and designs for our brides to find their dream dress among.
At Hannah Elizabeth Bridal, we do our best to hold our boutique dress samples in a range of sizes, with the majority being UK size 12-14 with the occasional size 8 or 10, simply being because this is a generalised middle ground. For brides that fall outside this sizing band, do not worry – we’ve got you! We are completely savvy when it comes to using clips and panels to create a great visual for you to be able to see the style and silhouette of the dress! We will help enable you to envision what your dress will be like when in your size and fitted to you. When you find ‘The One’, we’ll measure you and place an order for your dress to be made to the size for the closest fit for you!
The importance of professional alterations
This is definitely when the magic happens! 9 times out of 10 all brides will need some form of alterations to their dress. We always advise and recommend to our brides that they seek professional alterations when their dress has arrived. We have a list of recommended seamstress’ that we give to our brides who are extremely talented and work wonders. Whilst we generally order dresses in an overall UK size, some of our designers offer the option to order your dress with ‘split sizing’ in which they can make your dress to different sizes per bust, waist and hip. For example, the bodice may be a size 8, a waist 10 and a 14 hip perhaps. For an extra fee, this option has become very common practice as no one ever sits as one size across the board. However, despite this made-to-order process, you will likely require some tweaks through alterations to ensure your dress fits you to perfection.
Whether the bust could do with half an inch taken in, or the dress length needs shortening – our recommended seamstresses are wizards when it comes to making your dress bespoke for your shape. This will ensure you look and feel your absolute best on your special day!
Why your timing matters
Understanding bridal boutique sizing also involves recognising the timing required for ordering and alterations. We highly recommend our lovely brides to start shopping for their wedding dress a year in advance of their wedding, this is the ultimate sweet spot! Ordering any earlier has its own challenges, whilst ordering later may leave things a bit tight and have a knock on effect! See our timing recommendations for your wedding dress bridal journey here.
Your bridal shopping experience at HEB
Our aim at Hannah Elizabeth Bridal is to provide an outstanding, enjoyable and luxurious experience in our boutique. We work with you as the bride to ensure you find ‘The One’ for you; the one you shine in, the one you feel your absolute best self and one that gives you butterflies in your stomach when you look in the mirror.
Book your appointment at Hannah Elizabeth Bridal today to find your dream wedding gown – we can’t wait to be a part of your wedding journey.
EXCLUSIVELY FOR YOU
Your bridal appointment
Our award winning bridal boutique is located in the Hampshire village of Botley, home to our carefully curated collection of modern luxe wedding gowns. From the streets of Paris, to the beaches of Australia, and the hustle and bustle of NYC – we’ve selected the finest bridal designers from across the globe, all specialising in exquisite designs, classic couture and exclusive styles. Your bespoke experience starts the moment you make contact with us. From our first phone consultation to your exciting and luxurious bridal boutique appointment. We lead you with our expertise and guide you through our extraordinary array of designers, their exquisite fabrics and mesmerising designs. We passionately provide an unparalleled, inspirational and high-end bridal shopping experience.
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Southampton, Hampshire,
SO30 2EA
As seen in the Directory of Southampton Wedding Dress Shops
