Bridal Trousseau Shopping - Part IV

Here's the end to this incredibly useful little series on all the things you need to know to shop for your bridal trousseau - all thanks to Ridaa Mian. It's great to know there's a way to have the quality ensembles you want without having to travel around the world!


images via weheartit

Advice to non-traveling brides to be:

- Become comfortable with your style and and stick with it. After running through hundreds of wedding and bridal photographs, I learned what my taste was and what kind of bride I wanted to be. Traditional.
- Stay organized, otherwise you'll get inundated with information and find that ultimately what you liked at the very beginning is exactly what you want.
- Keep a budget. Either way you'll need a budget, giving the designers an idea of your budget can help gauge whether or not you want to choose one designer over another.
- Send your photograph and ask for feedback. Ask the designers what's in, what's not, and what would suit someone with your body type, frame and facial features. The more information you share about yourself, the more likely they'll get a better idea of who you are, what you're looking for and what you plan on doing with your bridal dress afterwards. Heavy ensembles can be worn separately in the future for more versatility.
-Customer service is Pakistan does not always correlate with the size of the designer's boutique. Having said that, some were entirely gracious with their time and efforts.
- Delivery time is always a problem, even if the designer is reliable. To reduce last minute stress, place orders sooner rather than later, and request clothes sooner than you need them. Designers require 3-6 months for bridal and valima dresses. Some will make exceptions.
- Do your own homework. Search the internet, bridal magazines and even facebook, where many designers have homepages. Consider visiting blogs and sites such as GupShup forum where tons of wedding obsessed people share knowledge about bridal dress shopping and Pakistani and Indian fashion.
- Enjoy the process! This is one of the funnest times of your entire life!

Be sure to check out Part I, Part II and Part III of this series as well!