As soon as you have accepted a proposal you should start looking for your wedding dress. The top wedding planners suggest starting as early as 12 months before your wedding. This will give you enough time to purchase the dress, have it fit properly, and also be able to buy the other wedding items to match your dress if that is your choice.

You can start out by looking at pictures of wedding gowns in bridal magazines and web sites. This will help familiarize your self with the different cuts, styles, color, and sizes. After all, different styles of dresses fit different body types for “better or worse”. Search for summer wedding dresses if you are having a beach wedding, or formal dresses if you are getting married in a church.

When you have a list of dresses that you like you can go window shopping. Remember to have your measurements taken beforehand, as these numbers will help you immensely through this whole process. You might find a dress that seems perfect right off the bat, but don’t purchase it just yet. Give the dress time to linger in your unconscious mind, and revisit it after some time. You might also want to go online and check if the same dress can be had at a discount there. Be sure to only buy from an online shop that has a flexible return policy, in case the dress doesn’t fit. Expensive wedding dresses that you find offline can be had at steep discounts online, if you are lucky.

Good luck!