Wedding dresses are expensive – everybody knows that and we’ve learned to put up with it. Some people realize from the beginning they’ll have to spend a good size sum of money on wedding attire, others search for ways to reduce the expenses. And of course, there always are options. For instance, you can buy a used dress, create one yourself, or remake your mother’s, sister’s, friend’s, etc wedding gown. In this post, let’s talk about where you can find a cheap wedding dress and what are the advantages and disadvantages of such a choice.
Cheaper wedding dresses are totally an available option for brides everywhere in the world, even in the richest of countries. These can be used wedding gowns, dresses from sales and bought with discounts, simpler wedding clothes from small local stores and malls, gowns from the previous seasons that are out of trend today (but this doesn’t mean they’re bad or won’t fit you), and so on. There is a whole lot of options for you to choose from. But it’s only up to you whether to get a fancy and costly wedding attire or go for a more affordable bridal gown.
Pluses and minuses of buying cheaper wedding dresses:
+ it’s great for your wedding budget. The less you spend on a dress, the more money you have left for other needs. Meanwhile, cheap wedding gowns often look just as beautiful and elegant;
+ you can find something unique and rare that won’t be available in a fancy wedding dress store. Not always ladies purchase used wedding gowns because they can’t afford a new one. Sometimes, they can’t find a dress of a certain style and cut, which was trendy 2-3 years ago and is a rare item today. In other cases, a bride wants, for example, a vintage dress or attire of a specific design, so the only options for her are to buy a pre-owned dress or to order it custom-made;
+ if you’re a no fuss person and don’t like all the hype around the wedding shopping, it might be easier and less stressful for you to shop for a dress online or go to a small local clothing store than to visit a fancy bridal salon;
- it requires more effort and research to find a cheaper dress. Finding an affordable wedding gown is a lot harder than just going to a bridal salon and picking a gown you fell in love with. But if your wedding budget isn’t huge and you have to count every hundred dollars, then your choices are limited and you’ll have to be inventive about your wedding attire. You’ll probably need to serf several stores, look for your size, do many try-ons, do a research online to know where in your area you can find affordable wedding dresses, etc;
- additional expenses on alterations. Buying an affordable dress is not the end of it. Most probably, you’ll have to make alterations, because your wedding gown should be perfect and sit absolutely perfectly on your body. Seldom do we buy a dress from the rack or a used dress that fits us perfectly, so be ready for extra expenses on adjustments. Although to be fair, a brand new designer wedding gown also might need some adjustments to fit your unique body;
- limited options of alterations – not every dress can be adjusted easily, so consider this before buying it. Some styles of dresses or heavily decorated gowns are extremely hard to remake and adjust;
- cheaper materials are less qualitative. If your potential wedding gown is brand new but costs not much, it might mean that the dress is made from materials of poor quality, which is bad. Try to avoid such outfits – it’s better to buy a used high-quality gown than a cheap trashy new one. When picking your wedding attire, pay attention to the quality of the fabric, zippers and fasteners, decorations, and sewing quality in general;
- consider the emotional side of buying a used wedding gown. For some brides, it’s uncomfortable or even embarrassing to purchase a “secondhand” wedding dress. Others want to experience the wedding gown shopping fully – with a shop assistant dancing around you, hours of try-ons in the dressing room, fancy feeling of expensive fabrics on your skin, and a casual flute of champagne or cup of good coffee between the try-ons. When you’re hunting for a cheap wedding gown, you’ll skip on all of the mentioned. Also, many women consider it bad luck to get married in a used gown that carries the energy and emotions of another couple;
- many affordable dresses are bought online and you have to be careful with online payments. A lot of people look for a cheaper wedding gown online because there are plenty of options there and you need to do minimum actions to get one. But always be careful with online purchases and with who you give your personal info to. And also, unfortunately, you have to be ready for fraud – many brides got not what they paid for or received attire of poorer quality (you can find a ton of videos online on this topic).
Every bride has a right to decide what her dream wedding dress looks like and where to get it. It all depends on your personality and taste. Some women are lucky because they can afford any wedding gown they possibly want, others have to be inventive and search for a cheaper dress that will still make wonders for their wedding look. In any case, it’s totally possible to find the perfect wedding dress, no matter the size of the wedding budget. There are always pros and cons with both the fanciest and the cheapest wedding gowns, so just consider your situation and don’t be afraid to go your own way.
