What to Bring to Your Bridal Appointment

A guide what to bring and what not to

5 Things to Bring to Your Bridal Appointment

Wedding dress shopping is different than any other type of shopping, and it hard to know what to expect! Don’t worry, everyone feels this way—most brides are first-timers! Here at Bella Brides in Bend, OR, we recommend bringing these 5 things to your bridal appointment:

#1 A Budget

This seems like a basic one, but it’s something that people sometimes skip. It is very important to know your number before you start your appointment. It may seem like a a good idea to shop styles without a budget, just to get to know what you like and don’t like, but I promise, this will bite you in the butt. There is a big difference between a $5000 dress and a $1500 dress (for instance), and once you put on a $5000 dress, your the $1500 dress that may have been the one will never live up.

So, how do you choose a budget? Be realistic, and prioritize what matters most to you. Here is a breakdown of each price range:

Adore Collection $500-$1500

These are the same designer dresses as our other collections, but since they’ve been tried on multiple times, they may have minor wear like loose beads, dusty hems, or stretched button loops. Because of this, they are usually priced at a discount, but remember to budget for alterations to fit your dress perfectly to your proportions. This is a limited collection, and the number of dresses in stock routinely fluctuates. Flexibility is key here, focusing on dress elements rather than specific dresses, so that expectations match reality.

Reminder: Make a separate alterations budget, and make sure to shop within two sizes of your size so that alterations don’t break the bank.

Everly Collection $1500-$3000

This is the largest collection in our store, as our average bride’s budget is $2000-$2500. These dresses are quality, yet affordable. They are available both off-the-rack and for special order if you need a different size or color, and usually have some limited customization options.

Couture Collection $3000-$5500

These dresses are highly specialized and are made with the industry’s best fit and materials. They feel luxurious and fashion-forward, and are available with many customization options. These dresses are available directly from our collection or for special order.

Hayley Paige Collection $3500-$8500

These gowns are hand-made with exquisite materials and thoughtful craftsmanship. Designed by bridal icon Hayley Paige, this collection is known for its thoughtful details and unforgettable style. These dresses are available off-the-rack or for special order, and are fully customizable.

Still need help picking a budget? Check out our complete guide here: How to Choose Your Wedding Dress Budget

#2 Inspo Pics

If you are reading this article, your algorithm is already infiltrated with wedding content, so take advantage of this! Take some screenshots or start a mood board of dresses that peak your interest. And don’t worry if you are all over the spectrum of styles—this is normal! These screenshots are about what elements of dresses you like, not about finding the perfect dress on the internet.

And designers? Not super important unless you have a particular dress in mind from a particular designer that you just have to try on. What’s more important is to look for dress elements and vibes. Your stylist will prompt you for pics at the beginning of your appointment, and you two will scroll through together and talk about what you liked about the different dresses.

Want more guidance on where to find inspo? See our full guide: How to Prep for Your Bridal Appointment

#3 Undergarments

Every bride wonders about this, but I promise this is the easiest part. We carry super quality dresses so that you don’t have to bring any special bra or shapewear if you don’t want to—yes, even if you are busty, and yes, even if you are curvy. These dresses are unlike any dress you’ve ever worn. They are specifically crafted with support, structure, and contour in mind to make the human body look as incredible as possible (hence the price). The only thing we do require is for you to wear some form of underwear.

#4 The Right People

The guests you bring to your bridal appointment can make of break the experience, so chose carefully. The guests you invite should be kind, supportive, and excited to be there. This is not the time to invite someone out of obligation, rekindle a strained relationship, or meet a future in-law for the first time. We have seen this backfire again and again. Choosing your guests can be trickier than it may seem, especially for so many of us people-pleasers, but you only get one shot at this, so please do make the choice thoughtfully.

What if all the right people can’t come or they live far away? We are more than happy to take a billion pictures or we can facetime your out-of-towners! However we can help, we are here for you.

#5 Money

It seems a little obvious to bring money when you go shopping, but wedding dress shopping is so different than any other type of shopping that people forget about this part sometimes. Many people think “I’m just shopping for styles today, so I don’t need to have the money yet,” but often times finding your wedding dress happens when you least expect it, and you don’t want to miss out on your yes moment because you just haven’t transferred the money yet or you haven’t talked to your fiancé about it yet.

How much money do you have to pay upfront? Great question! To take your dress home, you must pay in full. If you are special ordering or you have a longer timeframe, we also offer payment plans for a small fee.

Money protips before you come to your appointment:

Check your transaction limit. Some banks flag the transaction as fraud because it it more than your normal spending pattern.
Make a plan with your family. If mom or grandma is paying for your dress, make sure they are ready.
Consider your plan for tipping. While tipping culture has gotten extreme in recent years, we do pride ourselves on personalizing each bridal appointment (your fiancé surprise) and on providing above-and-beyond customer service. It is our genuine mission that our customer service exceeds your expectations, and if your stylist lives up to our mission, she graciously appreciates your support.

Bonus #6 What you don’t need to bring

There are a few things most people ask if they need to bring, and the easy peasy answer is no!

A special bra or shapewear

Like we touched on earlier, our dresses are specifically crafted with extra support and structure, so no need to bring a special bra or shapewear if you don’t want to. Extra layers like these can actually fight against the structure in the wedding dress creating more bulk. Your stylist will be in the dressing room with you helping you in and out of the gowns, so if you would like wear a bra for modestly purposes, you are more than welcome to, but this is what we do everyday and it certainly doesn’t faze us.

Bridal heels

All wedding dresses are made to a standard length that naturally fits heights of about 5’10” to 6’0” but don’t worry, we have a pedestal for you to stand on. This will show you what the dress looks like without pooling on the floor and enables to stylist to measure for custom lengths and talk to your about the hem. Wearing heels on the pedestals can be a teensy bit dangerous getting on and off the pedestals, so we don’t recommend it.

Breathe, this is going to be fun!

If you made it to the end of this, phew!! Great job! You are so ready for your bridal appointment and we can’t wait to meet you! If you have any more questions, feel free to call us 541-330-7090 or text us 541-368-2090 anytime! There are no stupid questions—we are here for you!

All photos graciously provided by MOT Photography and Bridget and Ryan Photography

(PS. they are both amazing)

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