who buys the wedding dress for the bride
28 brides share how they knew their wedding dress was the one
Updated
2021-03-26T21:19:26Z
- As part of Insider's wedding series, "The One," brides shared how they found their wedding outfits.
- They told Insider about their budgets, almost-buys, and why they fell in love with their ensembles.
- The brides proved that gowns, suits, and two-pieces can all be beautiful wedding looks.
- Visit Insider's homepage for more stories.
Hattie O'Hara tried on 12 dresses before falling in love with this colorful gown.
O'Hara knew she wanted a nontraditional wedding dress, imagining that she would wear a dress with a unique structure or fun cutout.
She didn't imagine herself in something colorful until she tried on this bright-yellow skirt, paired with a simple, shiny top.
"The color was perfect," O'Hara said. "There was just enough texture to the skirt, and it felt bridal but definitely not too sweet."
"I will look back on this dress as a highlight of my wedding forever," O'Hara said of the gown.
She also said she knew the dress was the one because it felt like a reflection of her personality.
"It made sense for how I understand myself as a whole person, and not just a bride," O'Hara told Insider.
You can read more about O'Hara's journey to find her wedding dress here.
Mariel Swan fell in love with the second dress she tried on.
Swan had seen the Morilee couture gown online before she went shopping, and it was exactly what she had been imagining herself in on her wedding day.
RK Bridal had the dress in stock when she went shopping, and it was even better when she tried it on in person.
The gown's full skirt, intricate detailing, and stunning sleeves were everything Swan had been hoping for.
"It was my dream dress," Swan told Insider of the princess-style gown.
"It was exactly what I wanted," she said. "Everything about it was just perfect for me."
Swan added feathers to the skirt to make the dress unique, which made it slightly more expensive than it would have been otherwise. She also paired the dress with a crown to elevate the look even further.
You can read more about Swan's journey to find her wedding dress here.
Sabina Leybold wanted a dress that could blend two cultures together.
Leybold hoped her wedding dress would fit well with her husband's Indian culture. She also wanted something comfortable, and she imagined herself in something more casual.
After trying on dresses she ordered online, Leybold went to a store and fell in love with this fitted Willowby By Watters gown.
The gown's delicate detailing "felt like it could toe the line" between Leybold and her fiancé's cultures, as she told Insider, and the cutout on the back was a fun addition.
After a few custom alterations, the dress was perfect for Leybold.
Leybold had to have the dress taken in, and she also removed the train, as she felt it would be too big for the small wedding she planned to have.
She ended up having to postpone her wedding, but Leybold and her now-husband got married at home. She's saving the dress for her eventual celebration.
You can read more about Leybold's journey to find her wedding dress here.
Sarah Shine wanted her wedding dress to be sleek and feminine.
"I definitely wanted a slit, but I wanted everything to be lace and have a really low neckline and thick straps," she told Insider.
This Paloma Blanca dress ticked nearly all of her boxes. The dress had a silk skirt with a high slit, a delicate lace bodice with spaghetti straps, and a plunging neckline.
"This is exactly what I was looking for," she said of the gown.
Sarah's wife Victoria, on the other hand, surprised herself by falling in love with a strapless gown.
Victoria thought she wanted a dress with straps, as she didn't want to have to adjust her gown throughout her wedding celebrations.
But this Mikaella gown by Paloma Blanca, which featured head-to-toe lace and a sweetheart neckline, ended up being the perfect dress for her.
It also had a removable skirt that allowed Victoria to have two looks on her wedding day.
Both brides found dresses that felt like them.
Sarah loved her dress because of its look and how comfortable it was. She was able to dance effortlessly during the reception, giving her the freedom she needed to celebrate to the fullest.
Victoria knew her dress was the one because of how confident she felt while wearing it. "I'm super self-conscious," she told Insider. "But I put this dress on, and I just felt so good about myself, which is very, very rare."
The Shines were also able to find dresses that coordinated without seeing each other's gowns ahead of the wedding.
Both brides bought their gowns at Kleinfeld Bridal in New York, and they used the same consultant who ensured their dresses would go together.
"We were worried Victoria's was going to be white or mine was going to be stark white and then it would have clashed," Sarah said. But their consultant, Shay, made sure they fit perfectly.
You can read more about the Shines' journeys to find their wedding dresses here.
Kiaya Demonbreun fell in love with her dress from a photo before trying it on in real life.
Demonbreun had loved Pronovias dresses for years, and she had seen this fitted gown with a lace bodice online months before she went shopping.
She even showed it to her now-husband in a photo, and he loved it. When she finally tried on the gown in person, Demonbreun knew it was the dress for her.
"It was just perfect," she said. "It was elegant."
"It was just the best dress that I could wear that would be me in a wedding dress," Demonbreun told Insider.
She felt like it mixed her traditional roots with her chic sensibilities.
"A little bit of fun and flirty up top, but very traditional. And it's very contemporary at the same time," Demonbreun said.
"There were at least five other Pronovias dresses that I think I adored separately," she added. "But in that one dress, all of them combined into one."
You can read more about Demonbreun's journey to find her wedding dress here.
Carla Nasui found her dress with the help of a creative member of her entourage.
Nasui had seen this sparkly Pnina Tornai gown in a magazine ahead of actually going shopping, and she was drawn to the unique fabric and low back. But she initially disliked the dress when she tried it on in person, as the detachable skirt was only a half skirt.
Luckily, Nasui's godmother suggested she spin the skirt to see what it would look like as a full ball gown, and the bride was instantly in love.
"It was a game-changer," she said of the dress. "I absolutely loved it when I saw it like that."
Nasui decided to get a custom-made overskirt for the dress, which would give her two looks for her wedding day.
"I absolutely love, love, love that decision," Nasui said of getting a custom alteration on her skirt.
The custom look was perfect for her destination wedding, giving her a wedding dress that was both classic and modern.
Plus, the fact that the skirt was removable ensured she wouldn't be uncomfortable throughout her wedding day. "My skirt was actually 16 pounds, which was really hard to walk in," Nasui told Insider. "But that's why I was thankful it was removable."
You can read more about Nasui's journey to find her wedding dress here.
Beatriz Iglesias was able to create her perfect wedding dress using separates.
Iglesias had loved Chantel Lauren's Mae dress for years, but she knew she wanted something slightly more traditional for the ceremony portion of her wedding day.
When she found Lee Ann Belter's collection of separates, she knew she could have two looks that would fit her vision.
She paired a simple white skirt and a lace top together for the ceremony, and she switched into the blue skirt for the reception.
"I felt like it was really me," Iglesias told Insider of the colorful skirt.
"I definitely had a completely different vision than where I landed, but I feel like I stayed true to the themes I liked, like lace and the color," Iglesias said, explaining that the dress she chose was really different than what she had imagined for herself.
"If your vision that you've always had in your head isn't what you like, try not to fight it," she said.
You can read more about Iglesias' journey to find her wedding dress here.
Helena Howard fell in love with a lace dress with a transparent bodice and tulle skirt.
The sleeves sat off the shoulders on the Milla Nova Elle dress. Howard had the dress custom-altered so it was backless, and the bodice sparkled thanks to small glass beads sewn into the lace.
"The lace detailing on top was what sold me on the dress," Howard told Insider. "It's Italian lace with what they call 3D glass beading for the flowers."
Her husband is Italian, so the design of the dress was even more meaningful to her.
Howard said the dress made her feel "like a princess."
The dress made her feel beautiful, and she was comfortable in it, which she advises brides prioritize as they look for a wedding dress.
It also fit well with her wedding venue, as she and her husband were married in an outdoor church.
"I think my dress fit in so beautifully with the flowers and the leaf detail," she told Insider.
You can read more about Howard's journey here.
Janal Montagna could picture herself in this ball gown thanks to its royal look.
Montagna was having a destination wedding in Croatia, and she wanted her gown to make a statement.
The Ysa Makino dress stood out from the other gowns she tried on because of the sleeves and the color. The gold detailing made it look ornate, while the mesh on the sleeves ensured the dress was comfortable.
"It was so different and contemporary, but so classic all at the same time," she said of the dress.
"It was everything I didn't even know I wanted and needed in the most important dress I would wear," Montagna told Insider.
"The royal feeling, the floral work, the beading, the ball-gown silhouette, the sleeves, and that gold color just made me think Croatia," she said.
Montagna also had more crinoline added into the skirt to give it a fuller look, which made the dress weigh 35 pounds.
"It was magical," she said of wearing the dress.
You can read more about Montagna's journey to find her wedding dress here.
Sandra Kim opted for a modern wedding dress.
She had been hoping to find a dress that was off-the-shoulder and long-sleeved, and this unique Danielle Frankel gown fit the bill.
But it was really the unique, Baroque pearl buttons lining the center of the dress that showed Kim it was the one.
"I'm a really big pearl person," Kim told Insider. "All of my jewelry and accessories have gold and pearl. And when I saw this dress with a line of pearls going down the middle, I was immediately in awe."
"It was literally the look that I envisioned," Kim said of the gown.
She had the train lengthened to give the gown a more dramatic look, and she kept her jewelry minimal to let the dress speak for itself.
The dress had so many elements that made Kim feel like herself. It was everything she wanted.
You can read more about Kim's journey to find her wedding dress here.
Aly Schneidman decided to look pretty in pink on her wedding day.
Schneidman had been planning on wearing something modern with clean lines to her wedding, but her vision for her dress totally changed when she found this Monique Lhuillier gown.
The ruched skirt, asymmetrical train, low back, and soft pink color were dynamic and one-of-a-kind.
"I went for pink and poofy, but I'm not super girly and I'm not into poofy dresses normally," Schneidman said. "But my dad kept saying 7-year-old-me would have been so proud of this dress."
"I just felt the prettiest I had ever felt in my whole life," Schneidman told Insider of the look.
The gown surprised her, but it ended up being everything she wanted in a wedding dress.
"I just really felt like the best version of me instead of a magazine bride," she said. "It was super comfortable and lightweight."
You can read more about Schneidman's journey to find her wedding dress here.
Sanjana Rishi bucked tradition by wearing a suit to her Indian wedding.
As a result of the coronavirus, Rishi and her husband decided to throw a ceremony together in just two weeks.
She had always wanted to wear a suit to her reception, but the change of plans led her to show off a pant look at her ceremony.
"I love suits on women," Rishi said. "There's something powerful about them."
A vintage, pre-owned Gianfranco Ferre suit was the perfect wedding look for her.
Rishi liked that the ensemble was beautiful and eco-friendly.
Rishi paired the suit with a friend's bustier and borrowed jewelry, as well as a more traditional headpiece to nod to her culture.
By shopping vintage and borrowing accessories, she was eco-conscious with her wedding day look as well.
"I have loved thrift shopping for many, many years, and buying secondhand is, in my opinion, one of the very best ways to shop ethically," she said. "It made sense to me to combine something vintage with something that celebrates local craft, like the veil or the jewelry."
You can read more about Rishi's journey to find her wedding outfit here.
Molly Burchett and Blake Ballard also found bridal looks under a time crunch.
The longtime couple decided to elope, and they had just 10 days to throw the event together.
They decided they wanted to wear wedding dresses to the event despite the short timeframe.
Ballard picked a long-sleeved, lace gown with a transparent back at David's Bridal. Burchett, on the other hand, ordered her high-neck dress from Anthropologie that featured a keyhole cutout.
The brides felt beautiful, but they were most happy with how comfortable the dresses were.
"I felt really confident in it because even though I ordered it really quickly, it's still very much exactly what I wanted," Burchett said of her gown.
They both wore heels to the ceremony, but they switched into boots to be more comfortable later in the celebrations. They found gowns that reflected who they were as people.
You can read more about Burchett and Ballard's journey to find their wedding dresses here.
Alyssa Higgins found a dress that was comfortable to wear in her wheelchair.
Higgins' spine was broken during her birth, so she's used a wheelchair her entire life.
When she was shopping for her wedding dress, she needed to find a dress that would be comfortable to wear while sitting and would accommodate the trach tube that connects her to her ventilator.
Higgins fell in love with the first dress she tried on, a form-fitting Martina Liana. The dress was covered in delicate lace, and it dipped low in the bodice, accentuating Higgins' cleavage without calling too much attention to her trach tube.
She was also able to use leftover fabric from the dress to cover her ventilator.
The dress made Higgins feel beautiful and comfortable.
First and foremost, Higgins felt like a beautiful bride in her dress. But the dress was also good for her physically.
"It kept me warm, to be honest," she said of her gown, which was made from a heavy material. "I'm very cold with my spinal cord injury all the time, so it was actually really nice to have something thick."
You can read more about Higgins' journey to find her wedding dress here.
A removable skirt won Alexa Persico over.
Persico was hoping to find a dress that offered two looks for her wedding day, and a 2018 Love by Pnina Tornai dress with a detachable skirt was a perfect fit.
The dress is covered in head-to-toe sparkles, and the neckline dips low and has a transparent layer of fabric to keep the straps together.
Persico told Insider she knew it was the one for her as soon as she saw it.
"I felt like a princess, but I also felt like myself," Persico told Insider of how the dress made her feel.
The skirt created a dramatic look, but Persico was able to remove it during her reception so it was easier to move around.
Persico shined in the gown, and a coordinating Pnina Tornai veil added to the look.
"I think the biggest mistake a bride can make is having too many people with them while dress shopping because everyone will have a different opinion," she said. "At the end of the day, you have to wear what is going to make you happy."
You can read more about Persico's journey to find her wedding dress here.
Lizzie Boudreau favored a pant-look for her wedding.
Boudreau told Insider she hoped her wedding look would feel like a modern iteration of an ensemble Grace Kelly would wear.
She tried on a few wedding gowns, but none of them felt like her.
When she stumbled upon a matching Gabriela Hearst set made up of an off-the-shoulder top and coordinating pants, Boudreau fell in love. The pants had a built-in train that gave the modern look a bridal edge.
She bought the set without even trying it on.
Boudreau said the ensemble was a beautiful and comfortable wedding look.
"I felt great," Boudreau told Insider. "I was thrilled at how everything looked. I was super comfortable."
The bride paired the outfit with white heels and a statement headpiece that gave the modern look a classic feel.
"It's totally just the aesthetic and the energy that I wanted to portray on my wedding day," she added.
You can read more about Boudreau's journey to find her wedding outfit here.
Georgianna Hagl had her heart set on wearing a gown with a bow on it.
Hagl married her high school sweetheart, who had a crush on her since she wore bows in her hair during their youth. Wearing a wedding dress with a bow on it felt like the perfect way to nod to their shared history.
After trying on four dresses, Hagl decided a Sareh Nouri gown with a removable bow was perfect for her wedding day.
The V-neckline and trumpet skirt were sleek and simple, while the bow, which could be worn in multiple places on the gown, gave Hagl flexibility with her look.
The dress also had buttons down the back of the gown, a detail Hagl loved.
"It was perfect," Hagl told Insider of her gown, which offered multiple looks for her wedding day.
"I just loved it," Hagl said. "I loved the silhouette. I loved that the buttons went all the way down."
She wore the bow on her shoulder during the ceremony, and she moved it to her hip to make dancing easier during the reception.
"I had never thought about putting it on my shoulder, but once it was, it was everything I wanted," she said.
You can read more about Hagl's journey to find her wedding dress here.
Samantha Viola created a one-of-a-kind wedding dress by combining two gowns.
Viola wanted a sexy, beachy look for her rooftop wedding in New York, but she also wanted to make a statement when she walked into her ceremony.
Combining two Pnina Tornai gowns was the perfect solution for Viola. A lace, sheer dress that was form-fitting was the base of her outfit.
To add some drama to the outfit, Viola wore a full, tulle skirt over the gown for her ceremony.
"I was so happy that I had those two styles," Viola told Insider.
The big skirt made her feel like a "princess," while the sheer gown was exactly what she dreamed of when she pictured her wedding dress.
"I felt beautiful," Viola said of how she felt in her dress. "I felt like it flattered my body type. It felt very bridal, but also not like the classic bride that everybody looks like."
"I felt so beautiful," she added. "It was my dream dress."
You can read more about Viola's journey to find her wedding dress here.
Katya May selected a short, chic dress for her intimate wedding.
May knew she wanted a nontraditional look, and the short gown fit the vibe she was going for.
She was drawn to the long sleeves and high-neckline on this Harriette Gordon dress. It also had button detailing on the cuffs and a ruffled hemline.
"It was fun, different, and not ridiculously expensive," May told Insider of why she chose the gown.
A long veil made the dress look more bridal.
The contrast of the short gown and the veil made the outfit even more striking, as did black shoes.
"I couldn't have been happier with the overall look," May told Insider of her wedding ensemble. "I loved my dress with the veil together."
"I just think it was perfect," she added.
You can read more about May's journey to find her wedding dress here.
Karen Lima stunned in a sheer, sparkly gown at her wedding ceremony.
Lima didn't try on any wedding dresses when she was engaged. Instead, she saw this gold Kyha Studios dress on Pinterest, and she ordered it as soon as she was able to track down the designer.
"The moment I saw it, I was like, 'Oh my gosh, I want to get married in this dress,'" Lima told Insider.
The sparkly dress had a low neckline, and it was completely see-through and backless. Lima wore a nude slip underneath the dress.
"The moment I saw it was just magical," Lima told Insider of seeing herself in the dress on her wedding day.
Lima changed into a backless slip dress for her reception.
Although she loved her gold dress, Lima wanted to be able to dance with ease at her reception.
She changed into a sleek Jot Losa gown for the reception. Losa is a friend who gave Lima the dress as a wedding present.
Although it was different, the reception dress had a similar tone to Lima's first dress thanks to the backless design.
Lima's ceremony dress was heavy because of the beading, so she was grateful to have something lighter for the reception, she told Insider.
You can read more about Lima's journey to find her wedding dress here.
Ally McGown wore two custom Pnina Tornai dresses to her wedding.
McGown is the boutique manager for Pnina Tornai at Kleinfeld in New York City.
When it was time for McGown to get married, Tornai designed two custom dresses for her.
The off-the-shoulder gown had a cat-eye neckline, a tight bodice, and a full, lace skirt. A tulle, cross strap in the back completed the look, and the sleeves could be removed.
"I loved how romantic it was," McGown told Insider of the ceremony dress.
The second dress was covered in bling and had a keyhole back.
The satin, mermaid-style gown was covered in crystal embellishments. The low neckline and open back gave the dress a sexy feel.
The second gown made McGown feel "really, really confident and good," she told Insider.
Plus, the outfit change was a surprise to her husband, which made the dress even more special to McGown.
You can read more about McGown's journey to find her wedding dresses here.
"It was perfect," Taylor told Insider of the gown.
The A-line dress had a corset bodice and was covered in delicate flowers. The off-the-shoulder sleeves were made of flowers too.
A sheer, long train completed the look.
Taylor said she was "elated" that she found something that fit her vision so well.
You can read more about Taylor's journey to find her wedding dress here.
Bijon Vaughn chose the same dress Beyoncé wore to her vow renewal for her wedding.
Vaughn chose a form-fitting Galia Lahav gown after recognizing it from photos of Beyoncé.
The dress had sheer cutouts on the thighs, as well as a see-through back panel.
Detailed embroidery covered the bodice, and Vaughn had romantic, sheer sleeves added to the gown for her ceremony. She removed the sleeves for more flexibility at her reception.
"I love the fact that it was a little sexy with the illusion," Vaughn told Insider.
Bijon told Insider that her wedding dress made her feel like "a million bucks."
The gown, which gave her two looks in one, was the perfect combination of sexy and elegant, as Vaughn told Insider.
"I felt beautiful," she said. "I felt like a woman. I felt classy. I felt timeless, but I still felt young and vibrant."
You can read more about Vaughn's journey to find her wedding dress here.
Alex Throckmorton rocked a strapless, floral gown at her wedding.
As Alex and her wife Paige planned their Parisian-themed wedding, Alex wanted two things out of her dress: a non-traditional look and a floral element.
A nude Watters dress covered in flowers was exactly what Alex was looking for. The full trumpet skirt contrasted with a daring cutout on the bodice.
"I knew it was just meant to be," Alex said of the gown. "It was really dramatic and not your traditional wedding dress."
Paige Throckmorton's green suit complemented Alex's gown.
Instead of a dress, Paige decided to get Bykowski Tailor and Garb to make her a custom tuxedo for the wedding.
Paige had always wanted a custom suit, and she had been admiring the brand's work for some time before the wedding. It was the perfect occasion to make her dream a reality.
Paige and her sister designed the green, three-piece suit together. The pants and jacket were solid toned, but the lapel and vest were covered in flowers, like Alex's dress. Paige had a custom shirt made to match the ensemble as well.
"I loved getting to pick out the different materials," Paige said of designing her suit.
The floral elements tied the Throckmortons' outfits together.
The Throckmortons didn't show each other their outfits ahead of the wedding, so they were happily surprised their outfits worked so well together.
"I was blown away by how beautiful she was," Paige told Insider of her wife. "I feel like our outfits just really complemented each other, but Alex stole the show."
You can read more about the Throckmortons' journey to find their wedding outfits here.
Devon Stewart Bacher opted for a chic jumpsuit for her mini-mony.
Bacher was originally supposed to have a big wedding in August of 2020, but she and her husband had to postpone the celebration.
They still decided to get married on their original wedding date, tying the knot with just their immediate families in attendance on the Brooklyn Bridge.
The gown Bacher selected for her big wedding wouldn't work for the smaller ceremony, so she decided to wear a white Jonathan Simkhai jumpsuit from Intermix instead. She originally planned to wear the jumpsuit to her rehearsal dinner.
The jumpsuit had a scoop neck, a chunky belt, and wide legs with cutouts that gave it a modern touch. It scooped low in the back.
Bacher told Insider she felt like the ensemble balanced retro and modern aesthetics.
She paired the jumpsuit with a pearl-covered veil.
Bacher paired the look with a pearl-covered veil, a statement ponytail, and a pearl choker. The veil transformed the ensemble into the perfect bridal look.
"It made me feel on top of the world," Bacher said of the outfit, adding that it made her feel "powerful."
You can read more about Bachers' journey to find her wedding outfit here.
If you are in the process of shopping for your wedding dress or have photos from when you shopped and want to talk to Insider for a story, get in touch at sgrindell@insider.com.
who buys the wedding dress for the bride
Source: https://www.insider.com/brides-share-how-they-knew-wedding-dress-was-the-one-2020-8