<p>Yes, hyper, I agree that different things work for different people. The only one I didn’t particularly approve of was two of my friends who got married as juniors in college, after dating about a year, at the age of twenty. The only reason I didn’t really approve is because everyone knew that they were only getting married so they could have sex as they’re both very religious. </p>
<p>If everything goes as planned, I’ll get married at 23. Different strokes :)</p>
<p>My dd is getting married in August and we purchased her gown in November. It is scheduled to arrive back in the shop in June. If you are ordering a dress then 6 months is the minimum for most to be made and shipped in time for the wedding.</p>
<p>My daughter had her dress custom-made when she couldn’t find what she wanted… because she had it made during the winter (slow season for custom bridal), she got 10% off. The price was considerably less than similar dresses of similar fabric at the bridal shops.</p>
<p>I think buying dresses early is also more common now with the popularity of reality wedding shows. My D bought her dress on-line from J Crew about 3 months before her wedding. She was lucky- we only went shopping once, and she did not find anything she liked. Then she saw a picture of her dress somewhere and fell in love with it. The J Crew stores in Calif. were out of her size and color, so they put out a request to stores all over the US and we had it within 1 week. J Crew’s dresses are very reasonably priced, and with her 15% teacher’s discount, it was a great deal. She did not have to have it altered in any way, so we had it cleaned after the wedding and posted it on a wedding site for sale. Sold it for what she bought it for, as it had been discontinued at that point.</p>
<p>I wore my mother’s dress. I lost so much weight the months before the wedding from stress, though, that I really should have had it taken in. Didn’t even occur to me, and no one seemed to notice (it was obvious when I raised my arms high, but there was no point during that day that I was required to do any such thing).</p>
<p>I was also married when I was 23. Still with him, and it was 29 years last week.</p>
<p>I started shopping for my dress about 6 or 8 months before the wedding, and it took awhile to find “the one.” All the bridal shops I visited have since closed, unfortunately. I am not quite sure where young women buy their dresses around here! </p>
<p>One of D’s good friends got engaged this weekend. She is in med school & will get married in two years (between year 3 and year 4). I can pretty much guarantee she won’t be shopping a year in advance … they will probably have to drag her out to get a dress, since that is not the sort of thing she enjoys!</p>
<p>I was married at age 19. Still going strong after 23 years!</p>
<p>I wore my mother’s wedding dress, so that was easy. I really cannot imagine buying a dress a year in advance and I would certainly not get it fitted then. I suppose that’s the way some designers do it though.</p>
<p>romani, as others have said, if you’re going to order a dress from a salon, 6 months to a year ahead of time is pretty standard. If you’re willing to buy one of the shop’s sample dresses, you’ll not only pay less, but you don’t need nearly as much lead time (OTOH, your selection is limited to what they have in stock). Fitting shouldn’t be done more than a month before the wedding.</p>
<p>As far as planning ahead, popular wedding locations may need to be booked a year in advance – or more. Same with florists, caterers, and photographers. Ordering invitations also needs to be done well ahead of time.</p>
<p>Of course, that’s if you need all of those things for the wedding you envision. A small, informal wedding can be thrown together much more quickly if, say, you want to get married in the back yard. In that case, you could go to the local florist on the day and pick up whatever they have on hand. If you have a friend who will supply the food and another who will take pictures, you probably won’t be competing with all those other brides for their services on a specific day. Wedding planning doesn’t have to be stressful and drawn-out; only if you want the kind of wedding you see in the bridal magazines. Either way, it’s valid. :)</p>
<p>I bought TWO wedding dresses. Well, two off the rack tea length dresses for our wedding.</p>
<p>After buying the first, I kept shopping…and found the perfect ivory thing that was me all over. Returned the first. The second was from Macys (!) and cost $250 which I thought was astronomical. I was 26 and lived in flip flops.</p>
<p>Tomorrow will be 30 years. Must have been my lucky dress.</p>
<p>Happy anniv.
weren’t they called * thongs* then?
I was actually barefoot as I was wearing ballet slippers and one of them wouldn’t stay on so I took them both off.</p>
<p>LasMa, I plan on getting married up north on the lake where I grew up. Those fancy weddings hold zero appeal to me. Plus, I am NOT a planner so there is no way everything would come together if I needed to do things a year in advance lol.</p>
<p>One of my coworkers is getting marries this summer and got her dress last year at a bridal show. It was a great deal (around $200) and the right dress. It made sense to snap it up at the time and save the money.</p>
<p>My daughter is getting married next month, so I’ve just gone through this process. We began looking 6 months before the wedding. Every shop we went to professed shock that we’d waited until ‘so late’.</p>
<p>I was married at 23, and our 26th anniversary is next week. My aunt made my dress - she did a great job. She used horsehair to make lots and lots of ruffles in the train. It took her a few months to make. We supplied the materials, but she did the labor as my wedding gift.</p>
<p>Planning this far ahead may be the norm these days, but there are still people who put together a beautiful affair and buy a gorgeous gown in a fraction of that time. You just have to be more flexible in terms of dates and places and/or be willing to pay for added rush charges. There might be a few places that won’t accommodate you, though.</p>
Still with him, and it was 29 years last week.</p>