The Ultimate Guide To Wedding Gown Timing: When To Start Planning

The ideal time to purchase your wedding gown is around nine months before your wedding. This will make it easier to handle potential supply chain issues, allow time for multiple rounds of alterations, and hopefully help avoid any last-minute issues. If you’ve reached the point where you have less than nine months, don’t panic. There are still plenty of options. Start browsing and calling around to bridal shops to find gowns that are guaranteed to arrive when needed. Consider attending sample sales where you can buy dresses off-the-rack for a quick solution.

When to start the gown shopping process

The ideal time to purchase your wedding gown is around nine months before your wedding. This will make it easier to handle potential supply chain issues, allow time for multiple rounds of alterations, and hopefully help avoid any last-minute issues. If you've reached the point where you have less than nine months, don't panic. There are still plenty of options. Start browsing and calling around to bridal shops to find gowns that are guaranteed to arrive when needed.

Consider attending sample sales where you can buy dresses off-the-rack for a quick solution. Once you've selected your venue, it's important to start thinking about your dress and nailing it down six to nine months before the wedding. This allows for a good amount of relaxation for the shopping experience. You should also have your wedding dress budget finalized by this point, including alteration fees, as well as a list of the lucky ladies (or gents) you'd like to accompany you during your shopping trip.

Most survey respondents purchased their dresses 7.5 months before the wedding. As a rule of thumb, we recommend buying your wedding dress between 8 and 10 months before the wedding. Wedding dresses require time for production and shipping, meaning your dress could take up to five months (or sometimes even longer) to arrive.

You should have your first fitting scheduled at least six to eight weeks before your wedding. At this time, work with your seamstress to make minor tweaks (like changing the neckline, trim train, etc.), and consider bringing a bridesmaid or two along to demonstrate how to bustle the gown.

Ask Odalis! She’s our contracted seamstress who is a master at fitting your wedding gown or formal. If you’d like to leave a response, she’ll send you a message back! We recommend coming in for your fitting two months in advance, but not less than one month before to have your dress altered. Then, because everyone is trying to lose weight, we suggest having your final fitting no earlier than two weeks before the wedding.

How long before the wedding to have first fitting

The ideal time to purchase your wedding gown is around nine months before your wedding. This will make it easier to handle potential supply chain issues, allow time for multiple rounds of alterations, and hopefully help avoid any last-minute issues. However, if you've reached the point where you have less than nine months, start browsing and calling around to bridal shops to find gowns that are guaranteed to arrive when needed.

Most survey respondents purchased their dresses 7.5 months before the wedding. As a rule of thumb, we recommend buying your wedding dress between 8 and 10 months before the wedding. Wedding dresses require time for production and shipping, meaning your dress could take up to five months (or sometimes even longer) to arrive.

Once you've selected your venue, it's important to really start thinking about your dress and nailing it down six to nine months before the wedding. This allows for a good amount of relaxation for the shopping experience. You should also have your wedding dress budget finalized by this point (including alteration fees), as well as a list of the lucky ladies (or gents) you'd like to accompany you during your shopping trip.

The first fitting usually takes place about eight weeks before your wedding day. It's important to remember to bring your shoes, bra and bridal shapewear so you can see how everything comes together. This fitting helps your seamstress understand what alterations need to be made. When you have your dress on, they will begin looking for places where it needs to be taken in, let out, shortened, lengthened or altered in another way.

At your first fitting, you'll be trying on your wedding dress for the first time since you purchased it, which could have been over six months ago so it's a very anticipated moment. Many brides-to-be are nervous about their first fitting, but it's a very exciting moment when a bride falls in love with her gown all over again.

Because alterations take time, it’s recommended that a bride schedules her first dress fitting at least eight weeks before the wedding day. Before you leave your first fitting, make sure to schedule your next one with the same seamstress. You should have a second fitting about six weeks to a month before your wedding.

When to purchase the wedding gown

The ideal time to purchase your wedding gown is around nine months before your wedding. This allows for plenty of time to handle potential supply chain issues, allow time for multiple rounds of alterations, and hopefully help avoid any last-minute issues. If you’ve reached the point where you have less than nine months, don’t panic. There are still plenty of options. Start browsing and calling around to bridal shops to find gowns that are guaranteed to arrive when needed. Consider attending sample sales where you can buy dresses off-the-rack for a quick solution.

Dunbar advises going gown shopping only after you've pegged your wedding venue, which makes sense considering you want to wear something that stays true to the locale's vibe. Once you've selected your venue, however, "it’s important to really start thinking about your dress and nailing it down six to nine months before the wedding," Dunbar adds. "This allows for a good amount of relaxation for the shopping experience." You should also have your wedding dress budget finalized by this point (including alteration fees), as well as a list of the lucky ladies (or gents) you'd like to accompany you during your shopping trip.

Most survey respondents purchased their dresses 7.5 months before the wedding. As a rule of thumb, we recommend buying your wedding dress between 8 and 10 months before the wedding. Wedding dresses require time for production and shipping, meaning your dress could take up to five months (or sometimes even longer) to arrive.

You should have your first fitting scheduled at least six to eight weeks before your wedding. At this time, work with your seamstress to make minor tweaks (like changing the neckline, trim train, etc.), and consider bringing a bridesmaid or two along to demonstrate how to bustle the gown.

Ask Odalis! She’s our contracted seamstress who is a master at fitting your wedding gown or formal. If you’d like to leave a response, she’ll send you a message back! We recommend coming in for your fitting two months in advance, but not less than 1 month before to have your dress altered. Then, because everyone is trying to lose weight, we suggest having your final fitting no earlier than two weeks before the wedding.

How long before the wedding to have final fitting

The ideal time to purchase your wedding gown is around nine months before your wedding. This will make it easier to handle potential supply chain issues, allow time for multiple rounds of alterations, and hopefully help avoid any last-minute issues. If you’ve reached the point where you have less than nine months, don’t panic. There are still plenty of options. Start browsing and calling around to bridal shops to find gowns that are guaranteed to arrive when needed. Consider attending sample sales where you can buy dresses off-the-rack for a quick solution.

Once you've selected your venue, however, "it’s important to really start thinking about your dress and nailing it down six to nine months before the wedding," Dunbar adds. "This allows for a good amount of relaxation for the shopping experience." You should also have your wedding dress budget finalized by this point (including alteration fees), as well as a list of the lucky ladies (or gents) you'd like to accompany you during your shopping trip.

Most survey respondents purchased their dresses 7.5 months before the wedding. As a rule of thumb, we recommend buying your wedding dress between 8 and 10 months before the wedding. Wedding dresses require time for production and shipping, meaning your dress could take up to five months (or sometimes even longer) to arrive.

You should have your first fitting scheduled at least six to eight weeks before your wedding. At this time, work with your seamstress to make minor tweaks (like changing the neckline, trim train, etc.), and consider bringing a bridesmaid or two along to demonstrate how to bustle the gown.

The final fitting is usually scheduled 1-2 weeks out. Also once alterations are started, I'm supposed to maintain my weight. My last fitting is 2 weeks before my wedding. Id say no more than that in case some adjustments need to be made. The seamstress in my area does them a month out. My final fitting is 3 weeks before the wedding, she'll do the last-minute alterations and I'll pick it up a few days later.

When to book alterations for the gown

The ideal time to purchase your wedding gown is around nine months before your wedding. This will make it easier to handle potential supply chain issues, allow time for multiple rounds of alterations, and hopefully help avoid any last-minute issues. However, if you've reached the point where you have less than nine months before your wedding, don't panic. There are still plenty of options. Start browsing and calling around to bridal shops to find gowns that are guaranteed to arrive when needed.

Once you've selected your venue, it's important to start thinking about your dress and nailing it down six to nine months before the wedding. This allows for a good amount of relaxation for the shopping experience. You should also have your wedding dress budget finalized by this point, including alteration fees, as well as a list of the lucky ladies (or gents) you'd like to accompany you during your shopping trip.

Most survey respondents purchased their dresses 7.5 months before the wedding. As a rule of thumb, we recommend buying your wedding dress between 8 and 10 months before the wedding. Wedding dresses require time for production and shipping, meaning your dress could take up to five months (or sometimes even longer) to arrive.

You should have your first fitting scheduled at least six to eight weeks before your wedding. At this time, work with your seamstress to make minor tweaks (like changing the neckline, trim train, etc.), and consider bringing a bridesmaid or two along to demonstrate how to bustle the gown.

We recommend coming in for your fitting two months in advance, but not less than one month before to have your dress altered. Then, because everyone is trying to lose weight, we suggest having your final fitting no earlier than two weeks before the wedding.

Frequently asked questions