The style you will choose for your wedding dress will be influenced greatly
by your personality as well as by the ceremony you are planning to have.
In doubt, ask for advice but stay with what you have in mind. Some Brides
will want to be themselves, other will look for an entirely different
image and other will dream of a fairytale dress.
The most important thing is not to feel like you are
wearing a fancy dress but still to be able go all the way and fulfil your
dream. Very often, a bride tries too much to please everyone: her mother,
friends, fiancé, mother in law.
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You also must be aware that
your dress should fit you perfectly, it is crucial.
Other factors to take into consideration are colour,
fabric, size, silhouette and lace style. No doubt you already have in
mind the style of dress that you wish to wear according to the theme and
the tone of your wedding, the season, the venue, whether you decide of
a religious ceremony in winter or an informal ceremony on the beach in
summer, and the styles of others, groom, bridesmaids, relatives and guests
to ensure that the wedding will be harmonious. Those will vary according
from season to season. Try to imagine yourself in your dress and feel
as comfortably as you can in it.
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Every bride wants to wear the perfect
dress. To find this perfect dress, which will flatter your figure, accentuate
in the best way the features you most like about yourself and mask those
you are not so pleased with, we invite you to read the following.
This brief glossary should help you to become familiar with various classic
styles and decide which one will be more suited to your personality and
your figure and allow you to feel beautiful and confident on this day
where you will be the centrepiece of a memorable event of your life which
will stay in your memory for ever.
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Looking through wedding magazines, shops and attending wedding fayres,
you will find a great diversity of designs, but to simplify your options,
let’s look firstly at the..Basic dress shapes:
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A-line
The name of this style speaks for itself:
it was named after by the letter that represents the shape of the dress
and was initially invented by French designer Christian Dior.
It is a simple shape with vertical seams running from the shoulders down
to a flared skirt. |
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Although this dress
has a fitted bodice and shoulders straps, it is not as constraining as
the sheath as the seamless waistline is not as outlined as other styles
and falls elegantly in a flared hemline.
This traditional dress is very enhancing on all sizes and shapes but it
looks particularly good on smaller brides as the upper part of the dress
softly blending into the flared skirt accentuates the impression of length
with a smooth, sleek, long and lean figure as a result.
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Princess-line
Princess-line and A-line have practically the same
shape and tend to be the most flattering. The Princess-line is also characterised
by two vertical side seams that run from bust and flares out gently to
hem.
With no bust line or waistline breaks, the Princess-line brings attention
to the shoulders and bust and this sleek fitting bodice which merges elegantly
with the bottom part of the dress gives this full panelled dress a very
slimming silhouette.
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Empire
As you can guess by its name, this dress, with
its sober elegant line, was very popular during Napoleon’s reign.
Not far from the Princess-line, the Empire line has a fitted bodice and
shoulders. The characteristics of the Empire style dress are the very
high raised waistline which begins directly below the bust and a soft
slimmer skirt which runs straight from the high waistline to the ground.
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Very
flattering for smaller brides as it makes them look taller, the empire
line dress can also be made from many various materials. For example the
use of lace for the make of the bodice gives a stunning effect in contrast
with a duchess satin for the skirt.
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Sheath
Now we come to a more modern style, which presents
a simple, slim fitting shape, with no waistline and which usually flares
at the bottom.
Sheaths follow closely the silhouette in a revealing way and for this
reason will be worn generally without a petticoat or an underskirt.
A detachable train might also complete this outfit. |
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Very glamorous,
in a lightweight sheer fluid fabric such as muslin or crepe, it is a very
popular for a civil wedding or for an evening wedding.
This style will appeal to slightly older brides, tall, slim who are looking
for simplicity and will adopt this style to attend a religious or civil
ceremony with a silk stole in the summer months or a warmer one in winter. |
Mermaid
The mermaid style is also a very slim fitting
shape, which becomes even more fitted around the legs and ends with a
flare like a fishtail skirt and train. Mermaid dresses have become very
popular.
Derived from the sheath style, the mermaid style is also a very slim fitting
shape, which becomes even more fitted around the legs and ends with a
flare like a fishtail skirt and train. Mermaid dresses have become very
popular.
For a bride who wishes to draw attention to the curves of her silhouette,
for example a bride with fuller chest, wider hips and thin waist, the
“hourglass” silhouette, this style will look very flattering
in its simplicity and elegance, as too many details can add weight to
the whole silhouette.
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The slender
silhouette of this style also is a perfect choice for thin petite brides.
When the effect of the skirt flaring out below the knees is accentuated
with extra material sewn into the back or with a train, it becomes the
Fishtail style. It can look stunning in a slinky satin material and although
like the sheath dress, it is a very from hugging figure, the extra width
given by the fishtail flared hem at the back makes quite a significant
difference to comfort when walking.
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| Ball gown
When thinking about a fairy-tale wedding, the ball
gown is undoubtedly the style that comes to mind and has stayed the most
traditional and popular.
Ballgown dresses are typified by a full bodice, which flatters most figures,
and which is fitted through the waist and leads to a very full bell shaped
skirt held up by petticoats and hoops and reaching at least to the ankles.
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It is The Dress of
a unique Day and you will easily be able to add your personal touch to
it if you wish by choosing for instance a bodice different from the skirt,
adding sleeves, a sweeping train and veil…. |
Amazon/ riding
habit style
This style, dating from the end of the 19th c, beginning
of the 20thcentury,takes its origin from the riding suit women used to
wear to ride and walk: its characteristics are a fitted bodice with leg
of muttons sleeves and a full skirt with bustle. |
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Often
a tailored jacket fitted at the waist will complete this outfit and the
last touch added by a top hat shape will give the bride who opts for this
equestrian style a stunning unique look. |
[All dresses shown in this article are or have been for sale in The Dressmarket]
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