Wedding dress question?!

My husband and I had a longer engagement and my dress timeline was somewhere along these lines:

- Sept 2017 Engaged

- Jan 2018 First Dress appt w/ Dad + Dad GF...knew I needed 2 appts as Mom doesn't like GF

- Mar 2018 Second Dress appt w/ Mom, Dad, Sister (I found the one!)

- June 2018 Dress ready for pickup

- Feb 2019 Alterations

- Mar 2019 Wedding!!!

Personally, I don't think it's ever too early to start shopping and looking around! It is such a fun part of the wedding planning process. There's really two ways you can take it: see what shops are local and what designers they carry or, oppositely, see what type of dress you are interested in or a specific designer, and then work backwards to find out which shops carry that designer. This is what I did, and although the initial dress/designer I thought I wanted isn't what I picked, the shops themselves had so many amazing options and I found just what I was looking for!!

I've been told that about a year out is a good time.

I had a short engagement and I just bought my dress on Monday (1/20) and they had to rush ship it to get it here in May. They say alterations can take 2-3 months. It seems like 9 months out would be the ideal time. Too early and you have to store the dress and risk changing in size, too late and you'll be in the same boat as me and have to pay extra for the expedited shipping.

I recommend scheduling appointments a few months out though, as the best places book up early! I scheduled my appointments for mid-January at the beginning of December. Also, it helps to go in with an idea of what you want (but be willing to try on other dresses too), as there are a lot of options and it can be overwhelming and discouraging if you keep trying on dresses that you hate!

Thanks ladies!! I appreciate your feedback so much. I have a June appointment for my April 2021 wedding that gives me about 10 months!!

I got mine a bit under a year before my wedding

My first appt was this pass Saturday Jan 18th . Next appt for alteration is May 9th then Im scheduled to pick up dress May 11 . Wedding renewal day May 23rd!

I got engaged September 2019. My wedding isnt until September 2021 but I already bought my dress at the end of November. My favorite designer was having a trunk show at a local bridal shop and I got a great deal on it! I won’t get it for another 6-8 months and then I still have to get it altered so I don’t think I purchased too early

I got mine Oct 2019 and our wedding is Feb 2020. It's probably cutting it close cause of alterations.

Wedding is May 2021, I went shopping a few times already without finding anything I loved. If you want a designer dress they usually take anywhere between 8-10 months to get to you and then alterations so start now