Tips on Informal Wedding Dresses

While some brides envision their wedding day as a formal gala event, others prefer a more low-key affair. If you are one of those brides who would rather forego the fanfare and glitz of a formal wedding, then your choice of wedding dress needs to reflect the simplicity of your wedding. An informal wedding dress is what you are looking for, and here are some tips to help with your selection.

Why Informal?

Brides who choose informal wedding dresses do so for various reasons. The cost of a formal designer wedding gown can seem outrageous. Who needs to spend thousands of dollars for a dress you will wear only once and then store for a lifetime?

Beach weddings typically have a laid-back air about them, and the wedding dress is chosen to reflect that mood. Those who are planning low-key backyard weddings may not feel a formal gown is suitable for the environment. Still other brides who are getting married for the second time may have already done the princess wedding gown, and this time around would like something more casual. Whatever the reason for your decision, informal wedding gowns can be found in most bridal boutiques, with plenty of styles to choose from.

Informal wedding dresses are generally free of the many embellishments that formal wedding gowns are adorned with. Only the slightest accents of pearls or sequins are used to dress up an informal wedding dress, or you can opt for a plain dress and jazz it up with a few accessories. Choose any length you feel your best in. When it comes to styling, informal wedding dresses can have various features not seen with formal ones. Side slits, off-shoulder, spaghetti straps - the choices are endless.

Cost

Understandably, informal wedding dresses tend to be less costly than their traditional, formal counterparts. While formal dresses can cost thousands of dollars, a bride can find the perfect informal wedding dress for a few hundred dollars or less. Plus, you don't necessarily have to visit a bridal shop. The dress of your dreams may be hanging in any formal wear store, beach wedding dress boutique, or even a thrift shop.

Accessories

Simple, yet elegant, accessories are the perfect way to add a little something to your informal wedding dress. A short veil or a few flowers in your hair are a couple of options worth considering. Decorative barrettes and sparkly hair bands are also good choices. Carrying a small nosegay of wildflowers or a few hand-tied long stemmed roses is a simpler alternative to holding a large, cascading bouquet.

As for shoes, strappy sandals or ballet flats will complete your informal look.
And then there's jewelry. Pearls can dress up an informal wedding dress just enough to make you look like a bride. Wear a simple single strand necklace, a pair of dangly earrings, or a chunky bracelet - something to add a touch of glitter and that makes you feel as gorgeous as you are.

A bride always looks her most beautiful on her wedding day, and choosing an informal wedding dress doesn't change that. With all the styles out there, you will be able to find that perfect dress that makes you look and feel like a million bucks.