Brides above size 18, read this!
There is something wrong with the size-inclusive wedding-dress shopping, and it isn’t women with curves.
Size-inclusive wedding dress shopping
I’m standing in a dressing room, jammed into a dress five times too small for me. My arms are extended, Frankenstein-style, because the sleeves are so tight that if I bend my elbows I may burst through the lace. This is not how I imagined shopping for a wedding dress! Actually, I never imagined I’d buy a wedding dress at all. I’m a size 20-22, and shopping for my everyday clothes can be hard enough. While I’m used to buying things online all the time, because most stores aren’t size-inclusive, I knew that wouldn’t be an option this time; this purchase would be too expensive, nonreturnable and, you know, the dress I’d get married in! I had to try it before buying. But as I’d soon discover, many bridal samples were 12s or 14s – too small for me to even get into. So I began my dress hunt as I assume all brides do: hunched over my laptop, Googling like a fiend. I was looking for designers who not only made dresses in my size but also my style, which is feminine but not frilly and extravagant. A week later, I had a short list of stores whose pieces would work for me. I tried six shops. And after all that, here’s what I learnt:
Retailers do offer gowns for curvier women
Wedding dresses are typically made to order, some retailers and designers I spoke with said there was no limit on how large they’d make a dress. Amazing! The bad news: very few designers carry samples that are over 14; if you’re curvier than average the sample – usually a size 12 – you have to yank on a dress, and leave the back unzipped and gaping open. With some styles, this will give you a vague idea of what the dress might look like if it fit, but only when facing forward. Let’s just say it’s hard to feel like a beautiful bride when you’re in this situation.
It helps to pre-shop
First, I researched dresses based on style. Once I had a list of designers I liked, I cut it down to those who produced dresses in my size and emailed them. Many didn’t carry my size, but some had a few 18s I could squeeze into, which makes a real dierence in how you’ll look and feel in a gown. That said, if there’s a store with non-inclusive samples but dresses you love, go anyway.
There are size-inclusive surcharges
Some bridal designers charge extra (usually around R1 300R2 600) for dresses above size 20. They say it’s because they have to use more material, but that logic really bothers me. It’s a given that every bride pays for individual alterations to her dress, but this is dierent. An up-front fee for being curvier seems like a penalty for wearing clothing that fits your body.