How many people to go dress shopping?

GraphicDesigningBride

I'm about to start shopping for dresses but I'm having doubts on who to bring with me. I'm thinking about bringing my mother and my future Mother and sister in-law (the latter being my MOH), but I'm afraid that three other opinions might take my focus away from the dress I would like or feel comfortable in. How many people did you take do go dress shopping and how did it go?

Maggie0829

Less is always more when dress shopping.  Take the people with you who you value their opinion the most.  Make sure those that you invite will give you honest opinions but will not sway your final decision.  Because the only person who truly needs to love the dress is you, no one else.

For example I took my Mom and my Sister.  They both let me know if a dress wasn't flattering or didn't do anything for me or if they thought something was gorgeous.  But they were also very supportive if I said I liked something and they assured me that it was my decision and that as long as I loved the dress then it really did not matter what they thought because if I loved it then they would too.

If you feel that the three individuals you are thinking about taking with you can keep their visions to themselves (because sometimes people tend to pick dresses that they would like to wear instead of picking things that you like) and be supportive of whatever choice you make then you should be good to go.

But I do think that three people is plenty.  You know it is the "too many cooks in the kitchen" thing.

OjitosVerdes

Maggie0829 said:

Less is always more when dress shopping.  Take the people with you who you value their opinion the most.  Make sure those that you invite will give you honest opinions but will not sway your final decision.  Because the only person who truly needs to love the dress is you, no one else.

For example I took my Mom and my Sister.  They both let me know if a dress wasn't flattering or didn't do anything for me or if they thought something was gorgeous.  But they were also very supportive if I said I liked something and they assured me that it was my decision and that as long as I loved the dress then it really did not matter what they thought because if I loved it then they would too.

If you feel that the three individuals you are thinking about taking with you can keep their visions to themselves (because sometimes people tend to pick dresses that they would like to wear instead of picking things that you like) and be supportive of whatever choice you make then you should be good to go.

But I do think that three people is plenty.  You know it is the "too many cooks in the kitchen" thing.

All of this!  For my initial appointments, I only took one friend whose taste and opinions I really trust. (Also the majority of my family lives out of town, although regardless I probably would have made the same decision). Once I had narrowed it down to a couple gowns, I invited my mom, aunt and a couple bridesmaids to come along, too. I found that at least as far as my family is concerned, my mom had a lot of expectations about how I should look on my wedding day, and it was nice to pick out gowns initially without a lot of outside influence. 

csweaney

Take as few people as possible. I took my mother and best friend (maid of honor) with me when I went shopping and it was perfect. They told me what was flattering and not without being pushy and offering too many opinions unless I asked them. They were perfect. I feel if I had more people come with my (especially some of my more bossy friends) my vision for my dress may have gotten lost in all the opinions flying across the room. Less is more, as some of the previous posts have indicated.

erinlin25

I just went with my mom-- which at first I was not sure about since we have very different opinions on clothing.  But she was on her best behavior and was very helpful.  Looking back I love that it was just us and I did not have a million voices confusing me.

GraphicDesigningBride

Thanks for all the advice, I'm a bit torn now. My mom's not really an easy person when it comes down to clothes. We never really get on one level. But I always assumed it was normal and even a tradition to bring your mother to these kind of things since "all my friends did it", only now I'm getting a bit nervous about it... Shopping with my sister-in-law always went well so perhaps I'll take just her. If my mom protests I can always say that I'd like to keep it as a surprise for her.

mlg78

I took my mom (paying), my MOH (sentimental reasons) and 2 BM (they're fashionista types).  Another thought, however...  I'm going for my first dress fitting this morning (yay!) and there I've invited a BM who wasn't at the purchasing of the dress, my FMIL, FI's aunt and grandmother.  People who I'd like to share the experience with, but not necessarily the dress fitting.  His mom, aunt and grandmother are SUPER excited about it to be included so I'm happy they're coming to the fitting...  So, a similar experience without being there for the purchase.

misslobita

I took my mom and my dad, it meant alot having them both there and they were perfect. They let me say my opinion and they did very little input, just took a picture here and there. I practically begged them when I was down to my final two dresses (which were complete opposites) to tell me which one I should get and they just smiled. I picked the dress that was perfect for me and had such supportive people...not a group full of opinionated people who are trying to pick THEIR favorite dress