Wedding Dress Silhouettes: Find Your Best Fit

One of the most exciting parts of getting married is finding your wedding dress, but it can be stressful and overwhelming, mainly because it’s not every day you wear a formal gown. Our best advice to all new brides is to try on at least one dress in all the silhouettes available before really honing in on the specifics. Knowing what looks best on your body and what you feel most comfortable in is a great way to weed out several styles and helps you look your best for your big day! Here’s a short list of the most popular dress silhouettes for those new to the wedding dress world (most of you, we assume).

Ballgown

This traditional, Cinderella-style silhouette looks great on most body types but can be a bit overwhelming for petite figures. This classic is fitted through the waistline and blossoms with a full skirt.

A-Line

One of our favorite silhouettes! This beautiful style looks great on all body types. Fitted through the waist, flaring slightly at the hips, it hides imperfections while accentuating a lovely shape.

Drop Waist or Modified A-Line

Similar to the traditional A-Line, this bodice is fitted but extends and flares just past the hips. These dresses typically look good on most body types.

Trumpet

Ever popular among our brides, the trumpet silhouette is fitted throughout the waist and hips, flaring, either subtly or dramatically, mid-thigh. While this style looks great on petite and hourglass figures, it tends to accentuate the stomach and hip area, with which some brides are less comfortable.

Mermaid

The mermaid style is trendy, and we love it. It is fitted to the knee, flaring from there down. These silhouettes are often strapless, but there are exceptions, and are best for a bride who wants to add a little sexiness to her wedding day attire. They frame the body in all the right areas and add a little extra oomph to any style dress. 

Sheath

Growing in popularity are backyard, woodland-style weddings and the perfect complement to these affairs is a sheath dress. This silhouette, which is loose from neck to toes, tends to look wonderful on slender frames and can be very classic yet bohemian at the same time.

Tea-Length

Tea-length silhouettes fall between the knee and ankle and attracts brides with a funkier style. Many who have a wedding inspired by specific periods will love a tea-length dress.

Mini

A Mini dress falls just above the knees and makes for a great second dress for those wanting to dance the night away in style and comfort! Two dresses-one for the ceremony and one for the reception-is a common thing these days. Many brides love having multiple looks, and a mini dress is a perfect way to accomplish this!

Now, we know we threw a lot of terms at you. You may be thinking, “how will I ever choose?!”. Follow our advice to try on all the silhouettes! You never know how something is going to fit your specific body. It’s so hard to look at photos and try to gauge what you like and don’t like. Half the time, brides end up exactly with what they were unsure of online. 

If you have any questions, leave us a comment or reach out on our social! We would love to get in touch. If you are at the point in your wedding planning process where you are ready to start shopping–make an appointment here to come and see us!