What are my options when buying a wedding dress?

Shopping for a wedding dress is an experience like no other, but we know it can be pretty nerve-wracking too. That’s why we offer 90-minute bridal appointments, so you’ll have plenty of time to run over your ideas, look through our range of designer bridal gowns, and try on your favourites. We also offer VIP Sunday appointments, complete with cocktails and cake! (More on those here.)

Preparing for your first bridal appointment? One useful tip is to make sure you know (ahead of time) the dress ordering options available at the boutique you’re visiting, and how they fit with your bride-to-be budget.

Any questions? Just drop us a line and we’ll get right back to you.

Jess x

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How to buy a wedding dress to suit your budget

Different bridal shops do things differently, but here’s how it works at Alexandra Anne.

Whether you’re super-organised or Little Miss Last-Minute, we’ve got you covered. In a dress!

Off the peg wedding dresses – for the take-home-today bride

Off the peg (aka off the rack) dresses are a great way to get yourself a designer gown at a lower price. It’s also the ideal option if you’re short on time, or if you’re just not into the whole tailor-made thing. It’s simply a case of more speed, less fuss.

So if you’re a standard dress size, you can buy the sample dress we have in store. It will have only been tried on a few times max, if at all. Same day, take away.

Budget: £850 to £2,000.

Made to order wedding dresses – for the classic bride

Made to order dresses are the traditional choice for most brides. You find the wedding dress you like, we order it straight from the designer in your size. Tried and tested.

We take a 50% deposit when you’re good to go, and then we’ll contact you as soon as your brand-new dress arrives at the boutique to arrange a follow-up fitting.

When’s the best time to order your bridal gown? The wait time between ordering your dress and it being ready for pick-up can vary depending on the designer, but don’t worry. We’ll always do our utmost to make sure you have your dress with plenty of lead-up time before your wedding date, especially if alterations are involved.

Budget: £1,200 to £3,000.

Made to measure wedding dresses – for the bespoke bride

Made to measure dresses take things up a notch. During your appointment, we’ll take a selection of body measurements specified by the designer of your dress. We’ll then send these onto the designer with your dress order, and they will tailor-make the dress to them.

This way you’ll get a wedding gown that’s as close to perfect as possible for your size and shape. It’s what measuring tapes were made for. And it’s not always as expensive as you might think...

Budget: Starting from an extra £150 (depending on the designer and availability).

Outlet wedding dresses – for the bargain-hunter bride

As well as samples, we also have a limited number of outlet wedding dresses. These are designer gowns from previous seasons that have now been discontinued.

You get a heavily discounted designer wedding dress – up to 60% off the RRP – ready to take away on the day. We get more space on our rails for when new-season dresses come in. Deal?

Take a look at the outlet wedding dresses we currently have in stock in the boutique.

Budget: £400 to £1,200 (depending on in-store stock).

So, ready for some appointment action?

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