The Hosts of TLC’s ‘Brides Gone Styled’ Reveal the Ultimate Dos and Don’ts of Wedding Dress Shopping

Photo: TLC

Robert Verdi and Gretta Monahan totally get why people are so infatuated with TV shows about weddings: They’re a magical fantasy, and yet, somehow totally relatable. “It’s like, what the Oscars is every year to just five women, a wedding is to millions and millions of women around the world, every day,” says Verdi.

The two style experts are hosting Brides Gone Styled, a new series premiering tonight at 9:30 on TLC. In each episode, a bride with overly eccentric, not-quite-wedding appropriate style is turned over to the team by her family and friends for a serious lesson in aisle-ready fashion and beauty.

Explains Verdi, “We take girls whose families or fiances are worried that they’re going to make a mess of the big day, and we help them navigate to a place where they feel fabulous. They’re totally aware that this is a watershed moment; that it’s the biggest moment of their life.”

So what makes Brides Gone Styled different from all those other bridal shows? “It’s a total makeover transformation,” says Monahan. “Most shows just focus on the dress, but we actually give her a total beauty plan and an artistic team to explain exactly what each dress she might choose is going to get in terms of hair and makeup.”

In anticipation of tonight’s big premiere, we got Verdi and Monahan to share their biggest Dos and Don’ts of shopping for a wedding gown. Read on for their insight, then check out a sneak peek of Brides Gone Styled, below.

(And make sure to tune into Brides Gone Styled on TLC, tonight at 9:30/8:30C!)

DO bring your own shoes.

Both Verdi and Monahan agree that trying on dresses while wearing the shoes supplied at a bridal salon is a big NO. Not because it’s kind of gross (which… it is, a little), but because it’ll mess with your height and your level of comfort.

“Don’t wear the shoes that they have in the salon,” insists Monahan. “Bring your own shoes in the right heel height. If you’re short, get the highest damn platform you can find, because it’s gonna change your entire silhouette—the proportions, everything. And if you know you’re a flats girl because you just can’t hack it, then you had better bring flats.”

Adds Verdi, “If you’re trying on a shoe and it doesn’t fit, you’re very conscious of it, and it affects what you’re seeing in the mirror.”

DON’T ignore your own style and taste.

Right now, there are more bridal styles available than ever—and as far as Verdi’s concerned, almost anything goes. Don’t want a cupcake dress? Don’t wear one! And if the idea of wearing a jumpsuit down the aisle appeals to you, make it happen.

“For a long time, brides only had a few choices to pick from,” he explains. “There was this idea of what a bride’s dress should look like, and that’s completely been abolished, because it’s all become a new fashion space where women can really express themselves and their personal style on their wedding day. So you can get married on a beach wearing a pair of shorts and a bandeau, and look just as gorgeous as a very traditional bride who gets married in a cathedral in a princess-like gown.”

DO wear false eyelashes.

Though you might feel a little overdone putting on false lashes to simply go shopping, Verdi insists that it’s crucial: Nothing will get you more in the mood to go looking for a wedding dress—probably the most meaningful item of clothing you’ll ever wear in your life—like getting a little glam.

“No naked eyes,” says Verdi. “I’m a firm believer in the bride wearing false eyelashes [to shop]. You should have tarantulas on your eyes when you’re trying on a dress. Lashes make every girl feel sexy and glamorous. With a lash look, you start to feel your glamour.”

DON’T wear a lousy bra or bad underwear.

It’s what’s underneath that counts. Wearing saggy, unflattering undergarments when you’re trying on wedding gowns can mess up the whole appointment.

“Wearing a bra that doesn’t work for trying on wedding dresses is the worst,” laments Monahan. “I think that women all too often head into the bridal salon unprepared, and they’re dissatisfied, and it leads to tears. I worked as a bridal assistant as a kid, and I would look at people in their dresses and be like, ‘What are you wearing?!’ Grandma underwear, bras that have no support, loose straps… if you’re wearing underwear to suck you in, that’s great—but if they’re droopy, and if they’re stretched out cotton underwear with prints on them… they’re not gonna look great under a wedding dress.”

DO shop for the body you have now.

Many women choose to diet before their weddings, but shopping for a gown is something you typically do long before you’ve neared the big day (or your goal weight). It may be tempting to look for a dress that’s the size you hope to be at your wedding, but Verdi thinks that’s not the smartest move.

“Don’t dress for the body you’re going to have,” he says, matter of factly. “Dress for the body you do have. Don’t worry about that 25 pounds; find a dress that looks absolutely gorgeous on you the way you are, and if you do lose the weight, you’re going to alter [the dress] because you’ll have several alterations along the way, anyway. Try to find a dress that makes you love the way you look in whatever size you are.”

DON’T forget about your budget.

When you’re calculating your budget—particularly how much you can spend on your dress—don’t forget that your gown is only part of your outfit. There are lots of other factors to consider, including your veil, which can sometimes cost $1,000s.

“A lot of girls are forgetting about headpieces, jewelry, shoes, undergarments, new bra, alterations… try to think about it in a more complete sense,” warns Monahan. “A lot of brides are like, I’m gonna spend $2,500 on a dress, and then I’ve had women come back to me almost in tears saying, ‘Well I just didn’t think about what I was going to wear on my head; I was only thinking about the dress, and not about all that goes into it.”

DO consider going strapless.

Many women, especially those who are on the bustier side, are afraid that wearing something strapless is an accident waiting to happen. Not so, insists Verdi.

“A strapless gown is different [from a tube top], because it’s fully corseted,” he explains. “It has an undergarment that is sucking you in, and you won’t fall out of it because your hipline won’t allow the corset to slip down. It’s on you, both holding you up and preventing slippage. Once you try it on, you will feel comfortable in it—more comfortable than you think.”

DON’T ditch your personal beauty aesthetic.

Though you may be tempted to go super glam on your wedding day, don’t switch up your beauty look entirely. Sometimes it’s those small imperfections that are the most beautiful. Yes, even a little frizz!

“What really makes a woman beautiful on her wedding day are the natural elements that are mixed in,” says Verdi. “So when her hair’s a little tousled, a little messy, a little imperfect, she looks much more modern and much more beautiful. There have to be elements of her style spirit there. And if it’s stiff, she looks like she’s in a costume—it does not look like her. You need to look like yourself on your wedding day: Your best, most amazing, beautiful, gorgeous, perfect self… but yourself.”

DO let your fiance go wedding dress shopping with you.

OK—this one was divided. As far as Monahan is concerned, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with letting your future husband (or wife!) see you trying on your dress before the big day. As she sees it, it’s a way to create even more fun, exciting memories as a couple.

“I think that it really depends on the girl, and what her fiance is to her,” she says. “For some girls, this is their shopping partner, this is someone who they want to have fun with during the journey of selecting and doing. It’s kind of like the engagement ring: Sometimes a girl is surprised, and other times, she helps to create the ring. I think there’s no changing the fact that, the moment she steps out on that day, everyone’s going to gasp. So I think, if she wants and he wants to do this together, it can be just as good and create amazing memories.”

…Or, DON’T!

Verdi disagrees. Though he doesn’t normally consider himself a traditionalist, he feels that some things are best kept secret until the altar.

He explains, “It’s weird that I feel this way, but I always get uncomfortable when the groom is in the room. I do think that, for that moment, you want to surprise the person you’re going to be with. I feel like that’s part of the excitement and part of having that moment, is that person seeing you in a different way. It’s almost like… not to be too dramatic, but a rebirth. And if they’ve already seen you get ready, they wont see you in that different way.”

As promised, here’s your sneak peek of TLC’s Brides Gone Styled, hosted by Robert Verdi and Gretta Monahan:

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