As a little girl you will always dream of your wedding, the man, the guests, the venue the food but the overiding thought that dominates all of this is the wedding dress and hence this is most possibly the most important clothing item that any woman will ever buy in her life.

The buying of the wedding dress needs to come in various sections and areas need to be considered before the main decision of which dress should be purchased is to be completed. I had visions of what design and type of dress I wanted from a very young age however when I became engaged I started to write a list of everything I wanted for the wedding and the dress specifically and point by point this is what I did, and most importantly what worked -

* My initial response to the dress was to make a mood board. I researched dresses on the internet and took no notice of cost, which is possibly a good thing to do because you should choose your style of what you desire and work to the budget according to this, there will always be something to suit you in your budget.

* My mood board collated images from the internet, magazines, photos of other peoples weddings and what I liked about them and how I envisioned myself walking down the aisle, what I would feel comfortable in and what would suit my body shape.

* Of course the main decider for the board consisted of what material I wanted the dress to be in and colour to. White as in pure white can make people look incredibly pale so be very wary when choosing this, the best colours are off white, ivory and cream. Alternativey look at bright colours or pastel shades because you might just find the perfect dress to suit you rather than playing it safe with the traditional.

* The second main factor is to what shape you require the dress to be, however you may have something on your head and want to stick to it but when you go to try them on allow the assistant to make suggestions as sometimes what you have in your head maybe completly different as to what will suit our body shape and style, you might be pleasantly surprised.
The main shapes however are - a line, column, mermaid, ballgown, vintage and short and the most regular style is generally a line and the most popular.

* To enter wedding dress shops may be very daunting at first so a word of advice before you start. Always make an appointment and never just walk in! Phone up, book and make sure you allow at least 2 hours between each appointment if doing several on one day.

* Go with your mum or bridesmaids or close family member who you know will be brutally honest with you, and dont take anyone that says you look lovely in everything!

* Wear white underware, a strapless bra although you may need to take this off anyway, and tights as this will help to pull any unwanted areas of your body in.

* If you have already bought your wedding shoes then take them with you or at least a pair with the correct heel depth you wish as this will help determine which shape again fits best and length.

* Go with an open mind!

* Consider drastically the venue that you intend on getting married in, a country manor house suits beauitful a line and ballgown type dresses whereas short and intimate registry office weddings may require something a little less romantic.
Allow the venue to suit the dress and vice versa.

* Consider also the season in which you intend to get married as dresses come in many shapes, sizes and of course layers! These can make you incredibly hot or cold so again choose according to season.

* Never go for a meringue dress but incorporate class and elegance for the true wow factor.

* If you wish to have a veil and these can make any simple dress make incredibly beautiful then allow yourself to choose a simple dress as an over fussy dress with a veil will clash and distract from the whole look.

* If you want to loose weight then let the assistant know this prior to trying on dresses as this could affect shape and fittings in the latter stages of fitting. When you have reached a beautiful shape and look within the dress stick to it and dont loose more weight as this can seriously impact on the dress shape and look as well as length.

* One final and vital point is also to check sale rails before trying on the most expensive dresses in the shop. Always ask the length and period of time of which it will take for your dress to be ordered and fitted and always go to purchase a dress at least 6 months before the wedding as many are ordered in to size and can take weeks.

Most of all enjoy the best trying on of clothes youll ever have!