horrified over bridal gown size charts :(

I want to say 'don't worry about it' but it's the most important dress you'll wear and have every right to worry. I will tell you that most wedding dresses made for trying on are sized for the runway. You'll be beautiful in any gown/dress.

This should be such a happy experience for you! I'm sure you will look great in the dress of your dreams. When is the big day?

Yeah, don't wedding dresses run a couple sizes small anyways?

Bridal gown sizing is wayyyyy off, I used to have G cup breasts and had to order a size 18 gown just for the boobs and they took the rest in accordingly. I was a size 14 at the time. I found this:

Bridal sizing goes back to a scale established during World War II that used data intended for making uniforms, Moore [Senior vice president of merchandising and product development at retailer David's Bridal] explains. The scale also was used for ready-to-wear clothes, but over time, sportswear adapted its sizes to reflect changing body shapes, while bridal, for the most part, didn’t.

…The order is based on the woman’s largest measurement: bust, hips or waist. If her hips and waist are an 8 but her bust a 10, she gets the 10; if her bust and waist are 12 but her hips 14, she gets the 14. (Samantha Critchell, Associated Press).

Ignore the size, and just enjoy the experience of buying a fab dress for your special day. :happy:

Size 10 or 12 women are considered plus size models! Don't beat yourself up, be proud of your accomplishment! You are going to look better than if you had not lost anything. Size does not matter, it is how you feel that matters. Congratulations on your weight loss! :flowerforyou:

I worked in a bridal shop for years, and yes, the sizes are seriously messed up. When you decide on one, they'll order one much larger than what you need, as they have to base it off of your largest measurement. Don't bother telling them you're losing or will lose weight, as EVERY bride says that, then they usually don't and get angry when the dress doesn't fit. I'm not saying you're not going to, i'm just saying that's what happens a lot.

You can do this. Don't let the sizes get you down. focus on what you're there for, to find the dress of your dreams. If they don't fir you, they can clip and hold them so you get an idea of what they'll look like. The most important thing is to enjoy yourself. The numbers don't mean anything.

I was a size 10 wedding dress when I was 19 and I weighed around 120 at 5'4". Now at 160 I'd probably be a size 18 or something even though my regular dress size is much smaller. Don't worry about the size.

I think they always put you in a larger dress than you need so they can alter it--alterations sometimes cost almost as much as the dress --from a recent mother on the bride (3 times in the last 6 years).

A 34 " waist and the dress size is 20W ??? That's crazy. "...as a result of various cultural pressures, most notably vanity sizing, North American clothing sizes have drifted substantially away from this standard over time, and now have very little connection to it. Instead, they now follow the more loosely defined standards known as US catalog sizes." From Wiki ... for one comment.

I am a seamstress and I have been frustrated by dress sizes for years. I have also altered both wedding gowns and bridesmaid gowns and find the sizing frustrating. It's the fit that counts, not the size on the label. Each gown fits so differently.

Find a dress that you love and don't worry about the size on the label! There are some gorgeous gowns out there ... you might have to shop around and try outlets where discontinued gowns are sold at a fraction of the original cost.

Good Luck!

When I went to get a bridesmaid dress in the fall, I was in a size 9 jeans and I bought a size 12 dress. It looked good on and their sizes are always screwy! I love corset dresses! I had one for my wedding, and you can be sucked and squeezed in all the right places! Very flattering! I bet your fiancé thinks you are beautiful in any size!