As a plus size bride I was really apprehensive about going to try on...

Swimmers are strong and fit so don't take offence by her comment.

I went to a dress shop a few months back and told her the style I wanted (fish tail) she looked me up and down and said we don't have any in your size so you will have to go for something else x

Yup. One shop I went in to has nothing bigger than a 12 so I couldn't fit in to any but they still made me try a few on. And every time went. Oops that's not gonna work. Horrified. I ended up getting my dress made buy a local seamstress

Research the place you're going to really well. Ask if they have a good amount of plus size dresses etc

I went to a place that claimed to have samples in sizes 8-30. They left me alone to pick out all the ones I liked, and then none of them would go anywhere near me. She pulled out the three dresses they did have and made me try those, even though I didn't like any of them.
I also went to two plus size shops and had wonderful experiences.

If you go to shops where you buy off the peg like Wed2b they have lots of dresses in all different sizes x

Sorry you've had such a bad experience. Is there a wed2b near you? They display the dresses in size order, and are much cheaper!

Try and get one made if you have time and money. Maybe a corset for the top and a separate skirt. Im alternative and found it hard to get a dress with black in, i was turned away from many shops because of how i looked. Corsets are amazing for curvy people. They look better on curves than slim jims. I hope that helps some what. X

I was really lucky. Not sure where you are but I went to Castleford for my dress to a shop called The Big Day. They were amazing and had samples in all sizes and colours. Get yourself there if you can good luck xx

Where abouts are you based? Celebrating curves in Sheffield have absolutely amazing reviews from brides x

I went to a plus size shop and tries some on in there. They were great with me, I didn't feel embarrassed at all. I found the dress that suited me and was comfy etc but it cost £800 plus fitting & storage. So I found nearly the same one custom made in China for £150. Waited until 3 months before, ordered it and it arrived 3 weeks later, perfect fit and didn't have the storage issues either!

Bless you, swimmers are strong people, take it as a compliment xx

Try and speak to the shops before you go, check they have the style you want

I called the shops before I went as I knew I didn't want certain things in a dress so called first to check they might have something g I would like/want. First dress was nearly perfect, third dress was the one

Don't leone bad experience put you off, you should be enjoying the planning and dress trying xx

I was a plus size bride was apprehensive about dress shopping but found a dress I loved in a shop that stocked Mori lee julietta which is a plus size range so ask wherever ur gunna go if they do a range and if they have any to try in ur size x

As a plus-size myself (high street 16) I went to Wed2B and had the worst experience ever! Finally found my dress in bridal boutique...much nicer experience altogether...dress is totally different to any others I've seen too but that suits my personality more...if u aren't made to feel special in a shop just walk away n try somewhere else hun x

This is why I'm dreading dress shopping 😩

A lady I know was told by the sales women as she walked into the shop "This will be difficult you are a very odd shape!"

There are some excellent plus sized bridal shops that have wonderful staff.

I used Heavenly Bodies Bridal who were fantastic.

http://www.heavenlybodiesbridal.com/

I had a horrific experience ... the woman who i'd emailed before with my dress size and what I was looking for ... looked at me and said what size did u say you were?? Then proceeded to say ooooo I haven't got anything that big ... I'm a standard size 18 .. I was mortified 😖😖 on the plus side I went to Embrace Bridal near Peterborough and I found my dress and had an amazing experience xx don't let someone who is small minded put you off for having a little more sand in the hourglass xx

I can recommend wed2be. I bought my dress from there and they have a good range of sizes. The staff were great. I went to the Leeds and Hull stores. I've worked in a bridal boutique but I didn't want to go to a bridsl shop for my wedding dress. I didn't want all the fuss and I also know the mark up on dresses. You will still get a beautiful dress at wed2be for half the price. Please also remember that wedding dress sizes are a law unto themselves. I was a size 18 and bought a size 20 dress. I was measured in the bridal shop where I used to work and to get oneof their dtesses, I would have needed a size 24 - 26! Wedding dress shopping should be a pleasure, dont give yourself a hard time and don't let one insensitive shop assistant spoil the experience xx

I'm only a size 14 but have a VERY wide back (have to wear extenders on a 40d bra) when I was in high school making a corset in textiles I had to add three whole panels to the pattern to make the back fit me. Definitely not something to feel bad about. Just the way you bones are. That aside my first shopping experience was awful went to a mobile dress company (they go to different venues like hotels and set up a shop like once a month) at the time I didn't have a date set in stone but I wanted to get an idea on styles. The lady was rude about the styles I was choosing rushed me in and out of the changing room in about 6 minutes and never once gave me any pointers into what would suit my body. I left feeling let down and deflated. Since been to wed2b and honestly the service and kindness I received there was second to none. Nothing was to difficult and they had sizes and styles to suit everyone. X

I'm not sure what area you're from but a member of my family owns a bridal shop that caters for plus sized brides. Brides of Churchtown in Southport x

The first time I went dress shopping I tried a couple of things on, and when I asked the size the sales assistant wouldn't answer me.... she just said "it's big"

If you find the right shop, your experience will be amazing! Head somewhere else and have fun shopping!!!

Elite Bridal in Castleford, Hull and Harrogate have most dresses in a variety of sizes and they are really great

I couldn't think of anything worse than going dress shopping, so I didn't. I knew pretty much what I wanted and found a dress maker instead. It cost £700 and the dress I got was made to fit every inch of me perfectly with multiple fittings. I had a dress that was truly unique and the process with the dress maker made it more special as I got to know her over the year and saw my dress from design to finish. She knew exactly what to do to make the dress flattering for my shape. If you have a strong idea of what you want find a dress maker

Depending on where you’re based Lily Rose Bridal in Warwickshire are beyond amazing. Friendly doesn’t do them justice! They went above and beyond to make trying on dresses (which I had been dreading) a wonderful experience. Helping me redesign the whole neckline of the dress I wanted so it would suit my shape. Such sweet girls who made me feel like I was their only bride. Well worth traveling if you’re willing x

www.lilyrosebridal.co.uk

What a rude woman.
Plus size brides look.glamourous so dont let her get to you
Go to a different shop
You.will look.beautiful in what ever dress you.have

About A Bride in Milton Keynes. Barbara is lovely. None of that rudeness you experienced x

I went to 1 in Weston super Mare & it was awful. Despite me ringing & specifically asking if they had dresses for the larger lady for me to try on & they said yes. When I got there 2 was all they had. And they really couldn't be bothered with me. Look up plus size brides & find those & arrange your appointments there I went to 1 in Barry, South Wales & 1 other place Worcestershire/Staffordshire I had an amazing experience. They couldn't be more helpful.

I hated dress shopping - my body doesn't look like I want/imagine it to! Also I requested a specific dress to try on and the bridal store agreed to try and find it at my expense, when I arrived to try it on they said they decided not to order it as it came on a size 8 and they guessed in advance it wouldn't fit! I ended up having 2 years of horrible experiences and then found my dress in Wed2B. I'd say take your favourite person and just have fun trying different styles, it's a no pressure environment and you don't make an appointment...

Yep. I walked into our small town bridal shop to be told whatever I wanted (even to try) would have to be ordered in. I went to Debenhams and found my own dress. I wrote about it on my blog with some ideas on where else to find awesome dresses. http://www.emmaandrich.co.uk/how-to-find-your-perfect-and-affordable-plus-size-wedding-dress/

The stores see so many brides all different shapes and sizes! Maybe she didn't mean it to sound horrible?
You'll probably go somewhere else and have a totally different lovely experience! Don't let it put you off.
I went on a lovely shop and I had to sign a disclaimer saying I had ordered a dress that may not have fit (on paper it was going to be smaller than needed) and that I was going to lose weight to fit in it! But I think that was to cover themselves in case I then moaned. Keep your chin up and keep looking!

I went to 3 shops. 2 were amazing and just so lovely! The other one weren't interested in me at all and she kept saying, as my bridesmaids pulled out styles to try, "there's no point trying that one. She won't fit in it!" Cheers love! And I'm only a size 14/16!!!

Don't let it put you off Hun. most bridal shops will be lovely and accommodating. If this one made you feel awful then don't go back to it. Go to a few more bridal shops and I'm sure the people will be much nicer. Good luck xx

Bless you. Don't let this put you off hun. Go 2 a different bridle store & enjoy the experience. You will find your dream dress. x

I had one fairly nice experience, one horrendous experience where I was treated like a time waster and rushed out of the shop and then my final experience I went to a bridal shop specifically for plus size women because they had the only solid purple dress I could find (which I chose) and staff from their 'standard' shop came over to see the bride who chose it and said how much it suited me etc which was lovely.

However frankly I'm disappointed I had to go to a specialist shop because the standard shops just do not stock the sizes so even if the dress comes in your size the sample is a 12 (which is more like an 8 in bridal gowns) and will always look like you've been squeezed into a sausage casing that's way too small.

I don't see why I shouldn't be able to go into ANY bridal boutique and be able to try on a sample gown in a size close to mine ? Surely they would get more business x

I didn't have a bad experience per say but I found not a lot of shops stocked dresses in my size in the style I wanted. So that disappointed me really x

I went to three shops one boutique for plus size, berketex these two were amazing and I'm glad I went to berketex first put me at ease right away! and another local one which was the worst experience if I'd have gone there first I still wouldn't have a dress first of all she ripped the top off a hoop skirt so I could fit into it still didn't go past my thighs, then after a couple of dresses I tried one on that actually fit but I wanted to try it with straps so the similar dress was only a 14, I'm a 20 so she says stick your arms through the sleeves to get the effect so I'm standing there in my bra and knickers with a mirror behind me and before I can say don't open the curtains she's done it and I've never moved so fast to get to the wall in my life, it was mortifying to say the least.
My other experiences were night and day compared to this I felt amazing in the other bridal shops even if a couple of the dresses didn't quite fit I still felt amazing and that's all down to the assistant. Don't let this out you off try looking for places that have plus size ranges in your area or are specifically for the curvier bride good luck and relax you'll find your dress x

I had mine made...no idea what size...never said I had lost or gained...whole experience was amazing. No squashing myself into teeny samples!

Bless you. I got married 4 weeks ago and was a plus size bride size 22-24, I went to davids bridal in Stratford and they had so many I could try on and we're so lovely. I tried one in each style of dress to find what suited my figure and we went from there. Mine was an oleg cassini dress and I love it. X

Look at Sonsie by Veromia a beautiful range of plus size wedding dresses, something for everyone with suppliers on the website, good luck xx

Trust me it's hot just plus sized brides. I'm not girly at all and I was really self conscious about not having curves when I went dress shopping because all the dresses seemed designed for curvy women. The woman at one bridal shop said I'd better stick to certain styles because the others wouldn't suit me because I was like a coat hanger. Not exactly a confidence boost!

My worst experience was walking in a shop where the lady looked down her nose at me & said you won't be able to afford anything here by just looking at me !!!! 😮😮😮😮😮
So I walked out & Wished to walk back in like Julie Roberts from " Pretty Woman !" & buy several lots just to dress that assistant down a notch or two !! ......

Sending you a big hug (((( ❤️ ))))
Another option to think of is ask for some quotes from a tailor just in case you have a design you can draw .... Warm wishes for locating the special one you will like a princess in ....

Plus sized bride here! Myself and my bride to be fall into that plus sized range. She found a dress she liked and I scouted local bridal boutiques for the designer and stumbled across a lovely boutique in Warwickshire called Bea's. They were wonderful. They treated us both wonderfully. Yes the dresses were a little too small but you could get an idea of what the dress would look like. There was one dress I actually held up as I knew I couldn't squeeze into it but they still made me feel beautiful. I didn't find my dress with them but my bride did. I opted for wed2be and found my dress. There is a specialised dress shop literally a street away from me and had wed2be not had a dress I liked then that was my next option. Wedding dress shopping is such a personal, emotional time that rude customer service assistants need a reminder of that.

Im size 20-22. Got my dress on eBay to avoid the stress of trying different dresses on as I hate dress shopping for normal nights out. Sent the seller my measurements and the only comment I got was about my bust not being much bigger than my waist ( I've got a broad back and small bust) I said that I wanted to have an inch extra for my waist area to give me room xx

I'm a size 6 and recently went with my mother and bridesmaids to try on dresses and the "lady" put me in a tiny dress that she kept telling me I would never fit into because she was tiny and couldn't even fit into it.. she compared our arm sizes and said yes see my arms are smaller then yours.. anyways I got into the dress and she proceeded to tell me I needed to lose a stone before my wedding.. I'm only a size 6 so losing any more would make me look I'll.. she then proceeded to make me try on dresses that I said I had no interest in telling me well I'll be putting it on you anyways. And the dresses I did like she continued to tell me I couldn't try on as they would be out of my price range, I didn't tell her my budget at all.. in fact I told her I didn't have a budget for my dress.. she was extremely rude so as you can imagine I left and found my dream dress elsewhere!!

I would highly recommend Wed2B, they were absolutely amazing from start to finish.
I am an anxious person and dreaded the bridal shops, I have a skin condition which makes the anxiety worse and every lady in the shop but especially the lady who dressed me was amazing. So helpful, kind and full of compliments.
They had every size and loads of styles, all easily laid out and you can just walk in, pick 4 dresses, wait a little bit of time (get a coffee) and then it's your turn to try on. 4 dresses at a time meant I didn't get overwhelmed and keeps the wait time down. And you can have as many trips in the changing room with 4 dresses as you need!
Hope this helps and good luck, keep positive, don't allow any comments to ruin your day

Depending on where you are, Beau Belles in Borrowwash (East Midlands) were brilliant when I went in! I'm a size 16/18 and when I went in they lady asked what style I was looking for and gave me a chance to look around, after I picked a couple she pick some two and in the end I like her suggestions more xx

I tried on a size 10 sample dress which apart from needing to be taken in a little bit around the waist, fit perfectly.
Ordered it in the size 10 even though they suggested getting a smaller size (I had no intentions of losing weight) and waited 6 months for the dress to be made.
When I went to try it on, it didn't fit and they told me I had gained weight or bulked (I'm a PT) and said all of this in front of my 12 year old daughter. Obviously I was highly distressed as I hadn't gained any weight and definitely didn't need to be told I should lose weight. I'm a happy size 8/10 in normal clothes.
Turns out they ordered the dress in the size 8 anyways but refused to acknowledge this as they hadn't written down a size on my paperwork.
I had no choice but to have the dress let out and micromanage everything I did for the next few months.
It was bloody horrible, really took away from my enjoyment of the lead up to the wedding.
It also meant I had to pay or extra money for all the extra fittings and dress alterations.
One piece of advice to all brides, make sure they write down which date your dress should be ready by and what size they ordered it in.

I had a wonderful experience with Wed2be as they stock a whole range and the staff in Bolton were brilliant! I bought my dress from "Because I love you" they were absolutely awesome and had a whole range of sizes to try in both their Bolton and Harwood stores, they were so fun and made dress trying fun and exactly how I dreamed, I too had a really bad experience but don't think everyone is the same. Best of luck in your search 🥂

Yes hun i was told i look like a fridge in my dress i know it sounds funny but it has stayed with me some people are so heartless x

I went to a local family run business in Poole...realised while there I know the brother of the woman there so that helped. I don't like big companies anyway...they never seem to have the time or patience to really listen and take care to know what you want x

The Bridal Suite Cheshire are specialists in selling The Curvy Collection xx

https://www.facebook.com/TheBridalSuiteCheshire/

I’m not sure where in the country you live, but I’m buying my wedding dress from Edith and Windsor in Knutsford. They specialise in plus sized wedding dresses and they couldn’t have made my trying on any more enjoyable!

How horrible for you! What a cow!
I bought my dress from Debenhams!
1- they have larger sizes
2- if you are not traditional (I am not) there is loads of choice
3 - if you go during a sale you can get a real bargain
4- you can try on dresses until you are blue in the face & no one is asking you rude questions or making you feel uncomfortable because you are not a stick
5- you are going to look fabulous in what ever you choose

I think this happens across the board... had a bad experiance at davids bridal on wed. Im a retail size 10/12.. i was being brought dresses in a bridal size 8 and obv couldnt fit and was left standing in or falling out of a dress for over 15mins infront of other brides etc...

Went to a small bridal shop afterwards and had an amazing time and found my dress! Xx

I was so lucky that I found Rosea Bridal because I had no negative experience whatsoever! Lucy is an absolute gem and you are instantly welcomed into the Rosea family. As someone who is really quite self conscious, I was honestly dreading having to go and find a dress as I'm not a 'normal' size and never wear dresses usually but Lucy picked mine and helped me so much. Don't let anyone ruin your experience no matter how much qualifications and expertise they claim to have! You will feel a million dollars on the day x

I went to a lady called Barbara Spice in St Leonard's and she made me feel beautiful. I would find a local seamstress. They aren't always mega expensive but will make the whole thing seem really special x

I had a girl come in with a size 10 mermaid dress to have me try it on. I'm a size 18! And the 10 was a bridal size
I wasn't sure about trying on dressed again as it was such a horrible experience. However my mum talked me down and I bit the bullet and did it. Ended up going in to a shop where the staff were absolutely lovely and took out samples that they knew I would fit.
You will find your dream dress and you will look stunning xx