Plain English. No prices. No affiliate links.
Understand the dress before you choose it.
Most of what is written about wedding dresses is written to sell one. The Gown Journal exists to explain: what a silhouette actually does to a body, why two lace dresses look nothing alike, how many fittings to expect, and what to ask before you sign.
Latest guides
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Style
Beach wedding dresses: fabrics that survive sand, wind and heat, the silhouettes that work, and what to skip
What makes a dress suitable for a beach, six fabrics rated for heat, wind, sand and creasing, the silhouettes that move over sand and the two that struggle, hem and train length, shoes, veils in wind, ivory in sunset light, and how to get the dress to a destination wedding.
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Style
Long sleeve wedding dresses: sleeve types, fabrics that let you move, and how to choose for the season
The five long sleeve types and what each does to the shoulder line and your arm movement, the fabrics that stay cool, the arm-raise test to do at a fitting, and how a sleeve changes which necklines you can have.
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Style
Open back wedding dresses: the back styles, what holds them up, and what to wear underneath
The six open back styles and how low each one goes, an honest account of what actually holds an open back dress up, the fabrics that suit bare and illusion backs, the sit-and-bend test, and how veils and hair work with a low back.
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Silhouettes
Wedding dress train lengths explained: sweep, court, chapel, cathedral and royal, with measurements and how each is bustled
The five standard train lengths with their typical measurements, what each one needs from the venue and the bride, the three ways to bustle a train, and how to decide whether you want one at all.
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Style
Vintage vs classic wedding dresses: what each term means, how they differ, and which one to choose
Vintage means a dress that revives a specific era; classic means a dress built to look right in any era. The differences in lace, silhouette, fabric and photographs, with a comparison table.
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Silhouettes
Wedding dress silhouettes explained: A-line, mermaid, trumpet, ball gown, sheath and empire
What each silhouette actually does to the body, where the skirt starts to flare, how much you can move, and how to walk into a first appointment knowing what to ask for.
By topic
- Silhouettes A-line, mermaid, trumpet, ball gown, sheath and empire: what each shape does, who it flatters, and how to choose between them. 3 guides
- Fabrics & Lace Tulle, satin, mikado, chiffon, crepe, and the many types of lace. How each one drapes, breathes, creases and photographs. 2 guides
- Style Boho, minimalist, classic, modern. Understanding the aesthetic families and the details that define them. 6 guides
- Planning Timelines, fittings, buying online versus in a salon, made to measure versus off the rack, and the questions to ask before you sign. 4 guides
- Accessories Veil lengths, jewellery by neckline, shoes, undergarments, and how to finish a look without overloading it. 2 guides
- Care Steaming, stain emergencies, cleaning and preservation after the wedding. 1 guide
How we work
One studio behind it, and we say so
The Journal is published by the team behind Lace & Love, a made-to-measure bridal studio. Where a guide points to the studio's own pages, it says so. We take no affiliate commissions and no third-party sponsorship, and we do not rank other businesses. About us.
No prices
Prices vary by country, by designer, by fabric and by year. Any number we printed would be wrong for someone. Instead, each guide tells you what to ask so you understand what is included.
Checked by people who cut patterns
Guides are reviewed with input from designers, pattern cutters and seamstresses. Where opinion differs, we say so. Editorial policy.