Wedding Dresses Under $500 - Affordable, Not Cheap

When staring to shop for your wedding dress it can be overwhelming to have the sticker shock that often comes with Bridal Boutiques. In my experience Boutiques have dresses ranging from $800- 20,000.00 dresses. No one wants a cheap wedding dress that they don't feel confident in, thank goodness that now a days there are so many more options to finding an affordable wedding dress.

My first tip is don't skip Goodwill. Many times I have seen people finding designer dresses, with the tags still attached for less than $100 dollars. If you don't mind that someone had previously owned that dress, I say go for it!

My second tip is to look into online dress shops. There are places like Azazie and Avery Austin and more that have beautiful dresses at a very afforable price. They are also a great option if you have specific measurements that you need. You can order most of their wedding dresses custom sizes with little to no extra cost to you. The only downside to this is once you custom order, you can not return the dress if you don't like it.

To make sure you like dresses from these stores, they have "try at home" options where you can order 3 dresses for 10 dollars each and you can have a "Bridal Boutique" moment in the comfort of your own home. This way you can have snacks, drinks and a bunch of friends over to enjoy this experience with you.

All of these stores also sell affordable accessories like veils, shoes, jewelry and much more. On that same note, they also have bridemaids dresses. Making a day of trying on Bridal Gowns and having your bridesmaids try on dresses will help you to see your vision in person before you order anything.

Below are links to a few dresses for both Bridal and Bridesmaids:

Azazie Bridal: Florentina - $499.00

Avery Austin: Hazel - $489.00

Another option, without being able to Try On at home, is Etsy. You will be supporting local and small business owners while finding a dress that you love. The reviews for these will be imperitave so that you don't missunderstand or get confused with what is included.

Made by KHIMUKISTYLE on Etsy: $480.00

All of these options are wonderful ways to save yourself money on your wedding dress without sacraficing the type of style that you want due to the price. If you don't find what you like then keep searching. You can have your dream dress for an affordable price where it doesn't look cheap.

I wish you luck on your wedding dress shopping journey and I hope you find all that you are looking for and more!

-Taylor Okabe, Certified Wedding Planner