How To Overcome Being Self Conscious of Arms & Stomach For Wedding Day

If you're worried about how you'll look in your wedding dress, you are no alone. So many brides are concerned about their body in their wedding dress. So many brides, in fact, that today's question came from one of our YouTube subscribers.

(If you ever have any wedding dress shopping questions, there's a great chance that we've answered it with a video on YouTube.Be sure to head over there for our videos and advice on all things wedding dresses...and so much more.)

Our bride reader asked, "Could you please do a video for us girls who are plus size, but still want to show off their body in something fitted. I have lost a lot   of weight, so I want to show off my body on my wedding day, but I'm a little self-conscious about my tummy and arms." 

At Lovella Bridal, we have wedding gowns that are size inclusive including plus size wedding dresses. We are so very passionate about inclusivity and are grateful that this question came through from one of our plus size brides. Many plus size brides and curvy girls want to wear a fitted wedding dress to show off their body and we are grateful to help you find the right dress for you. 

Thank you so much for sharing your question with us. We have some great tips for you on this topic, because we are asked about this quite a bit. Just remember that you can ask us anything, anytime about all things wedding dresses, you might just be our next advice post and video.

Wedding Dress Sizes & Ordering

We're not going to talk about wedding dress sizes today, instead we'll be focusing on finding the right dress for you, especially if you're feeling self conscious. However, we've done many shopping advice posts on wedding dress sizes. 

If you ever have any questions about sizing and how to measure for your wedding dress, be sure watch our video on wedding dress sizes. In this video, we talked about wedding dress sizing, plus size dress measurements and how the wedding dress ordering process works. We also talked about what to expect during the wedding dress ordering process. Please check it out right here. 

Common Concerns

Being worried about some part of your body, whether it's your arms or your stomach or your legs, is a common concern among brides. Almost all of our brides come to us with some concern about their body in a wedding dress. You aren't alone in feeling insecure, especially when it comes to the arms, stomach, tummy, belly and mid-section.

If you have concerns, please know that there are many (so many!) wedding dresses that will do an incredible job of making you feel confident in a wedding dress and will make you feel beautiful. It's our job at Lovella to help you find those perfect dresses for your body! But, trust us, when we tell you that the perfect dress for your body exists. It's out there! 

It's All In The Fit

When it comes to finding a wedding dress that makes you feel beautiful, it all comes down to the fit of the dress. If you want to show off your curves or hide certain parts that you don't love, it is all about the fit of your wedding dress and how it contours, or hugs, your body.

Whether you feel confident in a wedding dress that hugs close to your body to show off your curves, or feel better in a a dress that it more flowy and draped, either way, how that dress fits you will make or break your wedding dress. You'll want to find a wedding dress that beautifully contours to your shape just as you are.

You'll want to experiment with different wedding dress fabrics, such as lace, taffeta, tulle or satin, as well as try on dresses with different detailing like ruching and straps, in order to find the most flattering wedding dress that makes you feel beautiful. When your wedding dress fits your body and flatters you just as you are, you'll feel confident.

Try On All Styles

When you're searching for the perfect wedding dress and you're self conscious of your body, you'll need to try on dresses in all different fabrics, shapes and silhouettes. From satin to lace to mermaid and ball gown, there are many different styles and silhouettes to choose from. As you try on each dress, you'll learn a little more each time about what you love and don't love. 

Look at each dress from all angles when it is on your body, such as the sides and the back, to make sure that you love it from all directions. You'll be able to see how the lace lays across your body, or how the beads and sequins make you feel. You'll be able to see how you like straps or off the shoulder sleeves. You'll be able to see the conturing of the material as well as the cut of each style and how the seams lay across your body.

We always say here at Lovella that no wedding dress is a waste of time to try on. You'll learn something with each wedding dress that you try on. When you try on all different styles, shapes and silhouettes - even the dresses that you think you might not love - you will learn so much about what flatters your body the best. 

Make Changes You Love

With most wedding dresses, you can make changes and alterations to the dress. Small changes such as adding straps or taking away sleeves, can all be accommodated. And these changes can be all the difference in your dream wedding dress. As you try on dresses, take note of the different details that you love and that flatter your body. Also, make note of the details that you don't love as much and that bother you.

You can then semi-customize a wedding dress style and silhouette that you love by adding and/or taking away different details to perfectly flatter your body and achieve that ideal fit that will make you feel beautiful.

In addition to making changes between dress styles, you can also make changes to your wedding dress on your wedding day, such as removing or adding straps from the ceremony to the reception.

Keep and open mind and know that you can add or take away certain elements of any dress. 

About Those Sleeves

Now, let's address the arms and wedding dresses sleeves. Brides that are self conscious of their arms and want to cover up the arm areas, such as a crease in their under arm, stretch marks, birthmarks or tattoos, there are a few options to consider, like sleeves.

Many brides are self conscious about their arms and they think that a long sleeve wedding dress will cover and hide their arms. There are many times that a long sleeve wedding dress, no matter the season that you're getting married, looks amazing. However, many times we find that a long sleeve wedding dress draws even more attention to the arms, the very area that you're trying to hide. Be mindful that if you're trying to hide your arms, covering them up with the fabric of a full sleeve might end up drawing unwanted attention to your arms.

Make sure that you try on wedding dresses with and without sleeves to make sure that you see yourself in all options before you just decide firmly on a design element such as sleeves. See our tip above the importance of trying on dresses without sleeves, especially if you think that you have to have sleeves. You might surprise yourself. 

We have found that the contour of a wedding dress' sleeve matters the most. When a wedding dress is cut perfectly, it can flatter your body in all the right ways. Also, the placement of the design on a sleeve, such as a lace applique can be very sliming and it can be a great design option for brides who want to cover their arms.

In addition to full sleeves, straps, off the shoulder sleeves, and cap sleeves are great options to consider if you want to cover or slim your arms. With any sleeve, the biggest thing to consider is mobility, comfortability and heat. We don't want you to overheat in long sleeves and/or not be able to move around with ease in your wedding dress.

Video: How To Overcome Feeling Self Conscious On Wedding Day

 

Find The Right Shop

 

Our last piece of advice when it comes to feeling confident in your wedding dress is to make sure that you're shopping in the right bridal dress boutique to fit your needs. We wrote lots of tips here with advice on how to find the right wedding dress shop. Working with a dress shop that has lots of inventory and styles for you to choose from will matter a great deal. In order to find the right dress to make you feel happy and beautiful, you'll want to find the shop that has enough selection for your needs.

 

In addition, you'll want to work with an experienced bridal stylist who can pull and suggest dresses for you to hide or highlight your body so that you feel the most confident. With each dress that you try on, your stylist will learn more and more about what you love and they will be able to help you find the dress of your dreams.

 

An experienced bridal stylist will know the dress designers that have the design elements that flatter your body. They will know the cuts and the fabrics that will work the best for you. In addition, they will know the changes that you can make to the dresses to achieve the look and style that makes you feel your best.