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Are two wedding dresses better than one? The rise of the multiple wedding dress
Many brides are now following the Hollywood lead and choosing more than one wedding dress for their big day – but is it worth it? And what are the style tips you should be thinking about if you go for multiple wedding dresses?
When Jennifer Lopez finally tied the knot with Ben Affleck this year, she chose not one, not two, not three, but five wedding dresses!
The songstress wore two wedding dresses for her Las Vegas wedding – one from an old movie (below), suspected to be Jersey Girl, the comedy she filmed with Ben when they were engaged first time round.
Then for her big ceremony at Ben’s house in Georgia, she wore three different dresses – a custom Ralph Lauren for the ceremony and then two different dresses for the evening do.
Jennifer is not the only celebrity who has decided on more than one wedding dress – Rochelle Humes, Nicole Peltz and Ellie Goulding have all gone with different dresses, whether that’s for the reception, photos or just for fun!
What are the pros of having more than one wedding dress?
A second dress is great if you’re stuck between two styles, that way you can have your (wedding) cake and eat it. It’s also great if the wedding is in a more traditional venue, such as a church. You can then dress more formally for the ceremony and change into something a little sexier and slinkier for the reception.
The second (or fifth dress if you’re an international pop star and actress) also gives you the freedom to have a bit more fun with it. You can go shorter. Ditch the uncomfortable corset. Wear trainers. Add in a bit of colour. You get the drift.
Most damage is often done to dresses during the reception, so if you’re hoping to keep your wedding dress to pass down to your children one day, choosing a second dress for the reception is a great idea – and means you can continue drinking that red wine without any worry!
There’s also the drama of making not one, but two show-stopping entrances. If you’ve been planning your wedding for some time, you’ll want to reap the rewards.
What are the cons?
The obvious con is the cost. Wedding dresses can be super expensive. Two even more so, but there are ways around this. The second dress for example could come from the high street or perhaps might be a hand-me-down from your mum or grandma for extra special sentimental value.
Like it or not, there’s also the sustainability element to consider. It’s pretty wasteful buying one dress that you’ll only wear for one day, let alone two, but if you’re determined to go for a second one, why not rent or buy second-hand? It’s also good to try and buy sustainable when you can, which is one of the reasons we created our green wedding dress collection. Of course, whether you choose one or two dresses, there are many ways to recycle your wedding dress.
How to do multiple dresses
While we may not all have the budget of J-Lo, she did do the multiple wedding dresses right by choosing a full-on drama dress for her vows and then changing into something slinkier for the evening do.
(Photos: Twitter @jlobeauty)
When choosing your dresses, remember that your first dress is the one that you’ll have most photos of, so that should obviously be the one you love the most and want to see years down the line. That’s not to say there won’t be any pics of your second dress, but there’s less precious on this one to be picture perfect.
A pared-down dress like Posy, our one shouldered-dress, or our Elsa slip dress make a great reception wedding dress. They have more of an evening feel about them, aren’t restricted (so you can dance the night away) and while still very elegant, definitely have a sexy feel about them.
We also have lace toppers that brides can wear over these simple dresses for the ceremony part of the wedding. Its'a then a quick and easy to remove before the dancing begins!
If you're going to change into a whole new dress, you need to schedule some time into the day’s celebrations to ensure you can change. This isn’t something you want to rush; however, it will give you a chance to take a breather from the events of the day as well as a chance to refresh your hair and makeup as well.
If your reception dress is a lot less formal than your ceremony dress, you may need to get your other half to change their look up a bit as well, whether that’s changing completely or removing their tie if wearing one.
Then there’s just one thing to do – have a whole lot of fun!
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