Hello RMW lovelies...today is my biiiiiiirthday and as you read this, Scott & I will be registering our intention to marry at our local registry office. How exciting - one step closer! Definitely going to head on down to one of my favourite ever places, Champagne + Fromage, for some celebratory bubbles after (as I've said before, a girl has got to celebrate her engagement often and always!)

So, given that we are now 8 short months away from getting married, I have kicked up the planning a notch by FINALLY choosing my dress...or designer, I should probably more accurately say. Yes, I'm going bespoke! I couldn't be more excited. I first met Charlotte of Wilden Bridal way back in July this year when my bridesmaid Carrin and I visited her lovely studio in Surrey.

Every time I see one of Charlotte's creations I am giddy with excitement - they are just so beautiful! We spoke about dresses, and in particular, what I would like, for a good long time and it is amazing how knowledgeable Charlotte is about design and dressmaking. I consider myself a bit of a dress connoisseur (I don't own a single pair of trousers, honestly), but she blew me away and I am so happy that I have made this decision.

Going bespoke always involves taking a bit of a risk in that you won't have 'the one' moment that so many brides speak of (ok maybe you will, but only closer to the end of the process!) and that can be a scary thing to get over when you are making the decision of going down this road. I think Charlotte's work speaks for itself and I know I am going to be so happy with the finished dress. If you have any questions about the bespoke process so far, hollaaaa...I didn't really have a clue going into this what it would involve, so of course (being a RMW real bride!) I am only too happy to share my experience with you.

Wilden Bride

Before FINALLY making this decision, my Bridesmaids, Mum and I did visit several boutiques together which was such a surreal but amazing life experience. I found choosing which London shops to visit quite overwhelming considering there are SO many of them, and I don't have any close friends in the city that are married yet, so it felt like I was jumping into the boutique bridal store abyss alone! I also had to choose carefully because many places now charge you for Saturday appointments, and this is really the only day that my Bridesmaids & I could manage, given our busy weekday schedules. With a wedding to pay for, it wasn't feasible going to all of them, so I had to choose based on ones that stocked a range of designers that I liked.

I had good experiences at every one that I visited, with the highlights being Boa Boutique in Richmond (such lovely girls with lots of beautiful designers), The Secret Dress House in Reigate, Surrey (you have the entire shop to yourself!) and Dana Bolton in Muswell Hill (a seriously lovely lady with lots of absolutely beautiful dresses, all designed and made by her).

I did try on some incredible dresses (and my Mum cried at two of them) but in every one I felt like there was an element missing and it wasn't 'perfect' for me. I've always had a very strong idea in my head of what I would like my wedding dress to be, and trying on lots of different styles and designers meant I could tell whether this style actually flattered me or not. I'm hoping it does! I was always very open to potentially finding 'the one' in a boutique, but for me, it didn't happen, and 'the one' is being created especially for me as I type! If anything makes the wedding seem more real, it is this!!

If you're just starting off on the dress shopping experience, I have the following words of wisdom for you, which I hope are somewhat helpful:

Dress Shopping Advice

- Have a designated dress-shopping person or two (Mum, Bridesmaid, friend) who can come to every appointment with you. They will be able to help you compare all the dresses you have tried and loved, and give you honest opinions on what suits you best. I also found it really helpful because they pulled out dresses for me to try on that I wouldn't necessarily have chosen for myself that turned out really lovely on. After all, who knows you better than your family and friends?

- Limit the amount of boutiques that you visit otherwise it will get overwhelming. Study their designers and choose to visit shops based on this.

- Try on everything and anything to get a feel for what really suits you. The ladies in the boutique know their stuff and can tell what will look good on. You may think you're looking for a super simple vintage lace style dress, but then find 'the one' in a classic bridal mega train princess dress!

- Try to relax and don't worry too much about the fact you're standing in your underwear in front of a lady you don't know. They have seen it all, a million times, and then some.

- Spread your shop visits out - if you try and visit too many in day, all the dresses will start to blur into one. Whenever we visited a boutique, we tried to do it so that it was one per day, and then we made an afternoon of it after the appointment. So Boa Boutique for example is in lovely Richmond, which was the perfect excuse to go for a pub lunch by the river (with bubbles!) and then a long stroll in beautiful Richmond Park to visit Isabella Plantation (one of my favourite 'undiscovered' spots in London).

- Even if you think you don't want a veil, at least try some on. Sometimes they really transform a dress.

From day one, there have been no secrets for Scott and I's wedding - whenever someone has asked about our wedding readings, first dance songs, favour ideas etc I have willingly (in my excitement) shared every idea with them. Considering we are having a day which our friends and family are heavily involved in, this is a good thing for me - I want them to share in every exciting moment, and I know it's in no way going to affect their experience of the day itself if they know about our ideas before they actually happen. Probably they will just be even happier to see them coming together AT LAST!

That being said, I have decided to keep one very big secret: THE DRESS, and although some of my lovely bridesmaids have joined me in wedding dress shopping and know the sort of style I am aiming for, I'm now not going to let them see anything to do with the dress until wedding morning itself. I'm so looking forward to sharing this experience with my Mum and Charlotte, and giving it the reveal it deserves in 247 days!

I do have a favour to ask of you married, or closer-to-being-married-than-me ladies out there...can we talk underwear?! Say my dress had quite a low back, and I'm "blessed" in the bra area...do you have any suggestions of what I can wear underneath? I promise you I am up for picking comfort/support over sexiness (soz Scott) but if you have something that combines both please make my birthday and let me know about it, s'il vous plait.

So bridesmaids dresses - TICK
My dress - (sort of) TICK

Only Scott, Vinnie and the Groomsmen to go...

Until next time my lovelies,

Danielle xxx