One thing that comes up again and again when we speak to brides who are coming in to see us is the infamous "sample size" and the fear that that phrase brings to many of us!
We have loads of brides getting in touch worrying about whether or not they're going to "fit in" to our samples.
"I just wanted to check before I book..."
"I just wanted to let you know..."
"I'm just a bit worried that I won't fit in to the samples, because..."
Bridal babes - PLEASE stop feeling like you need to 'warn' people that you are not a size 10. PLEASE don't let the endless images you see of perfect looking brides make you feel like NORMAL people don't get married. And PLEASE do not think that we are going to open our doors to you with a look of horror and tell you none of our dresses are going to fit you and you may as well just go home now.
We get it, there are plenty of horror stories of bridal stylists making women feel crap about themselves and of bridal boutiques full of size 8 samples and nothing else. So, rather than us tell you what not to worry about, let us just tell you how "sample size" works at Rock the Frock.//
RTF bride Alice wears MilaMira. Image by Simon Biffen
Our samples range from size 8s to size 16s. We have one sample of each dress, so not all of our dresses will be in your size, but we also have years of experience working with samples, so we know just how to clip and tuck our beautiful dresses to show you how they'll fit when they're made for you and not for our rails.
To demonstrate, here are some photos of RTF Essex's lovely bridal stylist, Laura!
Laura wears a high street size 16/18. Here she is:
See?
She looks lovely right?! She doesn't look like she's been zipped in to the point that it's hard to breath or move does she?! That's because she hasn't! We have clipped the dresses to fit to her, cos that's the way we roll.
RTF bride Giovanna wearing her Chantel Lauren gown. Image by Jo & Marcus
All of our dresses are made to order and every one of our designers offers their designs in "plus sizes".
But even when we did stock designers who didn't make in over a size 16 (ie. the AVERAGE dress size in the UK. Yeh, that's why we used to stock them.), our amazing seamstress was on hand with additional fabric to make sure that our brides could always have the dress they wanted!
But it's not just plus size brides who worry about samples - petite brides can get frustrated with trying on endless samples that don't fit them, too.
Sample dresses are made to be long enough for everyone, meaning they are (far) too long for most of us. But never fear! We will make sure that you can see how your dress will fall once it's been tailored to fit you perfectly.
RTF bride Holly in Otaduy. Image by Joseph Kinerman
Our point is - every body is different. Some of us have longer arms; some of us have shorter legs; all of us are bigger than someone and smaller than someone else. We are different - that's what makes us beautiful! And that's also what makes wearing a wedding dress so FUN!
You will have your dress altered to fit you PERFECTLY. How often do your clothes fit you perfectly in day-to-day life? I'll tell you how often - never! There's always a little extra fabric here or there, and that's fine for every day. But on your wedding day you want to feel like your dress is made for you - and that's exactly how you will feel in your Rock the Frock dress.
And in the samples, well - that's what we (and our clips!) are here for.
We can't wait to meet you and see you looking gorgeous in our dresses!
So get a wriggle on - book your appointment now!
Love,
RTF x