Bridal shows

[nle5]

About a month ago I got an invitation to a bridal show for the Phoenix, AZ area and was going to attend. The invitation said wedding dresses will be given away every hour and that the wedding dresses will also be on sale for 20 - 80% off. They will also have about 400 vendors that will be able to help you plan your entire wedding. Has anyone ever attended a bridal show or do you have plans to attend one if one comes to your area? If you have attended one, what are some pointers for those that might attend one in the near future?

[SOM Z28]

Get there early. Most have registration cards to complete (usually good for a drawing later), and there will be lots of people standing around filling them out.

Wear comfy shoes.

Take labels with your name and address on them, like return labels for your mail. Trust me on this one. Every vendor will be offering some type of giveaway or you might just want info from them that they don't have at the show, but will mail to you. For a few bucks, you can get printer labels at Target or wherever and print them yourself. You'll save yourself a cramped hand too!

Take a tote bag for carrying stuff you collect. Although some vendors give these away, you might not get one at the beginning of the show.

Take EVERYTHING you can. Brochures, business cards, etc. Even for stuff you don't think you want. Might sound like a waste, but you might decide you want something you'd never considered before.

Take the groom, if he's interested. My FH wanted to go and he had a lot of fun. There will be lots of grooms there, so he won't be alone. I'd guess that about 25% or more of the attendees of the show I went to were male.

I also recommend you attend more than one show. I went to one in August and did most of what I mentioned above. Then I took it all home and sorted through it. As as it sounds, I got a multi-pocket folder and sorted stuff by category so it would be easy to reference later.

I am attending the same show again in February. Since I'm already planning, I will only be hitting the vendors that I really need, like florists and bakeries. That way I can avoid wasting time on dress boutiques and things I don't need. Plus, I'll be visiting the vendors I need for some one on one talk during the 'fashion show'...that way I won't be competing for the vendors attention, b/c everyone else will be watching the show!

Have fun!

[nle5]

Those are some really good ideas. I plan on getting my wedding dress at the show this time and then getting any other information that I can. My FH and his mother are going with me as they want to be a part in planning the wedding. I have already been searching the vendors websites that they mentioned will be there so that way I have an idea of which ones I would like to visit. My FH is going to be looking at the dj's and entertainment as that is the biggest thing that we do not have right now.