By AMANDA LILLIEamanda.lillie@austindailyherald.com

By the time many women getmarried, they have been dreamingof the perfect wedding dress sincethe day they first watched a Disneyprincess movie.

That’s why picking out a gowncan be one of the most importantparts of a wedding for a woman. Hi-lary Korynta, floor manager ofBelles and Beaus in Austin, saidsome women try on dozens ofdresses before choosing “the one.”Korynta has some tips for finding adress that is both comfortable andrepresentative of the bride’s person-ality.

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Korynta said bringing one or twotrusted friends or family memberscan be helpful so the bride-to-be can get honest feed-back.

“It’s good to bring one or two people with you tohelp with suggestions,” she said. “More than two canbe too many, though. Then it feels chaotic.”

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Some dresses may look different on the hanger thanon someone’s body, so being open to an array of stylescould make or break the dress-shopping experience.

“Different styles flatter different body types,” Ko-rynta said.

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gests starting by checking out gowns online first to getan idea of different designs. She also said to start witha few options rather than bringing 30 dresses into thefitting room at one time.

“I usually have girls try on five dresses to start —that’s a good amount,” she said. “Think about maybecoming back (a second time) to try on other things.”

Although some women get lucky and find the per-fect dress on their first trip to the store, many womenreturn between two and five times, Korynta said.

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Every woman wants something different in a gown,from traditional to poofy to glamorous and chic. Ko-rynta said it’s important to communicate with salesstaff so they can find dresses that fit the bride-to-be’spersonality.

“Vocalize what you want and communicate with theperson helping you at the store,” she said. “It’s veryhelpful if someone tells us. Some people are afraid ofoffending us, and they won’t.”

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“Having it altered by a professional can really make

a difference,” Korynta said. “Sometimes you have topay for that, but it is worth it.”

Some brides end up spending their wedding nightsmiserable because they choose to wear 4-inch heelsrather than have their dress hemmed, but Koryntasaid the night will likely be much more enjoyable ifthe woman wears lower heels and spends the extramoney on hemming.

“It really is worth the price — then you can reallyenjoy your wedding,” she said.

Above everything, Korynta said not to worry aboutthe little things.

“Relax and enjoy it,” she said. “Don’t stress aboutthings that aren’t important. You want to like (thedress).”

Dress forsuccess

Herald file photosFinding the perfect dress is a key ingredient to a perfect wedding. Save the stress andstrive for the gown that fits you best.

Pick a dream gown foryour dream wedding