You’ve spent months searching for your perfect wedding dress, but have you thought about what you’ll wear underneath it? Choosing the right underwear and lingerie to wear under your wedding gown is just as important as the dress itself – you want it to be comfortable yet sexy and supportive yet sleek. Some brides like to wear their bridal lingerie underneath their gowns the entire day, while others will choose to go a more practical route and wear something comfortable. When considering your bridal lingerie, make sure you ask yourself these questions to find the right fit for you.
What lingerie works with my dress?
Before you start dreaming of all the sexy lacy things you might want to wear to surprise your groom on your wedding night, start with the most practical question of all: what lingerie works with my dress? Depending on the type of bridal gown you have chosen, there will be different options available. A-line and ball gown dresses are fairly forgiving, meaning that you’ll have the most options in terms of underwear and bras. However, if you have a strapless or halter dress, you’ll have to choose a bra that accommodates those styles. Mermaid, trumpet and sheath dresses are less forgiving, meaning that you’ll have to find seamless slips or underwear and possibly shapewear to make everything look smooth and neat underneath. Backless and low-back dresses will require sticky boobs, adhesive tape or even pasties to keep you from revealing too much accidentally. Think about how you can avoid panty lines while also keeping everything supported underneath your dress in a practical sense, then start thinking creatively.
Photo Credit: One Wed
What type of bra should I wear?
Unless you feel totally comfortable going braless on your wedding day (we still recommend sticky boobs or pasties to keep things PG), choosing the right bra for your dress is equally as important as choosing the right pair of shoes. Keep in mind what your style of gown allows: some dresses provide enough coverage and wiggle room for you to wear a normal everyday bra, a bustier or even a sexy corset underneath. Bustiers are often seamless yet provide more support than a typical strapless bra, making them a good choice if the bodice of your dress allows for it. There are also bras made to accommodate low-back styles, both strapless and with straps. These convertible bras are versatile and often work well underneath moth wedding dress styles. However, backless gowns, low cut gowns or sheer gowns all will work best with an adhesive bra with cups that stick at the sides. If your dress falls under one of these categories, double sided fashion tape is your best friend on your wedding day.
Photo Credit: Katie May
What type of underwear should I wear?
If you’ve got a princess style ball gown, or anything with a large skirt, you can wear any underwear you’d like. Boyshorts, full coverage panties, sexy thongs – all of the above will work well underneath your gown. However, if your dress is a little more form-fitting and made of a less forgiving fabric, you’ll need to find a seamless option that won’t leave you with unsightly panty lines on this important day. Even though they aren’t the most sexy, seamless nude panties, shapewear or seamless thongs generally work best with slinky, form-fitting dresses. If you decide to go this route, you can always change into your special bridal lingerie after the reception.
Photo Credit: Plums Lingerie
What color should my lingerie be?
Most wedding dresses are a shade of white, meaning that nude undergarments will be the least visible underneath. However, many wedding dresses are made of thick fabric or many layers, giving you more leeway with the color of your bridal lingerie. Incorporate your something blue in your wedding day undergarments if you’d like! If you want to wear your sexy for-his-eyes-only lingerie underneath your dress all day, make sure your gown is thick enough to hide any details, including the color. Although it sounds counterintuitive, white lingerie can actually be more visible underneath white dresses so be sure to try on your entire outfit with the lingerie before the wedding day to make sure everything looks good. When in doubt, choose something that blends well with your skin tone.
Photo Credit: Charm and Lace Boutique
Should I wear shapewear or pantyhose?
Spanx has revolutionized women’s fashion, making it fairly simple to keep things looking smooth and tucked in underneath all clothing. So it makes sense that shapewear is often on a bride’s radar when considering what to wear underneath her gown. There is a variety of shapewear out there that can help you with your needs; longline bras, bodysuits, thigh shapers and full coverage shapewear all achieve different things for different women. Are you interested in keeping everything tucked away and supported? Full coverage shapewear will do the trick. If you want the same effect without being so bound, try wearing a slip underneath your gown to keep things smooth. Longline bras will provide more support than a regular bra while also helping to shape your midsection. Bodysuits keep your tummy tucked in while also providing support for your bust. Pantyhose and thigh shapers will keep your legs looking long and lean, and there’s plenty of sexy varieties of hosiery (thigh highs, anyone?) that will look great with your bridal lingerie.
Photo Credit: Her Room
The style of wedding gown you’ve chosen will greatly affect the style of bridal lingerie you can wear on your wedding day. If possible, bring the lingerie options you have to your dress fittings so that you can feel and see what it would be like on the actual day. Remember that color is important underneath a white gown, and if you plan to wear a special piece of lingerie, such as a corset or bustier, try wearing it for an extended period of time before the wedding day so you can get used to how it feels. There’s nothing worse than relying on an undergarment and realizing that it’s horribly uncomfortable on the day of. Most importantly, go with what you feel comfortable with! Whether that’s braless, full coverage or shapewear, what makes you feel comfortable will make you feel the best on your wedding day. Save that sexy bridal lingerie for afterwards!
