One of the most exciting parts of your wedding planning journey—besides saying “I do” to the love of your life, of course—is finding the dress. But let’s be honest: walking into a bridal boutique for the first time can feel overwhelming. When the stylist asks, “What style are you interested in?” you might just freeze and think, “I have no idea!”

If you’ve ever searched “wedding dresses” on Google or Pinterest, you’ve likely found yourself scrolling through endless photos of flawless models in designer gowns that could rival the price of a new car. It’s beautiful, but not exactly relatable, right?

When I got engaged, I found myself wishing for a blog that showcased real brides in gorgeous, affordable dresses that actually felt practical and inspiring—especially for someone planning a wedding in the Pacific Northwest. That’s why I’m so excited to share this blog, featuring some of the incredible dresses my Kate Holt Photography brides have chosen for their big day.

This collection isn’t about unattainable fashion or high-pressure trends. Instead, it’s designed to give you realistic inspiration by showing real women in dresses that reflect their personalities, styles, and love stories. From elegant A-lines to dramatic ball gowns, I hope this helps you walk into your first bridal appointment with confidence and creativity.

So whether you’re searching for vintage lace, modern chic, or whimsical boho vibes, take a look at these stunning dresses worn by real Northwest brides! Use these photos as a guide to explore styles you may love, and most importantly—have fun shopping for your dream wedding dress.

✨ Ready to feel inspired? Scroll through these real-life bridal looks, and make sure your wedding dress experience is one you’ll never forget. You deserve to shine! ✨

Dress Option #1 - Long Trains!

Long trains on a gown look so amazing and make you feel like a goddess!

Trains come in a bunch of different styles, but they can pretty much be broken down into two categories: embellished trains and smooth trains.

On an embellished train you’ll have patterns in the fabric with lace or beadwork which really needs to be seen from above, or placed on top of a solid color of flooring to be truly appreciated. These kids of trains are incredible as you walk down the aisle and have a very high-end feel to them. They are a blast to photograph as well for the intricate details on the train really draw the eye.

With a smooth train, you will have the top layer of the dress fabric extend back to form your train. These types of trains are great if you are going to get married outside, as they generally slip over grasses, sticks and brush a bit easier than with an embellished train which has lots of stitching to catch on things.

These trains since they are so smooth however, tend to show dirt and discoloration a bit more than the embellished trains, so if you are planning a fall or winter wedding where there might be quite a bit of precipitation, consider how you will react if your train gets dirt or mud on it and it shows a bit. Some brides are really relaxed about this kind of thing, while with others it tends to worry them, so make an honest assessment of yourself, that way you won’t cause any extra stress to your day!

Dress Option #2 - Sleeves!

When I got married if you would have suggested sleeves on my dress I would have instantly thought of those 80’s sleeves with the super-poofy shoulders and ruffled sides and I would have looked at you as if you were crazy.

Well, I’m here to tell you the sleeves of the 80s are NOT the sleeves of the 2020’s!

Some of my Kate Holt Brides have had THE most gorgeous sleeves on their dresses and to be honest, if I were to re-pick out my wedding dress now, it would definitely have sleeves.

Sleeves are especially great if you have any concern about how your arms photograph. In the last three years I have done a lot more weight lifting than ever in my life before which has made my upper arms a bit bigger, and so sometimes I’m concerned how that looks in photos. Well delicate sleeves with gorgeous lacework would put my fears at ease let me tell you what!

Even if you are having a summer wedding, sleeves are made mostly of a very lightweight and breathable fabric so you won’t have to worry about getting too hot.

Overall sleeves give an extra sophistication to a dress and are a beautiful option to consider!

Option #3 - A Volumized Skirt

Okay, so “volumized” might not actually be a word, but you get what I mean; the skirt portion of your dress has lots of volume to it!

A lot of people refer to this style as the “Disney Princess" style of dress, but it looks amazing on more than just Disney fans!

This kind of dress is super flattering to pretty much every body type and because of this a lot of the Kate Holt Brides I work with choose this type of dress style for their big day.

Having a big skirt is achieved by an underskirt with lots of tulle- a type of fabric which is super light weight but also rather stiff so when it is layered under satin or lace, it holds the support of the fabric and gives it that fuller look.

Dresses with a lot of tulle therefore may look quite heavy but they can be very light, and they also make dancing in them so fun!

A caution on this type of dress if you plan to get married in a more adventurous and wild environment. Tulle snags on small sticks, brush and dry plants rather easily, so be aware that it might be difficult to cross drier terrain that has a fair amount of untamed underbrush.

Dress Option #4 - A high neck-line

For those of us with a more athletic build and especially for brides with smaller chests, a high neck line can be a really flattering choice for the top of your dress.

This type of dress is really comfortable since it sits exactly where it is supposed to and dosen’t shift around on you, so you never have to worry about your dress falling down and shifting oddly like you might with a “sweetheart” strapless neckline.

With a high neckline you probably also wouldn’t wear a necklace so you can splurge on some really gorgeous dangling earrings, or a bracelet to steal the show.

Dresses with these types of necklines also commonly have elaborate or intricate backs to them which is a really gorgeous detail to have and which is the last option I’ll show examples of below!

Dress Option #5 - An Intricate Back!

Want to be a show-stopper both coming and going? Choose a dress which has an intricate back to it!

Most of the time when you go to a boutique, your assistant will pick out dresses based on the overall shape of the dress or based on whether it is strapless or not. Instead and for a bit of fun, ask them to bring you dresses which have really gorgeous details to the back of them and you may be surprised and get a larger selection of cuts of dresses to try!

When one of my Kate Holt Photography Brides dons a gown with a beautiful back to it you should hear how many compliments she gets! It’s just one of those outstanding details that people don’t expect so it gets them talking!

Plus, your photographer will have fun using different poses to highlight this portion of your dress that they might otherwise overlook if you had just a normal zip, button or tie in the back.

Bonus Option - Pockets!

Wait, what? We can’t figure out how to put pockets in women’s dress pants but now wedding dresses come with them? That’s right, welcome to this crazy world of ours!

I’ve seen dresses with pockets more and more frequently in the last few years, especially on dresses with fuller skirts and which are made mainly of satin. Those design elements make it very simple to hide the pocket in the seam of the dress so if this is an attractive element to you, you’ll probably have to say good-bye to the mermaid or skin-tight cuts.

But, what you’ll gain is a place to put your vows, tissue and lip color for touch ups! That seems like a pretty sweet deal to me!

If you fall in love with a dress which dosen’t have pockets, talk to the seamstress who will be doing your alterations- sometimes they can add these in!

Here’s a close up of a more satin-style dress’s pockets! — Here’s a close-up of a satin-style dress’s pockets!

I hope you enjoyed this little blog!

I certainly don’t pretend to say that every wedding dress option or detail is listed here, but my goal was just to give you a few things to consider when you go to pick out “the one,” so my hope is that it did just that!

For other wedding tips and tricks, check out my “Wedding Education” series which has educational blogs on all things wedding including timelines, reception tips, ceremony tips, how to choose if a First Look is right for you, how to incorporate your pet into your wedding, posing tips, stress reliever tips and much much more!

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