If you’re looking for Indian bridal wear in the East Coast, you need to hit up NJ. Let us be more specific – you need to be at the Oak Tree Road in Edison, NJ. Bridal wear options you’ll find at the Fashion Queen Store in NJ won’t disappoint. But for getting a perfect dress for yourself, you need to grab a cup of coffee (or how about the good ol’ Indian chai?) and read this Indian wedding dresses shopping guide!
First, let us answer the most commonly asked questions regarding Indian wedding dresses!
What Color Are Indian Wedding Dresses?
India is the most culturally rich country you’ll ever come across. Consequently, Indian wedding dresses in various regions are different.
Most Indian brides wear a wedding saree or a lehenga. In the South, most brides prefer sarees whereas north Indians, especially hindus & Punjabis, prefer lehengas.
Red is considered the most auspicious colour for Indian weddings. Red represents happiness and brings good luck to the married couple.
Hence, most bridal lehengas are red. However, don’t limit yourself with this colour choice. The trends are changing and many brides are picking pastel coloured lehengas for their big day.
Another thing to notice here is you probably will wear more than one lehengas. There’s the ceremony lehenga and then a reception lehenga. Many brides prefer to wear a lehenga for their mehendi too. If you’re a Punjabi bride, you’ll need to have additional outfits that could be a sharara suit, Anarkali suit or a traditional salwar suit.
So, if you picked your ceremony lehenga in a shade of red, you should definitely experiment with colours like green, gold, pink, orange, purple, coral and tangerine for your reception lehenga.
If you’re a guest in an Indian wedding, avoid wearing black and white. Both of these colours are considered inauspicious during the wedding ceremonies for white is the symbol of mourning in the traditional Indian culture.
Since the bride almost always wears red, you should try to avoid such a colour too. But make sure you’re picking something traditional. You can surely visit Fashion Queen – top Indian bridal store in NJ and have our team recommend you an outfit ideal for a wedding guest.
What Are Different Types Indian Wedding Dresses?
Now, let us introduce you to some of the Indian wedding dresses so you have a better idea on what you need for yourself whence you go shopping.
1. Lehenga Choli or Lehenga
It’s basically a skirt and blouse outfit that’s normally laden with intricate embroidery. Lehenga choli is actually the traditional outfit worn in the Western states of Gujarat and Rajasthan in India. The same outfit is worn during weddings by North Indians.
Usually, the bride wears a red heavy embroidered lehenga which is referred to as Bridal Lehenga.
But it’s not just the bride that can wear a lehenga. In fact, the bridesmaids often dress themselves in lehenga shade that complements the bride’s outfit, letting her take all the spotlight while also being proud of her girl tribe.
2. Saree
It’s 4-9 meter long unstitched cloth that’s draped over the body in different styles. Sarees are the traditional wedding dresses in South India.
3. Salwar Kameez
One of the most worn dresses in North India happens to be the Salwar Kameez. It consists of loose trousers narrowed at the bottom paired with a tunic top.
However, there are many variants of salwar kameez that are popular as Indian wedding dresses, especially with the wedding guests.
For example, a sharara suit usually has wide-bottomed trousers paired with a tunic whereas an Anarkali suit is a flared gown-style dress, quite like the normal gowns you may already be familiar with. The only and major differentiator is that an Anarkali suit has heavy embroidery making it suitable as an Indian wedding dress.
4. Indian Wedding Dresses For The Groom & Men
The groom often wears a sherwani – a long-coat like garment that’s often worn over a kameez (Indian tunic) paired with a salwar (Indian trousers).
Nowadays, Indo-western styled sherwani and garments are worn by men for Indian weddings.
If you’re a wedding guest, you could also consider a kurta pajama – which can very much be the slightly toned down version of the Indo-western dresses and sherwani.
It might seem perplexing for men to look for an apt outfit for Indian weddings but Fashion Queen Bridal store has a great collection of Indian dresses in NJ for both men & women. So, all you need to do is to stop by our store once, and we would love to introduce you to all the Indian wedding dresses.
What To Consider While Shopping At Indian Clothing Stores?
If you’re in the East Coast, you immediately need to drive to NJ. Indian clothing stores in NJ have everything you need for preparing for the Indian wedding. However, below are some tips to help you navigate your Indian wear shopping like an expert!
1. Make A To-Buy List
The outfit isn’t the only thing you need to buy. So, preparing a list beforehand is crucial.
If you’re the bride-to-be, here’s some of the stuff you’ll need –
- Ceremony Lehenga
- Reception Lehenga
- Dresses for other functions – decide what you’ll wear for these ceremonies and write that down.
- Jewellery & bangles for each of the outfits
- Shoes for each of the outfits
- Additional accessories like latkans, kaleeras, chooda, & hair accessories.
If you’re the wedding guest, you’ll still need to –
- Decide what outfits you’re going to wear
- Get the jewellery and additional accessories
- Get the right shoes
2. Define Your Budget
Put together an estimate for your total budget. Keep in mind to count the cost for everything in your to-buy list.
Indian wedding dresses in NJ start from the range of about $500 and go upto a few thousand dollars depending on the kind of dress you’re picking. Hence, it’s impossible to give a finite range you need to estimate. Consider what’re your requirements and set a budget for yourself.
3. Find Your Bridal Style
The toughest shopping experience is for the bride – the pressure, the uncertainty and the cost may make you restless. However, with a little research, you can define your bridal style before you set out for shopping.
Spend some time looking for latest bridal wear trends on Instagram & Pinterest. Decide the basic colour and style of outfits you’re planning for yourself.
All this research will help you make confident decisions while you go shopping.
Remember, you have to plan a different look for every function. The colour and outfit style will vary a lot, thus balancing your wedding trousseau.
There you go! Now, that you have good information about Indian wedding dresses and an idea on the pre-preparation before the shopping day, you’re all set to shop for Indian wedding dresses in NJ. Don’t forget to come by the Fashion Queen store for your Indian bridal wear shopping! You can also follow us on Instagram to stay updated about our latest collections & for more Indian wear inspiration!