Every bride knows the importance of picking the “perfect wedding dress.” The dress has to be both flattering and appropriate for the wedding ceremony. One of the most important aspects of designing your wedding dress lies in your choice of skirt.

Skirt styles can either help bring focus to your gorgeous gams and figure, or it can help hide possible “problem areas” to create the illusion of a perfect figure. The following are some tips for how you can pick out the best skirt style for your wedding dress.

#1 Base your skirt style decision on your dress length

Your skirt style and dress length, when put together, directly affect the overall appearance of your wedding dress. Whether you’re planning on a casual wedding or a very formal one, choose the skirt style that flatters your figure best.

Skirt Styles for Short Wedding Dresses

Pencil Skirt: The pencil skirt has a straight appearance with a slightly tapered bottom. This type of skirt is usually knee-length or slightly above the knee.

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  White and cream wedding dress with assymetrical skirt styles
  Perfect for: showing off your glorious legs. This style looks best if you have a particularly curvy figure since the tapered bottom shows off your curves. It also works for girls with either short or long waists.
• Avoid if: you’re very petite or if you have heavy or stumpy legs. This style showcases your gams, so if you’re feeling self-conscious about your leg shape, you had better pick a longer skirt style instead.

Asymmetrical Skirt: This skirt style, as you can already gather from its name, has an uneven or asymmetrical hemline. The hemline is usually longer on one side. If you’re going for this style, make sure the skirt is not too loose or too fit.

• Perfect for: girls with toned legs and heavy thighs. The asymmetrical skirt style helps hide your thighs and draws the attention to your legs.
• Avoid if: you have cankles or shapeless legs, a longer skirt style would probably work better for you.

Skirt Styles for Both Short and Long Dresses

A-Line: The A-line skirt style is very elegant and simple. It can be narrow and slender or it can be made to be quite wide when it reaches the hemline.

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  A beaded wedding gown with an a-line skirt style
  Perfect for: girls of all shapes and sizes! Just remember that if you’re a bit bottom-heavy, you may need to have a wider skirt base for a more slimming and lengthening effect.
• Avoid if: It’s bound to suit you regardless of your height, shape or size.

Soft and Flowing: This type of skirt has a flowing quality without any definite structure. This skirt style flows softly and naturally from either the waist or the hips down.

• Perfect for: girls with curves. The flowing fabric delicately skims your curves, drawing attention to your assets subtly. You don’t have to be incredibly slim to pull off this look.
• Avoid if: you’re looking for something that masks unsightly bulges or “unwanted” curves.

Sheath: This skirt style is very elegant and stylish. It has a very simple design in that the skirt is fitted at the hips and falls naturally down to the hemline.

• Perfect for: girls with curves and a flat stomach. The skirt hugs your curves, so this style may not be too flattering if you have a tummy bulge that you want to hide. You don’t need to be skinny; you just need to have a relatively flat tummy for this skirt style.
• Avoid if: your most problematic area is your gut. Since the skirt style is incredibly simple and a little body-hugging, any unsightly bulges might be noticeable with this type of skirt.

Skirt Styles for Wedding Gowns and Long Dresses

Tube Skirt: This type of skirt resembles the pencil skirt but falls to the wearer’s ankle.

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  A white spaghetti strap wedding ball gown
  Perfect for: women with curves, petite women, and for the inverted triangle body shape.
• Avoid if: you’re bottom heavy or pear-shaped. This skirt style will only emphasize your lower body.

Column Skirt: This type of skirt lengthens the appearance of the wearer. It usually falls straight down to the ankles or just below.

• Perfect for: tall and leggy women, those with narrow hips and women with cankles or shapeless legs.
• Avoid if: it’s pretty much universally flattering and acceptable.

Ballerina Dress or Full Skirt: This skirt style has an almost “fairy tale” quality to it. It can help balance the top and the bottom of your dress perfectly.

• Perfect for: girls with full busts and slim hips.
• Avoid if: you have small breasts, wide hips or a petite figure. Small breasts and wide hips will only be over-emphasized by the wide base of the skirt. Petite women are discouraged from wearing this skirt style since the full skirt tends to overpower your frame and dwarf your figure.

Ball Gown: Another “princess-y” skirt style, the ball gown is extremely wide and is usually worn with a hoop underneath and/or tulle. Some ball gowns may also have the appearance of being pleated or heavily gathered at the waistline of your dress. Sometimes, the ball gown can be made completely of tulle for that extra “poof”.

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  A simple mermaid skirt style wedding dress
  Perfect for: brides looking to hide the body from waist down
• Avoid if: you’re extremely petite with a small frame. Although you can opt for this skirt style, be wary that too much “poof” might just dwarf your already small figure.

Mermaid and the Fish Tail: The mermaid skirt style is pretty timeless. The skirt is usually figure-hugging in the hips, waist, and thighs; the skirt later flares out delicately below the knee. While the fish tail skirt style is just a variation of the mermaid skirt, the fish tail usually has a fabric that extends from the bottom of the skirt at the back, creating the appearance of a train.

• Perfect for: girls with slim to medium-sized figures.
• Avoid if: you have slim hips and a relatively large bust. This skirt style will only make you look top heavy.

#2 Pick the skirt style according to the formality of the event. If you’re planning a very formal affair for your big day, you’re required to wear a long gown. This means miniskirts and micro-minis are out of the question. If you’re having a beach wedding, you may want to stay away from full skirts and tube skirts since they tend to impede your movement. Take into consideration the type of wedding you’re having and the venue when picking out your skirt style.

#3 Pick the skirt style according to what suits you. Refer to the list above to find out which skirt style works best for your body type.

#4 Find a skirt style that you’re comfortable with. When it comes to your wedding and the reception that follows, mobility is definitely the key to socializing. You’ll be making rounds the whole night and you have to dance with your new groom and your father, so you may want a skirt style that allows you to move easily.

Check out this collection of wedding gowns with different skirt styles.