Saving for your wedding dress

Every girl dreams of their perfect wedding, of walking down the aisle to meet their future husband in a perfect white dress, looking like a princess to the mesmerised children you walk past. Everyone says you look beautiful as the perfectly-fitted dress hugs your body.

Well, that is the dream at least. In reality, the perfect wedding dress can be very expensive and some women find they have to compromise on the dress because of price. But with some helpful advice, you should be able to afford the dress of your dreams, as long as you save wisely for it.

Putting money aside for your wedding dress, and your wedding in general, is a sensible idea as it removes a lot of the worry nearer the time and allows you to be able to afford the best possible wedding when the time is right. By saving now, you are spreading the cost and giving yourself peace of mind that, when you meet Mr Right, you will be able to afford the perfect dress and perfect wedding.

The best place to save your money is a good account, with a high rate of interest that will give you more money back for what you invest. The best investments can be hard to come by so research needs to be done to find the savings accounts with the best interest rates. The most valuable research is done within the banks themselves - each will have promotional information, posters and leaflets that will show you the most attractive deals and savings rates that it has to offer. Some comparison websites will also offer a comparison service between savings deals, allowing you to research the information in one place. It is advisable to look at a couple of banks before making a decision, though.

The best savings accounts to look for first are ISAs. The biggest benefit of an ISA is that it will not be taxed on the interest that is accrued on your money. Most other banking and investment deals will take a proportion of the interest you have earned as tax. However, the government will allow a saving of £5,300 per year in a tax-free ISA. This means there will be more interest to spend on that perfect wedding dress. All banks offer ISAs, but each institution's ISA will have a different interest rate. This is where your research comes in, as the research will tell you the best ISAs on the market, and therefore the best place to put your money.

If you are setting money aside for a future date and do not want to be tempted into touching the money in the meantime, the best type of option for you may be a fixed account. These work by investing your savings for a set amount of time at a set interest rate. For example, if you had £10,000 to invest, then an investment bond will take that money and fix it for a period of six months to six years (depending on how long you choose) at a fixed rate of interest. That money cannot be touched (unless you pay a penalty) until the account reaches the end of its term. At that point you will then have access to your money again, but with all the interest added. A savings bond is not the only type of account you can fix - ISAs can be fixed too, but only up to the amount of £5,300. The added plus of a bond is that there is no real maximum, allowing you to invest however much you want for as long as you want. At the end of the term the money will be free and untouched, ready to spend on the perfect wedding.

If you do not have a lump sum available and would like to save more gradually towards the wedding of your dreams, then there are options that will allow you to do that, too. Monthly saver accounts will allow you to set up a standing order, paying the same amount into your account each month. The money is automatically sent, so it is an easy way to save as you do not need to do anything other than wait for the money to accrue. It will not be long before your savings account is full of money ready to spend on your wedding dress.

Any of these options will help you to save and, with the aid of your research, you will be able to pick the best deal at the best interest rate, giving you more for your money and more to spend when the time is right. Although weddings can be expensive, by planning ahead you are not leaving yourself short of money, and there will be no surprises when the wedding bills start to come in. With your investments safely behind you, all that is left to do is plan your dream wedding and start shopping for that perfect dress.