Best place to get little girl's princess dress?

[CoopTroop6]

I'm not sure if I'm posting this on the right board, but here goes!

I really want to get my dd (6yo) a princess dress to wear at the MK. I've been looking at the ones at the Disney Store & Etsy but I just can't bring myself to fork over $50+ on a costume! Does anyone know of anywhere that would have them for less $? I checked ebay too, but didn't have much luck...

 

[lyra2007]

They have them at Target for about $20, but they are cheaply made. I did get one on ebay--just keep checking. The very best ones we have are by Little Adventures--usually about $30--they are not licensed and don't have the princess charm, so they're not "real," technically. However, they have no zippers or other fasteners and they are not itchy and are VERY well made--our have made it through several cousins (and finally to us!). Best part is kids as young as 2 or 3 can dress themselves without help.

 

[angelmom27]

those costumes are hot and with this FL weather they can be unbareable. I would look around like on the disboutique and find someone who could make a cute dress for her. The material will be more comfy.

 

[Gorechick]

Disneystore will be having 25% off later this coming week. My DD7 wore sleeveless/short sleeve DS costumes this past August and did just fine. We had her regular clothes in a bag if she wanted to change.

 

[augusta1]

Not sure about all malls but our local Dismey Store just had a bunch on the clearance rack.
I second Target...not made the same but enough to make a little girl happy and look like a princess.

 

[CoopTroop6]

those costumes are hot and with this FL weather they can be unbareable. I would look around like on the disboutique and find someone who could make a cute dress for her. The material will be more comfy.

We'll be going in 2 weeks, so I'm not too concerned about them being hot. We live about 2hr from WDW and the weather is actually AWESOME right now!

 

[CoopTroop6]

Disneystore will be having 25% off later this coming week. My DD7 wore sleeveless/short sleeve DS costumes this past August and did just fine. We had her regular clothes in a bag if she wanted to change.

Oooh! Thanks for the tip! And I had also planned to bring a quick change, just in case. Did the dress part get in the way at all?

 

[4kids4karen]

Check to see if you have a second hand children's clothing store near you called "Once Upon a Child". They usually have second hand costumes at a good price. They also only accept clothing that is in new or like new condition.

 

[CoopTroop6]

Check to see if you have a second hand children's clothing store near you called "Once Upon a Child". They usually have second hand costumes at a good price. They also only accept clothing that is in new or like new condition.

Great idea! We don't have a Once Upon A Child near us, but we do have a couple of good children's resale shops. I don't know why I didn't think of that... Thanks!!

 

[mcuoghi]

Do you have a disney store outlet near you? I got dd a belle dress for $16 on clearance there.

 

[mimommy77]

Disney Store is your best bet. They have them on sale often. The dresses are constructed so much better than cheaper versions. Plus, they make them to fit to size instead of the one size fits all cheapies. I would skip the shoes and accessories if you are trying to save.

 

[angelmom27]

We'll be going in 2 weeks, so I'm not too concerned about them being hot. We live about 2hr from WDW and the weather is actually AWESOME right now!

We live 2 hrs away too and yes the weather has been great. Suppose to get hot this week but hoping we cool off soon.

The disney store clearance dresses are just like the ones at the parks. If you find one for a good deal. Best time is after halloween. Of cousre like others said target even walmart have cute dress up ones. Might even be a bit more comfy too. The fancy disney ones have a lot of that itchy netting. My girls do good at halloween with them but they would never survive the parks.

 

[richkaryn]

I've seen them at Big Lots for $12-20 (as well as disney princess wigs for $7and matching tiaras for $5)

 

[wilkeliza]

The style just changed from "winter" to "spring" so go to a Disney outlet or to a Disney store and see what they might have on discount. I know we had a few a TS Disney. If TS Disney had a few then the smaller stores may have them for sure.

 

[mrduck]

My wife bought our daughter a Cinderella dress with lights for $20 at toy r us.

 

[CoopTroop6]

Thanks so much to everyone for all the great suggestions!! Sadly, there dosen't seem to be a Disney store closer than an HOUR to me - and then only 1! And I live IN FLORIDA! Oh well... Actually, I think I may have lucked out w/ebay after all AND a local consignment store too! I've now got TWO princess dresses, as well as princess outfits I'll be putting together from existing items at home (2 different pettiskirts & princess shirts). We've now got Belle, Tinkerbell, Rapunzel & Aurora!! Woohoo! Gosh, little girls are so much FUN!

Oh - and to anybody else reading this thread, I had a wonderful site recomended to me. www.littledressupshop.com

 

[Hayliesmom]

It looks like you've already figured out what to do about your costumes but for anyone else reading I highly recommend getting a costume from the Disney Store rather than Target/Walmart/etc. The quality is completely different. Every dress my daughter has from the discount stores (which I actually work at one of those) have completely torn apart. The ones from the Disney store are still in pristine condition (even after being washed... inside a lingerie bag).

If itchiness is a concern my daughter actually wore a tank top and shorts under her dress (more so that she could change easily and take the dress off for water rides).

 

[CoopTroop6]

I highly recommend getting a costume from the Disney Store rather than Target/Walmart/etc. The quality is completely different. Every dress my daughter has from the discount stores (which I actually work at one of those) have completely torn apart. The ones from the Disney store are still in pristine condition (even after being washed... inside a lingerie bag).

I absolutely MUST second this. The 2 dresses I bought (from ebay & consignment store) are from the Disney Store and Disney World (originally bought in-park I assume). They are both far superior to the ones I found at Target/Walmart. In fact, the one from the consignment store (Aurora) had a huge stain on the front, so I got it for $2 (figured if it wouldn't come out it wasn't much of a loss). I soaked it overnight, then used spray-n-wash & tossed it in the washing machine (in a lingerie bag on gentle cycle) and it came out lovely! I hung it to dry in my closet, ironed the skirt on low, and it looks brand new! I'm pretty sure a Walmart one would have fallen apart. So the quality of the dress (no matter when you end up acquiring it from ) seems important.

 

[bxccah]

We couldn't afford to get them brand new from Disney store in England, but my mother found a second hand one that had a small tear in the netting- completely unnoticeable. It was a beautiful Belle dress, and our little one has no idea it wasn't brand new. When it comes to dressing up clothes, we do tend to see what we can buy second hand, because often it's very nice quality. WDW has cost us so much, so we are trying to find cheaper alternatives to buying all her dresses, wands, hats, pins etc in the parks!

 

[CoopTroop6]

We couldn't afford to get them brand new from Disney store in England, but my mother found a second hand one that had a small tear in the netting- completely unnoticeable. It was a beautiful Belle dress, and our little one has no idea it wasn't brand new. When it comes to dressing up clothes, we do tend to see what we can buy second hand, because often it's very nice quality. WDW has cost us so much, so we are trying to find cheaper alternatives to buying all her dresses, wands, hats, pins etc in the parks!

Us too! And it looks like you'll be there a couple of days before us! One of the best places outside the parks to get less expensive souvenirs is Walgreens. DH had worked for the for 15+ years, and no matter where in the US you go, they will have cute stuff for that place!