Shopping for Wedding Gown

[Belle & Ariel]

I went wedding dress shopping with my daughter. She has watched too many episodes of Say Yes to the Dress because her idea of an appropriate amount to spend is way more than ours---our other daughter got married a year and a half ago and did not dream of spending crazy amounts for a dress like this one does.
Can you all recommend websites or stores that sell dresses that won't break the bank?
Thanks!

 

[maxiesmom]

What is your idea of not breaking the bank? $1000? $500?

Are you looking for Craig's List cheap?

 

[2disneyboys]

my mother told me up to $xyz is what we are willing to cover anything else, you pay for. maybe that's an option?

 

[21hearts]

How far off is the wedding? I know David's Bridal has a $99 dress sale every now & then. I don't know when it is but I do remember seeing commercials for it every year.

 

[allegoricduck]

J.Crew sometimes has sales on their dresses--mine was very simple and only a few hundred dollars.

 

[dakcp2001]

What is your budget? That will help us steer you in the right direction! I also watch that show and let me tell you, that is not the real world! lol.

 

[annsteere]

I totally agree with an earlier poster. When DD got married we wrote a single check. If she wanted a small wedding she could do a house down payment. If she wanted a blow out she'd have to contribute.

That saved me from missing the delight of shopping with her. If she spent a lot of money on shoes that I figured would be invisible under the wedding gown, I just smiled and said "yes, those are really pretty."

Not second guessing each of her choices, or thinking "if only you would do XYZ you'd have more money do ABC" was a great way for us to enjoy the process.

 

[scrapquitler]

my mother told me up to $xyz is what we are willing to cover anything else, you pay for. maybe that's an option?

My wedding dress came from JCPenney's Bridal Catalog. I don't know if they still have that. I lived near a regional distribution center, and they had an outlet store there. I got my wedding gown there for $99 I was thrilled, since I was paying for it myself and just couldn't see paying a ton of money for something that i was NEVER going to wear again.

 

[maxiesmom]

How far off is the wedding? I know David's Bridal has a $99 dress sale every now & then. I don't know when it is but I do remember seeing commercials for it every year.

One of my co-workers just got married, and her gown was from David's Bridal. Don't do it!!!! When her dress first arrived it was way too short. They had to re-order it, and it came in a week before her wedding. Then it was way too long. I would stay away from them.

 

[Lucille1963]

When I got married my parents gave me a budget for everything which I could spend as I wished, and left over money I could keep for myself.

I found a fabulous designer to do my wedding dress. My mother scoffed at the price, convinced me it wasn't worth it and that another person could do just as good of a job. So instead of the professional wedding dress designer, we went with a lady working out of her home. She was slow, and despite our constant pestering, I got my dress two days before my wedding, and I wasn't happy. I could have sewn it as well. The bridesmaids dresses were so wonky, I was ripping out seams the night before, while I tried on my mother's gown and another vintage one that was lying around.

Thankfully, that was the one thing that went wrong and DH and I just celebrated our 9th anniversary.

When it came down to it, I had the money for the original dress in the budget and to this day I don't like looking at my wedding pictures because I hate looking at the dress. Sure I saved money, but at what cost? Whatever you decide on, just make sure it isn't too much of a compromise.

 

[khiguchi]

I bought my dress on eBay

 

[RachaelA]

We need to know your budget/limit.

 

[superme80]

I got my dress at David's Bridal and people still compliment me on it. I think mine was around $199 and my alterations were about $120. I was able to buy off the rack. Good luck.

 

[englishteacha]

I bought my dress at a local bridal shop. It was under $400 including alterations. To me, that was HUGELY expensive, but it was perfect, and in the world of wedding dresses, $400 is quite affordable. Several friends also got their dresses there, and all were reasonably priced. We were paying for our wedding ourselves, so all our choices were our own. I would set an amount you are willing to pay towards your daughter's wedding and tell her that anything over that, she and her fiance have to pay for.

That said, David's Bridal has some decent sales. I wouldn't get the alterations done there, though. All my friends who got dresses there and had the alterations done there were unhappy with the alterations. Hems came undone, bustles tore, etc. I'd go to some small bridal shops and see what they have to offer.

 

[disprincessatheart]

Look for outlet centers in yur area. I didn't buy my dress there, but since you get to look thru everything yourself, I got to try on as many as I wanted to see what I liked. That helped me narrow down my search for later as far as styles and fits that worked for me, and got me thru the initial rush of dress shopping.

 

[renessa]

My sis had a fancy wedding in August. She fell in love with a $1400 Demetrios gown. We wrote all the style numbers and sizes down and went home to think. I did some online research and got the dress for $769. The online retailer also has a brick and mortar shop thats been in the family 30 years. I read reviews and checked with BBB. So, find the dress of her dreams and look for online (authorized) retailers that sell the exact dress for less. The dress came earlier than promised and it was perfect!!!!

 

[MrsPete]

I had a $99 dress from a place similar to David's Bridal (it cost another $100 for alterations -- they took the skirt off and "raised it" to make it shorter while preserving the ruffles around the bottom). It was PERFECT. Admittedly, this was 22 years ago.

A non-financial lesson: Suggest to your daughter that she listen to other people's opinions. I went into the first dress shop knowing EXACTLY what I wanted. I wanted something very simple, white satin, cathedral train. I tried on this dress, and I was very happy with it -- ready to buy it. My mom pulled another dress off the rack and insisted that it was better. Just to make her happy, I tried it on . . . and, oh, was my mom right! It was NOTHING I said I wanted. Well, it started with white satin . . . but it was 100% lace over that white satin, and it was topped with pearls and sequins. The skirt was layers and layers of ruffles, and the train was short. But it suited me soooo much better than what I'd chosen based upon magazine pictures. Once I tried on the "right dress", I realized that "more was more" and the long-long train I'd wanted was too much for my short frame.

Back when I was buying my dress, people used to say that you should plan to spend the equivalent of one year's clothing expenses on your wedding dress. I thought that was crazy-high then, and I think it's crazy-high now. You have to find a balance between "this is the only wedding I'll ever have" and "I'm going to wear this dress once".

 

[Tistal]

I got my dress at David's the dress and alterations were about $450 (and it was a plus size gown). My friend also go her dress at David's and she said she spent about $600, but she had to have a lot more alterations than I did. All I needed was a bustle and the straps shortened; she needed a lot of alterations (she's pear shaped).

 

[kim929]

I bought my dress at David Bridal never had a problem. The consultant was awesome. My cousin bought hers at the same Davids and had problems. I think it all depends on the consultant. I watch the show Say Yes To The Dress with my daughters all the time. Some of those brides kill me. One spent 24,000 on a custom dress only to hate it when it came in so her father dished out another 30,000 for the dress she really loved..... the guys they marry have no chance

 

[An_Island_Girl]

Oh how I wish I had a Mom like you!

I made the mistake of falling in love with a "big name designer" gown that was $7,500. Looking back now, I think of all of the things I could have spent the money on that would have made a much bigger impact than the few hours I wore it.

My advice would be to shop around... heck, try some more expensive boutiques, just to know what styles, shapes, train & veils look the best... then find an alternative that fits the highlights your daughter is looking for.

Best wishes to the bride to be!