Shopping for Wedding Gown

[saucymb]

Another David's Bridal gal here. Saw a dress I liked in a magazine, took a picture of it with me (along with a few other pictures). The sales girl couldn't have been more helpful, pulled all the dresses for me and asked what I wanted to try on first. I tried on the one my mom and I really liked the best (she couldn't be with me that day but my Maid of Honor was there) and didn't try on anything else. Took it home with me that day. Off the rack, around $350. Minor alterations done by my high school best friend's mom, and she wouldn't let me pay her (she said it was her wedding gift to me - and she made my train!).

My mom and dad paid for most of my wedding, they gave me a number and if I went over, then I had to pay the difference.

 

[angierae]

Honestly? I bought my dress secondhand from a bridal shop. It was $300, and about another $100 for alterations. The original price was much higher.

 

[KarenAylwood]

I just got married last month. People have very different views of what's "reasonable." Some are under $2K, some are under $500. All depends on the person, so we'll need some more info

One thing I will say is that I have a budget wedding book and it went on for four pages why they could not recommend David's Bridal even though they are "budget." I would look around some wedding shops in the area before I'd go there- my friend found a gorgeous dress off the rack for a steal. Or maybe go to David's to get an idea of what you're looking for. I personally did not have a great experience there.

You could also always go the used route: http://www.oncewed.com/used-wedding-dresses/ I know many brides have had luck with this.

 

[cseca]

Places like JCrew, Ann Taylor and even Costo sells bridal gowns now. Anthropologie I think has them too. They're still in the hundreds but I don't think they go up to thousands.

If you still has lots of time between now and the wedding, do some research on ebay. There are tons of dresses custom made by places in china. But that requires you to give them the measurements. The bad thing is that you have to trust them the good thing is there are tons of styles for much cheaper than brand name dresses.

Good luck!

 

[mrsklamc]

I wanted to find a David's bridal $99 dress but DMIL was all about shopping. When I put on THE ONE, I was so glad she had convinced me. It was $700 but I don't regret it. Here's the designer's site:

www.maggiesottero.com

 

[englishteacha]

Mrs.Klamc, my dress was very similar to a Maggie Sottero! Unfortunately, the Maggie I liked was beyond my price range, so mine was very similar by a less expensive designer. My friend bought a Maggie Sottero from the same bridal shop I bought my dress at. It was one of the samples and she got it for under $300. Oh to be a sample size...Sigh. Gorgeous dresses.

 

[Hmom]

Bridal store samples might be a possibility. A friend got a beautiful sample for $75.

Another friend made mine. I found "the one" and took her with me to see it. I found some magazine pictures of it for her & she took it from there. She is an amazingly talented seamstress! Fabric & her time = $600 Not bad when the original was around $2500

She also altered my mom's dress, the flower girl dresses (twins!) and made my maid-of-honor's dress.

Good luck!

 

[foltzy]

Got mine from David's bridal. Dress was $500 and needed no alterations but did cost me $50 to get the bussel done (I waited until to late to have it done and had to pay a rush fee) I paid $100 for the bra, skirt thing for under it and the veil.
I feel like I got a great deal for it all. I had a fantastic consultant though. I went in with one style and she showed me others and the one my mom cried over is the one I bought. I loved that dress and still do. That was almost 8 years ago.

 

[gillenkl]

I bought mine off the rack at a bridal outlet store where is was marked down for less than $100 I think my alterations were around $150. Honestly no one knew and I was totally happy with it.

 

[Good Morning Dewdrop]

I agree completely with the give her a budget suggestion from many other posters. For our wedding my parents said $5000 total and I kept it there. 21 years later dh and I are still happily married. Nothing at our wedding was over the top but it was a great day!

Honestly if I knew what I know now I would try on gowns at the stores AND I would check all other places espcially CL and goodwill (sounds nuts but there are tons of wedding gowns there that someone paid a fortune for and you never know one might just be perfect!) And then I'd make a good decision.

I enjoy watching "say yes to the dress" but the amount of $$ they spend on a dress blows my mind sometimes!

 

[a1tinkfans]

One of my nieces got hers off the rack at a local store for 100. she was a sample size and got so lucky, no alterations, but had it cleaned first.

My other niece spent well over 5K (and I must say it was stunning!)
but sadly just 4 years later she is headed for divorce.so sad and everyone thought she was so happy.....
I really wish all young people would SPEND more time on getting to know whats really important to both partners rather than SPENDing so much on the Engagement party blowouts, bridal shower blow outs and HUGE expensive weddings and gowns...the emphasis has changed from years past....or am I just too old???..

Anyhoo, sorry to digress...OP,
Perhaps Figure what YOUR budget is as you are paying and then let her choose what she can OR spend her own added money...
Good Luck and May her Married Life be filled with Happiness!

 

[Mom_Rides]

$500 at Davids Bridal got me: my dress, slip, vail, headpiece, dress bag and my mothers dress My girls got discounts on their dresses and the cost came to $100.20.

They wanted to charge me some outrageous amount for alterations so I went and found a seamstress that specialized in wedding dresses and got a fab deal. $200 for all my alterations, my flower girl dress (made to match mine exactly), flower girl slip and she gave my bridesmaids 20% discounts for their alterations. I still use her shop to this day.

My sister bought her dress from Davids as well and paid around $500 for her dress, wrap, slip, and hairpiece. We ordered our bridesmaids dresses for her wedding through them as well. They ordered mine a size too small and wouldn't exchange or return it for me because it was a seasonal dress. But my wonderful seamstress, by the grace of God, was able to make it work!

My mom gave a budget for the total wedding and whatever was leftover, we had to pick up on our own. Good luck and congrats on your daughters pending marriage!

 

[sookie]

Ann Taylor has some beautiful formalwear that I would wear as a wedding dress if I had to do it all over again.
I got my dress from David's Bridal. It was the top line they carried so it was 800 dollars. I think with alterations, crown, veil, slips / undergarmets and buying my four bridesmaids dresses (I would never ask a person in my wedding party to pay for their dress!) I spent about 1300.

here is my (new) dream wedding dress. I'm thinking my husband and I will do a renewal at 10 years (two years away) and I want to wear THIS.....
http://www.anntaylor.com/ann/produc...tPageType=fullPriceProducts&defaultColor=9129

 

[Pooh2]

My daughter got a $99 David's dress despite David's reluctance to even allow us to look at the advertised $99 rack. We looked the dress over carefully, paid the $99 and got the alterations elsewhere for $45 vs the $150 that David's wanted to alter.

If you try for the sale rack at David's, just be firm about what you are looking for and be prepared to walk if you are pressured.

 

[java]

My Mom just sold my sister's unworn wedding dress on Ebay for $80 it was a $1000 dress. Someone got a great deal! My mom just wanted it out of her house.
I would just tell her that you can give her X towards a dress, anything over she'll have to cover herself.

 

[AZMermaid]

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!!!!

Did you tell the store where she tried on the dress that you planned to order it online for half price?

 

[bumbershoot]

Definitely just tell her what you will contribute, and let her make the decision beyond that!

Look for outlet centers in yur area.

FWIW, once I got out of the Carolinas I never saw, or heard of, an outlet gown store again. (I'm not talking about short-term outlet type sales of ONE designer, but the big huge outlets with hundreds of gowns) So the OP's daughter might not have access to such a thing.

It was $700 but I don't regret it. Here's the designer's site:

www.maggiesottero.com

Maggie has many nice gowns. Never found one for only $700 though, and I was shopping 10 years ago! Sadly, the one place in my area with Maggies was a lousy shopping experience, as my consultant was drunk!

I really wish all young people would SPEND more time on getting to know whats really important to both partners rather than SPENDing so much on the Engagement party blowouts, bridal shower blow outs and HUGE expensive weddings and gowns...the emphasis has changed from years past....or am I just too old???..

I don't know if you're too old, but I think you're assuming that people who spend money on the party don't spend time on the marriage. I really dislike that assumption! If DH and I hadn't been so vocal about our counseling, etc, no one would have known that we'd spent time working on our relationship, and they would have only seen the party. I know that my stepdad judges me because he sent me a $1000 gift, with no note of what it should be spent on other than "the wedding", and I spent it, plus another $200, on my gown (worth nearly 2K, but I found it for a discount). Probably thinks what you think...that people who spend money on a gown aren't spending time on the relationship...

But money isn't time and time isn't money, when it comes to weddings and marriages!

 

[Macprincess]

I’m the girl who has always lived in the world of budget. Growing up as one of five children everything was about getting by on as little as possible. To this day I still live this way. It’s very rear that I splurge on anything. When I do splurge on something it’s more often than not something for or about my kids. Now admittedly I’ve been happily married for 18 years, have a decent savings, retirement fund, all three kids have college funds, the house is paid off and we are debt free.

However, one of my biggest regrets in life is that I settled on a discounted, off the rack at a bridle outlet, wedding dress. It was only about $250. It was appropriate and nice. Yet, is that really what a wedding dress should be? This is one of the few days in life that woman get that is all about them. Had I know what I know now about how we as Mom’s and wives sacrifice for our families, I sure as heck would have made certain my day was grander. At the time my husband and I had the money to have a nicer wedding but we felt it seemed like a waste for one day. In retrospect I would have preferred to wait one more year before we bought our house. If it’s not going to send you to the poorhouse what the heck is wrong with being over the top on your one special day?

Both my younger sisters were married after me and did have grander weddings and dresses. I will say I am and have always been the more responsible and logical of us three. This is one day where I so wish I would have adopted their attitudes in life.

If it’s at all possible let you daughter splurge as much as your budget can allow on her day. (If she wants to spend more than you can afford then let her kick in.) I also watch Say Yes to the Dress with my daughter. I intentionally turn the volume up when they mention prices so my husband hears them. He was shocked at prices at first but is now convinced all wedding dress cost at least 5 grand. Our daughter is great at living on a budget and knows the value of a dollar. I want her to have that one day where she feels like a bride no matter the cost. Oh, and you better believe I’ll have one killer Mother of the Bride dress and I won’t be looking at price tags or comparison shopping for this purchase.

I hope you and your daughter have a wonderful planning process and beautiful day.

 

[neatokimmo]

If she is a size 8 or 10 then she will be able to get a designer sample on ebay for practically nothing. If she is bigger then it is a lot harder.

That being said, I bought my gown on Ebay. It is a David's Bridal Galina with tags for $100. (I'm a big girl)

If you want to save on alterations, get a corset back. If you want a poufy bustle, it is literally 2 ribbons stitched about 18-24 inches apart under the skirt along the middle seam. You tie them like shoes and it makes the bump (kim = bridal consultant for YEARS in college). If you want a fancier bustle, it is 3 sets of ribbons. Stores charge a ton for those little ribbons.

 

[Belle & Ariel]

Thank you all for the advice. We have given her a total wedding budget of what we gave our other daughter.

This one and her fiance are in college part time and work about 30 hours a week. She does not have any savings--living paycheck to paycheck. She lives with us and does not pay rent, food, utilities, car insurance, tuition, gas, etc. She loves to shop and buy whatever she wants.
Our other daughter will be out of the country for 2-3 years and this one wants to get married this spring so sister can attend rather than wait 2-3 years for her to get back.
We have suggested they cut costs on the wedding and we will give them cash for whatever amount they come under to have a little nest egg to pay rent or if cars should need work, etc.
The dress she wants would come to about $1500 with accessories and alterations. I think she needs to live within her means. She is beautiful and will look great in whatever she chooses.