ugh...bridal stores

[Bickimook2]

I went to a bridal shop in town, I won't name, names, but they only had 5 dresses in my size ( I am a plus size bride). I wasn't too upset because I figured I could just order a couple because about 75% of their dresses come in my size, but are special order only. I figured I could have the store order about 5 or 6 and try them on and the ones I didn't like they could be send back, like most retail stores do. The lady in the store told me the only way they could order a dress for me is if I purchase it! I was outraged because they are the ones that don't carry the size and want me to suffer for it. I really felt discriminated against. I believe they shouldn't carry all sizes in almost all of their dresses if they aren't even going bother having over a size 12 in the store for women to try on. All this from a store that prides itself on carrying sizes 0-28, I just don't get it .

 

[acomasdiaz]

Bickimook2, I know where you are coming from. As a plus size lady myself, I am finding it difficult to find locations where I can actually try something on. It's pretty sad.

 

[BecBennett]

Wow, thats really bad. Most bridal stores here generally just have the larger sizes in, because smaller brides can always be "clamped" in

What do they expect you to do? Just look at the dress on a mannequin and decide whether it's the one? That's just stupid.

 

[CharacterFan]

I understand where you're coming from "from the other end" I'm a small size. I went into a birdal store and they tried to "clamp" me into dresses that were so large, you couldn't tell what they would really look like. They only had 3 dresses in a size that looked normal on me and I was still clamped in.
When I asked about certain styles they didn't have and trying them. They told me I could order it, but they didn't issue refunds. I refuse to spend those prices without seeing it in person either.
I've now taken to calling the store and asking about their sample sizes and dress styles before even going in.

 

[SanFranciscan]

Ladies, I understand that you are upset so I don't mean to sound condescending. However, a bridal store is not the only place that you can get a lovely dress for your wedding. What if you went to a plus size store or a petite store and checked out their nicest dresses?

I have never believed that a wedding outfit had to be formal or white or even a dress to be a lovely outfit for a wedding. The prettiest dress I saw that I thought suitable for a bride was at Casual Corner. Your eyes aren't playing tricks on you. I did just type "Casual Corner." The dress reminded me of the dress that Natalie Wood wore in "Westside Story" so it would have been fine for a semi-formal wedding. Actually some of the department store dresses made for proms might suit your purposes just fine, and you'd find a larger selection of sizes there.

If the bridal stores aren't accomodating you, why pay their higher prices just to get a dress they call "wedding"? Any dress you brides wear to your weddings are wedding dresses so if you can get a better-fitting dress cheaper elsewhere that leaves more money for your reception or your honeymoon or a nice wedding present to you and your beloveds.

 

[DaDivatude]

Ladies, I understand that you are upset so I don't mean to sound condescending. However, a bridal store is not the only place that you can get a lovely dress for your wedding. What if you went to a plus size store or a petite store and checked out their nicest dresses?

I have never believed that a wedding outfit had to be formal or white or even a dress to be a lovely outfit for a wedding. The prettiest dress I saw that I thought suitable for a bride was at Casual Corner. Your eyes aren't playing tricks on you. I did just type "Casual Corner." The dress reminded me of the dress that Natalie Wood wore in "Westside Story" so it would have been fine for a semi-formal wedding. Actually some of the department store dresses made for proms might suit your purposes just fine, and you'd find a larger selection of sizes there.

If the bridal stores aren't accomodating you, why pay their higher prices just to get a dress they call "wedding"? Any dress you brides wear to your weddings are wedding dresses so if you can get a better-fitting dress cheaper elsewhere that leaves more money for your reception or your honeymoon or a nice wedding present to you and your beloveds.

That suggestion only works for some, unfortunately. I'm a solid size 20 and I personally love my shape and body. I'm healthy and my check-ups are spotless so it's all good.

But for my dream wedding I want the big, puffy dress. I want the white-tie affair. It's not fair that brides like me have to settle for a dress for a wedding instead of a wedding dress. If you've had your heart set on a Eve of Milady, a simple prom dress in white will NEVER cut it.

 

[Bickimook2]

That suggestion only works for some, unfortunately. I'm a solid size 20 and I personally love my shape and body. I'm healthy and my check-ups are spotless so it's all good.

But for my dream wedding I want the big, puffy dress. I want the white-tie affair. It's not fair that brides like me have to settle for a dress for a wedding instead of a wedding dress. If you've had your heart set on a Eve of Milady, a simple prom dress in white will NEVER cut it.

I agree with you, and what really bothers me is that at all the stores I go to, my dream dresses are available in the bigger sizes it's just that they have to be purchased first, it's like a big tease.

 

[Wish on a Star]

I had the same problem at the store I went to, there were 7 dresses in my size and they really pressured me into a dress I had never tried on. I would really be cutting it close to have them send it back and have me order another dress if I didnt like that one. I ended up going to another store, but I called ahead to see how many dresses they had in my size before I went.

 

[DisneyDmbNut]

I was told the same thing..I got my dress from Alfred Angelo and they only had a size 16 ( i think I was still a solid 20W)..it wouldn't even zip on me..I was afraid but loved the dress..so I waited till 6 months before the wedding to order it..I ordered the 16 because I was too chicken to order the 14...30 days before the wedding, I had 4" taken in...

 

[RangerPooh]

This is the standard plight that plus sized brides go through. When I was dress shoppping years ago I was an 18 and had to try on dresses in the 12s and 24s becuase they didn't have much in the 16-20 range. Some still provided me with a general idea as to what it would look like, others didn't cut it. But I also went in realizing that the bridal industry is still improving upon how they handle the larger bride.

This said I would never walk into a store expecting to order a few dresses and return those that I didn't like. I went expecting to either pay in full or place a down payment on it prior to the order being placed. Most stores tell you that it will take weeks or months for the dress to come in becuase it has to be made. So having the store order multiple dresses just to be returned would be a bit foolish in my opinion. Sorry, but it is. The store probably wouldn't be able to return the dresses (like they would if it was faulty) and would them have them in stock taking up room that they might not have. Some shops might do this or might borrow form another store in their chain, but I'm assuming that it's a store by store decision. One store that I'm thinking that *might* do this is JCPenney's. They do have an online Bridal option (although it's probably limited in sizes and dresses), but they might allow you to order multiple to only return them. However, you might have to pay in full in order to place the order.

As for the stores lack of dresses in your size, is it possible that they recently had a sale on dresses and could therefore be limited? They could also be in between dress seasons and are awaiting a restock. If you like their dresses I would ask if they usually have more dresses available in your size to try on, and if so when they plan to have their selection restocked. If their answer is no and it's always this limited then I'd start looking elsewhere. But that's just my opinion.

 

[RachaelA]

Most stores can't afford to have dresses in every size. Go to David's Bridal if you want to try on a dress in your exact size. Chain stores are the only ones that can afford it.

I went in knowing the dress would need to be held up for me. I've never heard of higher end stores having dresses in multiple sizes. They have the sample that is usually a 10 or 12 and that's it. You decide if you want it and then they measure you and order your size.

Unless you are size 8-10, the dresses are going to be too big or too small. I went in as a size 10 and almost every dress I tried on was too small.

I have never heard of a bridal shop that lets you order dresses in your size just to try on. It takes upwards of 9 months for some dresses to come in after you order them!

I honestly think you have unrealistic expectations of wedding dress shopping.

 

[Wish on a Star]

Most stores can't afford to have dresses in every size. Go to David's Bridal if you want to try on a dress in your exact size. Chain stores are the only ones that can afford it.

I went in knowing the dress would need to be held up for me. I've never heard of higher end stores having dresses in multiple sizes. They have the sample that is usually a 10 or 12 and that's it. You decide if you want it and then they measure you and order your size.

Unless you are size 8-10, the dresses are going to be too big or too small. I went in as a size 10 and almost every dress I tried on was too small.

I have never heard of a bridal shop that lets you order dresses in your size just to try on. It takes upwards of 9 months for some dresses to come in after you order them!

I honestly think you have unrealistic expectations of wedding dress shopping.

I'm not sure that people will have any luck at David's Bridal. They were the store that didnt have anything to offer me. I would try Alfred Angelo- that's where I got my dress, but even then I called ahead just to make sure!

 

[DaDivatude]

Most stores can't afford to have dresses in every size. Go to David's Bridal if you want to try on a dress in your exact size. Chain stores are the only ones that can afford it.

I went in knowing the dress would need to be held up for me. I've never heard of higher end stores having dresses in multiple sizes. They have the sample that is usually a 10 or 12 and that's it. You decide if you want it and then they measure you and order your size.

Unless you are size 8-10, the dresses are going to be too big or too small. I went in as a size 10 and almost every dress I tried on was too small.

I have never heard of a bridal shop that lets you order dresses in your size just to try on. It takes upwards of 9 months for some dresses to come in after you order them!

I honestly think you have unrealistic expectations of wedding dress shopping.

I'm sorry but you sound really condescending in this post...

No one is asking for bridal dresses in EVERY size. But having samples in a plus size would be nice (More than 5 samples at that). You are right when you say that unless you are a size 8-10 the dress won't fit. That's the standard sample size. But many designers do plus sized samples and a good number of stores can pick them up (Kleinfeld bridal has a huge selection of plus size samples that they order at the SAME TIME as the "regular" sample dress.)

It's not unrealistic to ask that bridal salons do like their competitors and offer samples for plus size women (who make up a huge number of American women.)

And to say that all plus sized brides have to go to David's Bridal just sucks.

 

[RachaelA]

I would say the same thing to a size 0 bride complaining shops didn't have dresses in her size to try on.

I was responding to her claim that they didn't have HER size. She never once said "well if they had dresses in a size 20 and I'm a 26 that would be fine." She wanted a store to specifically order her size in certain dresses just so she could try it on.

Nothing I said had to do with her being plus size.

I said she should go to David's Bridal (or a bigger chain) because they had the capability of having the same dress in more than one size.

I don't think Klenfield's is a good example of the average bridal store. (It does have gorgeous dresses though!) There dresses average out at $5k plus. I wouldn't consider that a competitor of Alfred Angelo or stores whose dresses average out at $1 maybe $2k tops. Kleinfields's can probably afford it. Alfred Angelo or a small local shop won't be able to.

I think the shops are doing all that they can by providing a average size 12. The size 0 girls are going to swim in it while its too small for the plus size girls. It sucks for both ends but that is life.

 

[RachaelA]

And I never once said that plus size brides should only go to David's Bridal.

 

[Bickimook2]

Well the problem with this particular store is that they specilzed in having plus size garments but only carried a few samples in the store, so I complained to corporate and they said they sell off the rack and that the bigger sizes went first, that's fine that they sell them but they should carry enough garments to compensate for other brides that want to come in and try on, like they do the size 0-16. They carry almost all the styles in their books in size 0-16 and most of them have multiples of the same styles, for people who want to buy and for people who want to just try on. Basically they don't order that many of the plus size garments in the first place and when they are sold the next woman is just out of luck. One a happier note, the woman at corporate called me yesterday and told me that I could give her the style numbers that I was interested in and she could have those sent over to the store, so that is good. At least the company's corporate customer service makes up for their instore service.

 

[HopefulDisneyBride]

Dress shopping at bridal stores is frustrating. The stores can't possibly afford or store dresses in every size. So they pick sizes in the middle hoping it will work for the majority of the women who come in. People on either end of the spectrum have a really hard time judging what looks good. Either they are swimming in the dress and can't get a good idea of the fit or it's too small to get on at all. Unfortunately, there is just no way that the salons could carry every size or even multiple sizes of the same dress. The dresses are too expensive, take too long to order, and take up way too much room. I looked at 8 different bridal salons and they were all like this - with sizes only in middle ranges. David's bridal is different than bridal salons....their whole selling point is that you can buy it off the rack and take it home that day, so they have to offer multiple sizes. And Kleinfeld.....they exist in an alternate universe most of us will never know

If anyone is lucky enough to be near a bridal salon with multiple dress sizes, spread the word....that is a rare find!

 

[Handbag Lady]

I got married in 2000 and the David's Bridal I went to had several dresses in my dress size range but the one I really, really wanted they didn't even remotely cover my assets.

I was instructed to hold up the dress to see if it worked for me.

Really. Like holding up a dress is anywhere near wearing one?



I went with the dress I really liked instead of the one I really wanted to wear. (Or thought I wanted to wear as I couldn't try it on.)


You would think that 9 years later, they would kinda get with the program and have more sizes and styles over a larger range.

 

[Sarah <3 Disney]

One a happier note, the woman at corporate called me yesterday and told me that I could give her the style numbers that I was interested in and she could have those sent over to the store, so that is good. At least the company's corporate customer service makes up for their instore service.

That's good to hear! Make sure you send her a lot of numbers, even ones you are not totally sure about. Better to try them on anyways and confirm without a doubt you don't want that dress. But writing a letter to corporate always helps. When my boyfriend bought me a personalized jewelry box from Pottery Barn for Christmas... it did not come until mid-January! My boyfriend complained about the slow service (he ordered the thing in early November), they sent a gift card to make up for the wait. I like free stuff!

 

[Tamipokeydog]

For plus size brides you could try Torrid.com . They have some cute dresses.