How did you find your dress?

[panda08]

With so many out there, the thought of dress shopping makes me dizzy and I don''t even know where to look. How/where did you start your search and eventually find your dress?

 

[emilina22]

when i first started i thought i would check out davids bridal just to get an idea of what i might like

well i didnt like anything they had so i put off wedding dress shopping for a while since i was pretty let down and all

so a couple of months later my future sister in law took me to her bridal shop to look there since she found her dress really easily...

when i walked the first dress i saw (which ended up being the dress i got) was gorgous but after looking at the price tag...there was no way i could have afforded it so i walked away and tried to find other dresses. After about 10 dresses nothing really hit the spot like that first dress so W suggested bringing it into the room to just try it and maybe we can work on the price. So thats what we did and once i tried it on OMG i was in love...and of course with the most expensive dress of the bunch... the sales lady explained that the price i saw was not their price and that their price was half of what i saw and that kinda brought it back into my budget but not really...so i had to walk away and come back again with my mom

when my mom saw it she fell in love..but not with the price or with the day we were there (she has a theory NEVER to buy anything important on a sunday, because it brings bad luck) so right before we were gonna put the down payment my mom said nope its a sunday and we walked away...but then my mom was like is there anywhere else that maybe can get the dress sooner and the sales lady said no we''re the only ones who sells this dress (this made my mom a bit ticked becasue she didnt believe that this shop was the only one that sold this dress)

so for the next two days she called every bridal shop in chicago, surrounding illinois areas, and every state possible to see who sold it and low and behold she found that the sister store of the one we went to actually sold it and for about 600 dollars less...once she heard this we drove the extra hour to go and order my dress...

and fast forward to now...


it came in this weekend and its perfect and it will be even more after its altered and eveyone is happy and i got my dream dress

 

[elrohwen]

I looked at some runway shots in a bridal magazine my FMIL gave me and saw my perfect dress

I put it out my head for a while because I was sure I couldn't afford it, so I ordered a bunch from JCrew (lovely, just didn't fit my body type), went to David's Bridal (they didn't have anything I liked), and then gave up for a while.

I finally got an opportunity to try on the dream dress at Priscilla of Boston (and got FI to agree that I had done everything possible to find a super cheap dress and that maybe $1500 wasn't too much to spend) and I loved it. Now I'm just waiting for it to come in!

Are you a very decisive person? If you are, I think it's not too difficult to find a dress you'll love. If you're indecisive, you may have problems with going back and forth between a bunch of dresses and not knowing what you want. I'm glad that I'm good at making a quick decision and sticking with it (and knowing what I like)

Not that it's bad to be a little indecisive, but I think it could just make the process more overwhelming.

 

[tabu]

As soon as I got engaged, TheKnot.com has been my best friend!!

I don''t have my dress yet, however, I went to the knot and you can do a dress search by style and price and then see what stores are near you that carries those styles, designers etc. I would definitely recommend all brides in waiting to go there, it will help you out tremendously!

Hope that helps! Good luck

 

[marchswallowbird]

I first looked through a bunch of bridal mags and online to get an idea of what I liked. I zeroed in on several designers whose dresses I really liked. Then I went online to the designers'' websites to find out what bridal shops in my area carried their dresses. I live in LA so there were a LOT of shops. To narrow the list of shops, I went online again to check reviews for those bridal salons. I narrowed the list of bridal salons to those relatively near me that carried the designers whose dresses I liked and who got good reviews from other brides. Then I called up the shops to see if they carried the actual dresses I wanted to try on. I made appointments at the shops (about 7 or 8 shops in all I think) and visited them over the course of a couple of months. I only did two shops max on each outing, trying on 5-8 dresses at each shop.

I not only tried on the dresses I liked from the magazines (many of which ended up looking horrible on me), I worked with the consultant to try on other dresses with similar style elements. I also let the consultants recommend other dresses, some of which were styles completely different from what I would have chosen. I figured what the heck, try on everything. It was pretty fun, actually.

I ended up buying a sample from one bridal shop, whose consultant had pulled a dress for me. I never would have selected it on my own, in part because it was twice my budget. But I ended up buying that dress as a sample, for 1/2 of what it would have cost me to order it new.

 

[Clairitek]

Thankfully one of my closest friends got engaged just before I did and I had gone dress shopping so I learned a lot from her experience. She started her search by browsing websites and then calling to ask about specific gowns. Unfortunately some of the websites she looked at didn''t make it obvious when you were looking at an old season or the new one (Especially with Maggie Sottero... now I''ve learned). So I called about 10 bridal salons in her area looking for certain gowns for her to try on and found that the ones I called generally didn''t keep samples in the salon that were too old. So with my own shopping I stopped trying to find specific gowns (though I did do it twice) and just picked designers whose aesthetic I admired and would go to salons that carried that designer.

The best piece of advice I can offer right now (which took me a few rounds of trying on gowns to figure out) is that try to keep an open mind. Originally I thought I wanted A-line and sweetheart and was pretty set on that. When I went to Kleinfeld Bridal in NYC the SA brought in some gowns I had asked for and other ones that she thought would look nice on my body. Now I think I will buy a mermaid/trumpet gown with a scoop neckline! I am grateful that I kept an open mind because this looks better on me than what I had gone for in the beginning.

So to sum up my rambling pick a few designers that you love and go to salons in your area that carry the designer. Don''t forget to bring your camera (if they allow pics) and an open mind!

 

[meresal]

First bridal shop I went to... Clearance rack!!

I say jump right in. It beats the heck out of staring at magazines.

 

[swimmer]

Date: 1/7/2009 3:02:41 PM
Author: meresal
First bridal shop I went to... Clearance rack!!

I say jump right in. It beats the heck out of staring at magazines.

Ditto! I love looking at the pics, but what is the point in writing down style numbers when you don't have the bod of heroin chic models? I went once with a pal to David's to just try on white things and get over the shock of white. It really is not the most flattering (non)color. I then went with a very non-emotional friend to a sample outlet place, she had called and made us an appt and told them my measurements. I walked in, there were seven dresses to try on that were my size/season and I walked out with one. The price could not be beat and while I wish that I'd put some more thought into it before the wedding, now, I know it was the best choice for me. I would have gone insane shopping around...or going with family members.

 

[meresal]

Date: 1/7/2009 3:22:02 PM
Author: swimmer

Ditto! I love looking at the pics, but what is the point in writing down style numbers when you don't have the bod of heroin chic models? I went once with a pal to David's to just try on white things and get over the shock of white. It really is not the most flattering (non)color. I then went with a very non-emotional friend to a sample outlet place, she had called and made us an appt and told them my measurements. I walked in, there were seven dresses to try on that were my size/season and I walked out with one. The price could not be beat and while I wish that I'd put some more thought into it before the wedding, now, I know it was the best choice for me. I would have gone insane shopping around...or going with family members.

swimmer- That is too funny! Everyone is different. I had to see the dresses in person. To be honest, what I liked in Mags, looked horrible on me.

However, eventhough I found my dress at the first place, I didn't buy it until 3 days later. I spent that entire weekend scouring every dress shop in DFW to make sure there wasn't another one that I liked better. I probably tried on 50 dresses in a span of 2 days.

 

[anniee19]

I flipped through magazines, tore out a few pictures of dresses I liked, and took them with me to my bridal appointments. The first place has two of the ones I had liked from the magazines, but both look awful on me. I mean it-absolutly terrible. All the ones I liked had the pick up style skirts, but they made me look like a big marshmallow. I liked one at the first shop, but I wasn''t in love with it, so I kept looking.
At my second appointment, they had me walk through the salon, and put a pink ring type thing around the hangers of dresses I liked. She then brought those, along with some of her suggestions, up to the bridal fitting room/suite. I had spotted one on a manequin that I adored from the minute I saw it, and once I tried it on, I just loved the way it looked. Much more so than the first one I had liked at the other store. I didn''t feel the need to look anymore, so we ordered it right then. I can''t wait until March when I get it!

 

[wannaBMrsH]

Meresal-Do you mind if I ask you where you got your dress? I am heading to Lulu''s in Dallas this weekend, and I am also making the trek out to some bridal holy grail place in Denton! on Sunday...

Other than that, I have no idea where else is good...everyone keeps recommending the same places... Mockingbird Bridal, and Terry Costa...but I don''t want to spend so much...clearance rack sounds heavenly!

 

[dcgator]

Date: 1/7/2009 2:36:06 PM
Author: marchswallowbird
I first looked through a bunch of bridal mags and online to get an idea of what I liked. I zeroed in on several designers whose dresses I really liked. Then I went online to the designers'' websites to find out what bridal shops in my area carried their dresses. I live in LA so there were a LOT of shops. To narrow the list of shops, I went online again to check reviews for those bridal salons. I narrowed the list of bridal salons to those relatively near me that carried the designers whose dresses I liked and who got good reviews from other brides. Then I called up the shops to see if they carried the actual dresses I wanted to try on. I made appointments at the shops (about 7 or 8 shops in all I think) and visited them over the course of a couple of months. I only did two shops max on each outing, trying on 5-8 dresses at each shop.

I not only tried on the dresses I liked from the magazines (many of which ended up looking horrible on me), I worked with the consultant to try on other dresses with similar style elements. I also let the consultants recommend other dresses, some of which were styles completely different from what I would have chosen. I figured what the heck, try on everything. It was pretty fun, actually.

I ended up buying a sample from one bridal shop, whose consultant had pulled a dress for me. I never would have selected it on my own, in part because it was twice my budget. But I ended up buying that dress as a sample, for 1/2 of what it would have cost me to order it new.

Ditto on what marchswallowbird said.

I started by looking at magazines for shapes, then designers. I checked out the designers online, then went to the stores that carried those designers. Along the way I found out that my body shape much prefers an A-line to the ballgown I had my heart set on wearing. I also found new designers in some of the shops I went to.

Funny enough, I ended up going with a gown from the first designer I tried on, however, I ended up getting sample dress that was much more affordable.

I think a good idea is to be open minded to most sales associated ideas. They see brides day in and out and know what may look good on you versus what you have in mind. In the end though, buy whatever makes you feel and look great. Hopefully, you will have that "moment" where you know its the dress, but if not, just enjoy being dressed up

 

[Tuckins1]

I just made some appointments at some bridal salons and went in with a vague idea of what I wanted. (Strapless) We started pulling different dresses off the rack, and my mother in law happened to grab one off the rack just for fun. It ended up being "the one"! Everyone''s eyes just bugged out of their heads, so it was decided.

 

[meresal]

Date: 1/7/2009 4:28:08 PM
Author: wannaBMrsH
Meresal-Do you mind if I ask you where you got your dress? I am heading to Lulu's in Dallas this weekend, and I am also making the trek out to some bridal holy grail place in Denton! on Sunday...

Other than that, I have no idea where else is good...everyone keeps recommending the same places... Mockingbird Bridal, and Terry Costa...but I don't want to spend so much...clearance rack sounds heavenly!

No problem... I actually found mine at Ocone's in Fort Worth. I wasn't going to look at the top designers, but tried a few on, and I thought that their prices were quite reasonable. I tired on the Pronovia Diamante, and it was only $1400. I seemed to get the impression that it was much more expensive.

I have to admit, I think I got very lucky, finding my dress on the Clearance rack. Mine is not a top name designer, but I love it

(It's Mon Cheri). However, if you're up for the drive, they've got a pretty great selection. I would say over 200 dresses. One of my BM's bought a sample for her dress, and got a pretty good discount as well.

 

[honey22]

I have almost decided on my dress, but it''s nothing like I first imagined. I had cut out pics of dresses etc but I found that actually going to a few salons and being very open minded will help a lot better. At each place I told them what I was roughly thinking, and then I also asked them to bring in gowns they felt suited my shape etc. Three out of four brought the same gown in and I really like that style now and it''s far and above the most flattering on me.

I think it''s harder when you have a definite idea in mind to find the dress. I honestly wouldn''t discount anything/shape/fabric until you have tried it on. I am so glad I gave them an option to pick some suggestions, and I have gone in a totally different direction and I am really really excited about my dress now!!!

 

[bee*]

The dress I always loved is sold in one shop in Dublin so I went to try it on there but ended up falling in love with a different but similar dress from the same designer. I adored it and once I tried it on, nothing else came close.

 

[Aloros]

I looked around at dress photos online and found that I really liked the style of a lot of the Pronovias dresses. So then I started searching for Pronovias, San Patrick, and La Sposa on ebay. I found a San Patrick dress at a price that was too good to pass up ($300), bid on it, won it, and had it shipped to me!

Fits just right - my mom is doing the hemline and taking the straps off.

I took a trip to a bridal salon to try on dresses after I bought mine, just to make sure that I really liked it. Didn''t like anything at the salon nearly as much

 

[kittybean]

Although I had browsed magazines and websites a little before I got engaged, once I decided to go dress shopping, I just went into a big shop and browsed the racks with a saleslady (I loved that they let me do that). Then I went to more stores, tried on a zillion dresses, fell in love with a couple, and ultimately ordered one online (30% lower than retail stores at Netbride!).

I think the way to go is to see the dresses in person and on your body. Go in with some semblance of an idea of what you like in a dress, e.g. I wanted minimal pouf, and keep a relatively open mind. Try on the ones the salesperson suggests to you; even if they''re not "the One," you might find some elements you really love in an otherwise undesirable dress. Take people with you, but not too many people. The person who was most helpful to me was my bridesmaid who has a degree in costuming. She was able to tell me which dresses could be easily altered to fit me and which were well-made and well-designed. She was honest, but kind, regarding how each dress looked on me.

Good luck with your dress search!

 

[musey]

I looked casually online and clipped pictures from magazines for quite awhile before I went dress shopping. Once you start looking (in small doses), you''ll begin to get an idea of what things you do and don''t like.

It''s really a matter of narrowing things down. You probably have at least ONE thing that you already have an idea of. So say that one thing is that you want spaghetti straps. You can go on theknot or brides.com or wherever and search only for spaghetti straps. Then open up some pictures and scrutinize the gown... what do you like? What don''t you like? And would you like the things that you don''t like if they weren''t done in quite that way?

Anyway, take it slow and just get some ideas before you go shopping. It''s less overwhelming that way

OR you can go to a few salons and say "I have no idea!" and let them pick stuff for you to try. Either way, just think of it as "fun dressup" and not "a quest for a dress." The fun fades away when there''s so much pressure placed on it!

 

[katamari]

We all have very different advice, but I thought I would offer mine, too, just in case it would work for you.

I recommend going somewhere and trying some on to get a sense of what you look good in (i.e. diving right in). I looked around online first and found what I thought I loved. But I learned that my body type doesn''t work in the type of dresses I like. I wasted a lot of time looking for dresses that just looked horrible once I finally tried them on.

I would also start cheap and work your way to the top end unless you are totally comfortable with your budget. I sat a high budget and was never shown cheaper dresses. When I finally started going to lower-end bridal shops, I found dresses that I think I would have loved had I not known the differences between the more affordable and the more expensive gowns.

The final thing is to be honest with your consultants. It feels awkward to tell them that you hate something or are even lukewarm about it, but they do their jobs better when you are communicating with them effectively. No need to sit around debating a dress when you could be pulling more or finding "the one."

 

[kellybelly]

the most important advice i can give you:

do not try on anything that is out of your price range. you will only end up heartbroken when you can''t buy it. that''s what happened to me and it''s not fun.

the next most important thing is to keep an open mind. the dress i bought looked like nothing on the hanger, but i put it on and loved it unexpectedly. you never know what treasures are hiding in the bridal shops!

lastly, chances are there is no dress you will find that is perfect in every way, but that''s actually a GOOD thing. it will allow you to put your own spin on it, or accessorize to make it particular to suit you. "perfect" is not a good thing to aim for, but finding something that is "you" is a great mark to hit.

happy hunting!

 

[jjdav]

I went to houseofbrides.com I ordered my bridesmaid dress from them for a friend''s wedding and it was hassel free and fairly reasonably priced. I don''t think they have big name designer brands though. I still have to try it on at a store carrying the style, but will most likely buy online again. Best of luck!

 

[panda08]

Thanks for all the advice and tips! I really appreciate them