Looking for honest opinions on a potential wedding dress!!!

[SweetAsscher]

I love the lace dress and I'm not normally a lace person. However when I tried on dresses I ended up with a lace dress! Go figure.

I would say pick the one you love and the one you will love in photos bcuz ten years from now that is what you will have to look back on.

 

[Gypsy]

Re: Looking for honest opinions on a potential wedding dress

Okay so... I'm going to be honest since you asked. The first dress looks like it will date, and badly. That skirt just isn't going to stand the test of time. The bodice looks great on you. But the skirt is just not flattering and the waist band is bulky and adds to that.

I wouldn't spend 4K on the lace dress either. There are a lot of gorgeous lace dresses that are nearly identical to that one without the belt at round the 2,200 mark. And then you can buy a GORGEOUS belt like that one from Clairetek, she makes each one by hand and they are stunning. And you will save 2K.

I also think the fit and flare is much more sophisticated on you, and elegant.

 

[Gypsy]

Re: Looking for honest opinions on a potential wedding dress

My recommendation:

Waters entire line of gowns are beautiful and REALLY give you a lot of style for the budget. I'd find a retailer and see what they have in for you to try on. The gowns are well designed, have nice quality, and a good value. And many of them would look great on you.

Here's one that reminds me of the ballgown with the bodice and the belt, but is in a figure flattering fit and flare style that will allow you to eat AND dance at your wedding. http://watters.com/Product/WattersBrides/1011B

Gorgeous, lacy and affordable: http://watters.com/Product/WattersBrides/9063B/

This would be amazing on you: http://watters.com/Product/WattersBrides/7072B/

You have the shoulders to carry this off and it would look gorgeous on you: http://watters.com/Product/WattersBrides/1049B/

If they have these two try if you see them and see what you think: http://watters.com/Product/WattersBrides/9076B/ and http://watters.com/Product/WattersBrides/4041B/

 

[atp223]

Re: Looking for honest opinions on a potential wedding dress

OU pearl girl - LOVE those dresses and I very much appreciate your input! I will definitely try to find those dresses locally to try on. You wouldn't by any chance happen to work in the DC area, would you ?

Gypsy - I appreciate your honesty, and your suggestions! I found a local ish boutique that carries Watters and Wtoo - motivated by wanting to try on the dress that slg linked from Amy's suggestions - so I will definitely try those on too.

Monarch - I was totally kidding/exaggerating in my previous post; I didn't mean to offend you (or anyone else). I'm sorry if I did. I'm not sure if you are actually concerned or if you were just being rude, but I definitely don't have an eating disorder...while I don't think I'm particularly "thin" (I prefer to think of myself as curvy), I've been running for 14 years and I do marathons and triathlons, so I'm in decent shape. Also, I think wanting to look your best on your wedding day is pretty normal (as evidenced at the very least by the LIW and bridal weight loss threads)...and I also think that your stomach (at least, MY stomach) expands considerably after eating a big meal...I don't think thinking about these things in advance and planning accordingly is a bad thing - if anything I'm just a planner.

Thanks to everyone for the dress suggestions; I will def post pics of the dress I buy for opinions on that!

 

[monarch64]

Re: Looking for honest opinions on a potential wedding dress

Atp, I'm not offended nor was I trying to be rude; however, it did concern me reading the parts of your post I highlighted in my previous response that I've heard that sort of language from women who've actually been diagnosed with full blown EDs. I'm happy to hear you were joking. I will tell you that if you are the type of bride who plans to work up until the wedding day and is doing a lot herself, you might as well plan on dropping a few pounds the week before unintentionally. The week before my first wedding I lost 7 pounds because I ended up getting an upper respiratory infection, was running around like a madwoman trying to tie up all the loose ends, and just didn't have time to eat normally. My mother had to take in my dress an inch all around the night before the wedding. Just something to keep in mind. You don't want to look too thin in your pictures...it's a fine line sometimes.

 

[Gypsy]

Re: Looking for honest opinions on a potential wedding dress

Ditto Monnie, she had already addressed it, so I didn't have to, but the language was very concerning. And as you know: tones like sarcasm or humor don't come across in print.

I'm glad you are going to keep looking for a gown. I think that's a great decision. I know an affordable dress that suits you better than the first gown is out there!

If you poll married ladies you will find that an alarming percentage were sick on their wedding day.

I had a respiratory infection the week before, woke up excited and recharged on my wedding day and made it through thanks to adrenaline and then crashed with pneumonia the day after and was down for two weeks with it. My husband's cousin who got married 9 months before us was SUPER sick on her wedding day and couldn't eat without vomiting. So after my wedding I posted on here asking if other brides had this problem, and SO many responded that they had.

Getting sick the week or day of your wedding is VERY common. I know this is a dress thread... but the MONTH (seriously you need to start a month out) before your wedding you need to make sure you do three things: Take vitamins, eat well (lots of veggies and protein with good carbs for energy), and SLEEP at least 8 hours a night. Sounds basic, but the majority of brides do not manage it. IF on top of that you can make time in your schedule for relaxing activities like massages, or bubble baths, or pedicures-- even better.

It's very common at crunch time to hear of brides on crash diets, stressed out and not sleeping because they are too worried about ribbons, font, and shoes. It's very hard not to do this (heck I didn't manage it), but if you can, I highly recommend taking care of yourself.

 

[Gypsy]

Re: Looking for honest opinions on a potential wedding dress

http://www.theknot.com/wedding-dress/la-sposa/salsa?ctx=0:100:-1:-1&src=res Dropped waist box pleat ball gown. This style is very glamorous and might work for your height. If you can find any dresses with these design details, I think it would be worth trying on.

http://www.theknot.com/wedding-dress/jenny-yoo-collection/sophiejenny?ctx=3:15:-1:-1&src=res With a nicer belt this one would be a nice light airy, romantic and elegant option.

http://www.theknot.com/wedding-dress/matthew-christopher/sabrinamc?ctx=2:15:-1:-1&src=res Fabulous lace gown

http://www.theknot.com/wedding-dress/james-clifford-collection/j21117?ctx=4:15:-1:-1&src=res Combines your first and second dresses

http://www.theknot.com/wedding-dress/essense-of-australia/d1108?src=-1 This has a lot of features you might like.

 

[atp223]

Re: Looking for honest opinions on a potential wedding dress

Ok I'm at work, and I had pricescope blocked on my work comp awhile ago bc it was draining my productivity, but I just wanted to quickly say:

(1) I genuinely am thankful for the sleeping and staying healthy pre-wedding tips. It makes a lot of sense, and I know people get stressed pre-wedding, but the getting sick thing honestly never occurred to me. I DO get sick if I don't sleep 8 hrs per night for more than a couple nights in a row, so I will definitely heed your (gypsy and monarch's) advice. Thank you .

(2) OMG GYPSY I AM SO OBSESSED WITH THE LAST LINK YOU SENT! Sorry, had to get that out. It has the right shape, it's not all lace OR all satin ish, but a combo (I don't lOVE either on its own, so this is perfect), it has beautiful detailing, and subtle bling! I would consider replacing the belt and ordering it zip up and adding buttons...but it's WELL under 2k. I'm still loving the slg/sillyberry dress, but it is 4500 (though one guy said he would give me a 15% discount), and I like this new one just as much!

Thanks again for all the suggestions! I am going to Nassau this weekend to finalize the venue but will be back with pics in later march!!!!

 

[Clairitek]

Re: Looking for honest opinions on a potential wedding dress

Once you settle on a style give Pearls Place a call to see if they carry your gown. I got my $1900 Marisa 737 for $1200 there. It was definitely legitimate (I always check the designer's website to see if the bridal salon I'm ordering from is an acknowledged vendor) and brand new. I've also ordered bridesmaids dresses through them (a WToo style) for a nice discount. I think the dresses were $175-$200 anywhere else and we paid $130 through PP.

http://www.pearlsplace.com

 

[vintagelover229]

Re: Looking for honest opinions on a potential wedding dress

You have tons of great advice so far!

I just wanted to chime in since you found someone who was a 2 dress bride that many brides unload their dresses here

http://www.preownedweddingdresses.com/

Many haven't ever been worn and if you find a dress a bit over the budget you are comfortable with (or even one that you are) you can always check here to see if someone is unloading one. They also have shorter dresses that many brides wore for their reception if you wanted to have one to change into that you could get at a huge discount.

You can search by size/style/designer/etc

Not sure if you'd like this gown but I think it would look good on you!
http://www.preownedweddingdresses.com/dresses/39932/Watters-Size-4.html

This one would be good to try on too and I think it would look way better on you than the model
http://www.preownedweddingdresses.com/dresses/40875/Watters-7074b-Escalante-Size-6.html

I think this is the same dress as the first I linked but it looks like the sleeves are removable and it has an amazing key hole lace back!
http://www.preownedweddingdresses.com/dresses/33402/Watters-Vanessa-Size-8.html

 

[sillyberry]

Re: Looking for honest opinions on a potential wedding dress

Once you settle on a style give Pearls Place a call to see if they carry your gown. I got my $1900 Marisa 737 for $1200 there. It was definitely legitimate (I always check the designer's website to see if the bridal salon I'm ordering from is an acknowledged vendor) and brand new. I've also ordered bridesmaids dresses through them (a WToo style) for a nice discount. I think the dresses were $175-$200 anywhere else and we paid $130 through PP.

http://www.pearlsplace.com

I did not have a good experience with Pearl's Place.

My dress was ganked up and (1) it was difficult to resolve with them because we were in different states and (2) Watters was unhappy about helping me because PP sold the dress under their suggested retail price (which they discovered when asking why on earth I bought from PP).

I know lots of people can't say enough good things about PP, but I want to put that out there.

 

[Clairitek]

Re: Looking for honest opinions on a potential wedding dress

Once you settle on a style give Pearls Place a call to see if they carry your gown. I got my $1900 Marisa 737 for $1200 there. It was definitely legitimate (I always check the designer's website to see if the bridal salon I'm ordering from is an acknowledged vendor) and brand new. I've also ordered bridesmaids dresses through them (a WToo style) for a nice discount. I think the dresses were $175-$200 anywhere else and we paid $130 through PP.

http://www.pearlsplace.com

I did not have a good experience with Pearl's Place.

My dress was ganked up and (1) it was difficult to resolve with them because we were in different states and (2) Watters was unhappy about helping me because PP sold the dress under their suggested retail price (which they discovered when asking why on earth I bought from PP).

I know lots of people can't say enough good things about PP, but I want to put that out there.

I had wondered if that's where you bought your gown. I'm sorry you had such a crappy experience.

 

[Gypsy]

Re: Looking for honest opinions on a potential wedding dress

Pearl's place was rude when I called and I didn't feel comfortable buying from them.

I bought my dress through netbride.com

Not sure if they are still in business, but they were great. I saved 300 bucks.

atp: I'm so happy you liked the last gown I posted. Though it was a WHILE ago, I did like the quality of the Essence of Australia gowns I tried on.

This is amazingly elegant: http://www.preownedweddingdresses.com/dresses/36829/Watters-Yuma-7058B-Size-12.html But probably not your style.