Rental Gowns

[snlee]

I''m going NUTS trying to find a affordable wedding dress. I want something very simple and I only want to spend $100-$200. I''m considering renting a gown since I won''t be wearing it that long and don''t care to keep it. I''ll be wearing another dress at the banquet.

Has anyone rented before? Does anyone know of a place that rents in the Bay Area? There''s one in Roseville but that''s pretty far from me considering I''d have to go there at least 3 times.

 

[LollyBear]

One Night Affair is the only dress rental place I''ve ever heard of.
A couple alternates you might consider are David''s Bridals $99 sale, bridesmaid dresses or other formal dresses (since you want to go simple).

 

[Tacori E-ring]

Date: 9/24/2005 11:23:48 PM
Author: LollyBear
One Night Affair is the only dress rental place I''ve ever heard of.

A couple alternates you might consider are David''s Bridals $99 sale, bridesmaid dresses or other formal dresses (since you want to go simple).

That''s exactly what I was thinking. You could go for a bridesmaid dress. I remember hearing about how a hollywood actress (I cannot remember who but she was famous in the 50s I think) dyed and hemmed her wedding dress after the wedding and wore it again. I thought that was a cool idea.

 

[Faerievert]

There are definitely cheap alternatives. I would recommend looking for last season''s white prom dress designs. That''s what my mother did- an off the rack close-out prom dress in white. She got it at the mall, and her bridesmaid went with her and picked out something nice in navy blue from the same store. If it''s too plain, you can always dress it up with a good necklace, or a fancy broach or something.

 

[snlee]

One Night Affair is far away. =/ I wish there were more rental places.

I heard David''s Bridal is bad. I actually went there today just to see what they have. They didn''t have any white dress/light colored dresses in their $99 sale section.

I''ve thought about looking for white formal dresses. I looked at Macy''s and Nordstrom’s today and couldn''t find anything! Any idea of where else I can look?

 

[DonaBella]

Date: 9/25/2005 12:24:56 AM
Author: snlee

One Night Affair is far away. =/ I wish there were more rental places.

I heard David''s Bridal is bad. I actually went there today just to see what they have. They didn''t have any white dress/light colored dresses in their $99 sale section.

I''ve thought about looking for white formal dresses. I looked at Macy''s and Nordstrom’s today and couldn''t find anything! Any idea of where else I can look?

Its just a thought but have you considered perhaps asking a friend who sews to make you a dress as a wedding gift to you? If that isn''t an option, I am not sure if there are consignment shops where you live, but consignment stores often have gently used evening attire that might have something for you.

I live by Orange County and I have had good luck in shopping in Corona Del Mar at consignment shops for higher quality attire. A lot of folks will wear special occasion apparel and do not want to wear it again so it ends up still in fabulous shape, hardly used and at a healthy discount.

Sorry I can''t suggest more, but I thought this might help...

I personally rented my dress years and years ago and I am so glad I did...too bad the trend to rent wedding gowns is not as big as it was.

Sometimes the mall stores will have their dresses that were on the mannequins deeply discounted cuz they were last spring''s special or whatever. Jessica McClintock outlets offer dresses that can be used as wedding dresses too.

Good luck...

 

[qtiekiki]

You might want to check out these places:
1. Ling''s Photography and Bridal Services (shops in Oakland and Walnut Creek) - www.lingsweddings.com
2. Loveliness (Geary in San Francisco) - www.lovelinesscorp.com
3. My Day (Geary in San Francisco)

 

[Tybee]

Don''t forget to consider bridesmaid dresses!
If I were MelissaSue, I could shoot you some pictures of some gorgeous ones that would really work for wedding dresses, but alas, I am not MelissaSue

I found one that i LOVED and almost bought.
They are considerably less expensive, and some are very lovely!

 

[rebeclette]

You could try the Jessica McClintock outlet in SF, its on 15th amoungst all those warehouses near the new UCSF campus. You can look up the address and hours through the Jessica McClintock webpage. Their selection varies, and they have both the wedding gowns and bridesmade dresses. When I was there last they didn't have many wedding dress choices, but everything was around 75% of their outlet prices, so about $25-50.
You might get lucky and find something, I found several nice not too promy prom dresses for around $17 a piece.

 

[MelissaSue]

I''d definitely go with the bridesmaid dress idea. Esp. check out Jim Hjelm.. love his gowns and they are really formal enough to wear as bridal gowns.. but you have lots of options.

 

[flopkins]

Date: 9/25/2005 3:23:07 AM
Author: qtiekiki
You might want to check out these places:

1. Ling''s Photography and Bridal Services (shops in Oakland and Walnut Creek) - www.lingsweddings.com

2. Loveliness (Geary in San Francisco) - www.lovelinesscorp.com

3. My Day (Geary in San Francisco)

Just FYI - Loveliness rents gowns for approx $300, if I remember correctly, and that includes the fitting, cleaning, etc...

There is also a place in Oakland Margene''s Bridal

Soiree Bridal in Oakland is another option, and
Cherished in Walnut Creek has gowns on consignment.

The bm dress works great too - good luck w/your search!

 

[jaysonsmom]

Date: 9/26/2005 7:43:05 AM
Author: rebeclette
You could try the Jessica McClintock outlet in SF, its on 15th amoungst all those warehouses near the new UCSF campus. You can look up the address and hours through the Jessica McClintock webpage. Their selection varies, and they have both the wedding gowns and bridesmade dresses. When I was there last they didn''t have many wedding dress choices, but everything was around 75% of their outlet prices, so about $25-50.
You might get lucky and find something, I found several nice not too promy prom dresses for around $17 a piece.

I second Jessica McClintocks. Their dresses are simple, and inexpensive. Even full retail price they''re usually less than $300.

 

[snlee]

Thanks for all of the suggestions. I will definitely go look at the Jessica McClintock outlet in SF. I actually purchased my prom dresses from there. I read that they don't have many small sizes. Hopefully I'll find one that I love and fits me!

My fiance and I went to check out Loveliness yesterday. We spent 2.5 hours there! They have everything - tux and gown rentals, videography, and photography (wedding and engagement). With engagement package the tux and gown rentals were $400. Without it was something like $380 for gown and $135 for tux. I wasn't pleased with them when I left. Although they were very thorough, taking time to show us their work, they tried to rush us into making a decision (packages for videography, wedding and engagement photography, and rental!). They said they would give us a discount and lower the deposit! And they even said if you come back, the person in charge will be on vacation so we won't be able to give you a deal! What an experience. I'm glad we didn't make a deposit!

 

[E B]

I second the bridesmaid dress ideas. Here are some ideas:

http://store.nordstrom.com/product/product_brandboutique.asp?styleid=2844426&boutique=dresses_n_occasion&category=2376776~2374327~2374331~6001765~6001774&NextStyleID=2842207&PrevStyleID=2847485

http://www.jessicamcclintock.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10001&productId=51104&categoryId=10107&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=10103

http://www.jessicamcclintock.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10001&productId=73667&categoryId=10107&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=10103

Jessica McClintock's actual bridal gowns are also extremely affordable:

http://www.jessicamcclintock.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10001&productId=38064&categoryId=10105&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=10103

http://www.jessicamcclintock.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=10001&storeId=10001&productId=80185&categoryId=10105&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=10103

 

[FireGoddess]

For what these places are charging you for a dress rental, you could BUY a dress at David''s Bridal! I got my dress there on sale for $350. Maybe the $99 dresses aren''t great, but there are lots in the $300 price range.

 

[aphisiglovessae]

Date: 9/26/2005 5:18:08 PM
Author: FireGoddess
For what these places are charging you for a dress rental, you could BUY a dress at David's Bridal! I got my dress there on sale for $350. Maybe the $99 dresses aren't great, but there are lots in the $300 price range.

I second that. Mine was 250!!!

 

[MissAva]

Have you ever looked on BlueFly? Search for evening dresses but dont use white because it knocks out ivory, offwhite, cream.... I would not want to make any suggestions with out knowing what you look like.

 

[Jelly]

You''ve got options. Look around for outlet stores and bridesmaid dresses in white. Here''s ANOTHER one from Jessica McClintock''s that I considered before I found my dress at an outlet.

dress

It''s a bridesmaid dress that you can adorn with pretty jewelry and a veil. The cost is $186.

 

[jaz464]

What about ebay? There are tons in all sizes/prices.

 

[BrightSpot]

Also check out J Crew--they have some simple, pretty wedding dresses. I bought an ivory gown at Filene''s Basement for under $100 (don''t know if I''ll keep it yet.) So you never know where you can find a wedding-appropriate dress.

 

[MissAva]

Okay I hope this does not bother you but alot of consignment shops have prom/wedding dresses. It might take a while but if you called around you could see which ones have things in your size. And depending on how complicated of a dress you want you might be able to find a semstress to make it for you (I would say it was for an event other then a wedding.)