Tell me your dress story...

Knot Annie · June 2010

Hey Knotties,

I’m writing an article and want to know your biggest dress shopping mistakes, bloopers, lessons learned, regrets etc. My only rule is not to hate on a bridal shop. Just give some tips, quotes or funny stories about your dress shopping experience.

Here’s mine: “Don’t go for your dress fitting looking like a hot mess. Believe it or not, you’ll want to show people these photos. I wish that I had not come looking like the Bride of Frankenstein and taken the time to slap on a little mascara. I'm vain like that.”

Thanks in advance (as always)!

lovetothinkpink · June 2010

Never go when you are not feeling your best.I went a day after getting this weird thing put on my teeth at the orthodontist (it's off now).It made me have a lisp,and look pretty strange.I had a bit of a meltdown but did decide on a dress,that I didn't even think I liked,but everyone said I looked great in.

Flash forward to weeks later where I am back to looking and feeling like my normal self,I try on the dress again and LOVED it,and felt beautiful.Your mood can affect the way you see things,sp be careful.

dizzinea · June 2010

so I have now had three dresses, and finnally have the one I will wear. do not shop almost two years out, do not let fantasy get in the way of reality. (ie if you weigh ninety pounds soacking wet don't buy the fifteen pound ball gown even if you love it) do not buy a dress before you have concrete wedding plans.

verbride · June 2010

I have champagne taste on a beer budget. I tried on a Vera Wang “for fun” and that was a big mistake. You can imagine that I feel in love with that beauty. Don’t try on wedding dresses that you cannot afford.

jnic0319 · June 2010

I found a dress I loved, the sample fit me perfectly but the store said I should go a size up because the sample had probably been stretched out. To save money I ordered it online from a popular online bridal store which gave me a better price than the bridal store in town. Big mistake! The dress came in and it's huge. Now I have to pay a ridiculous price for alterations that are making the gown cost more than it would have in the bridal store. Stick with a bridal store and pay the extra few hundred dollars, that way if something goes wrong they have to make it right.

suz62984 · June 2010

Never buy the dress the first time you try it on. The excitement is built up inside of you and your decision can be swayed. Pick your favorites, have the dress shop list them on a client card, and go back a few weeks later. Have the shop pull your favorite dresses and try them on again. You'll have a better idea of which dress is for you.

I found two dresses I loved. I couldn't decide between them. I waited a few weeks and went back to the store. After trying both of them on, I realized that I hated dress #2 and chose dress #1. Best decision i've ever made!

Knot Annie · June 2010

This advice is great, but I'd love more stories! Keep them coming.

shellydiane820 · June 2010

Keep an open mind! I never imagined I'd wear a blue wedding gown. When my grandma saw it she replied with "But in white, right?"

noodle_oo · June 2010

My advice: don't put so much pressure on "the perfect dress". We all watch those wedding shows where the girls burst into tears when they find THE ONE. I went dress shopping and I never had that feeling. I seriously went to like a billion dress shops and I was getting so frustrated wtih the process. I found lots of dresses I liked, but I was never emotional about it the way I thought I "should" be. I thought I would never find the right dress! I finally found a dress that i really liked and I sort felt like, sure this one will work! So I bought it! I am totally in love with it, but I never cried like a baby over it. Some girls just don't get that emotional over it, so don't feel bad if you are one of them (like me!). Afterall, it is just a piece of clothing!

Also: once you buy your dress, STOP LOOKING. You will just make yourself crazy.

karbar42 · June 2010

My only regret is that in the excitement my bridesmaids/mom/gram were all trying on dresses too. I wish I could have seen them in the dresses, but I missed most of that as I was trying to find my dress. So maybe if possible, do your shopping and their shopping on two different days, so everyone can enjoy both.

Licia&Wayne · June 2010

Don't over think it and trust the employees there to help you. I had this thought that I was going to storm the bridal shops and find the perfect dress with these straps, this fabric, this look, blah blah blah. The third dress I tried on just made me feel good, it was completely different from what I thought I wanted, and the shop owner grabbed it because I said I liked it, but it probably wasn't for me. She just knew I had to try it on. That's the dress I'm getting married in.

waltzingmatilda13 · June 2010

Before you go shopping, really think about what you want out of your experience and who you want to take with you.

I was visiting my FSIL and my FMIL and other FSIL were all talking about dress shopping, so we radomly went to a dress shop while we were out one day. I was not thinking I was going to find anything, but could at least try on some dresses. Lo and behold I found "the dress", the one the made me cry and feel like a bride. Well the only problem was my mom was not there and I felt awful. She was so excited to go shopping with me that I had to lie and call a million other stores to find one that had my dress so I could pretend to have that experience all over again with her there. It really made my mom's day to be there with me and I'll never let her know that I found the dress shopping with my ILs.

blackfire5th · June 2010

Take pictures. I really thought I loved one dress over another. I went home and looked at the photos that evening and couldn't believe how much better I looked in the other dress! You get a different perspective when you aren't 3 feet in front of a mirror.

katiethecutie · June 2010

My sister in law couldn't make it to my first shopping trip so I texted her a pic of my favorite. I didn't even realize I sent it to the wrong person (MY FI!) until he replied to the text with someting helpful like "I like it. Your butt looks cute." Ahhhh! It's hard to be sneaky.

MattsPenguin · June 2010

Don't feel pressured to buy the first day, even if it's on sale. I actually found my dress the first time out (it was even the first dress I put on), but I didn't want to buy it that day. Luckily, my sales woman didn't pressure me either. She was delighted that I came back a few weeks later and purchased the one she knew was the one from the beginning. Plus, it was back on sale with an even bigger discount!

tranjuliet · June 2010

It's okay to not cry. Watching shows like 'Say Yes To The Dress' made me feel like I was missing something because I wasn't getting that waterworks feeling when I saw myself in what ended up being THE dress. Instead when I put on the dress and looked at myself in the mirror, I just couldn't stop staring at myself and felt completely stunning and fabulous.

Leslie&Ralph · June 2010

Biggest mistake: Expecting my dress shopping experience to go exactly like a 22 minute episode of Say Yes to the Dress complete with crying friends and family and that OMGOMGOMG feeling. Big letdown. Forgot a little common sense.

Read all about it:http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_attire-accessories_pip

LOL

Robyn5298 · June 2010

Here's a tip - Bring a bathrobe! If you go to a busy shop you may end up waiting for your salesperson to bring you gowns. If you have a robe you can be with your friends and family during the downtime and avoid hiding in the dressing room in your underwear.

magpie2313 · June 2010

I suggest visiting a few bridal shops to try on a different styles before you're ready to buy. There are so many styles out there, and it's good to educate yourself on what looks good on your body, so when you're ready to buy, you really concentrate on the style you're looking for. My first visit at a bridal shop was by myself. I knew I wasn't going to buy - but, I didn't really know if my body shape was more flattering for a ballgown, A-line, Empire, Mermaid, etc. Oddly enough, a halter top looked the best! I would have never would have guessed that. My second visit to the shop, i knew exactly what I was looking for and I bought that day - with my sister and mom As always, go try on a few dresses because you ever know what could surprise you.

mobridetobe · June 2010

Don’t try on dresses after a trip to a spray tanner. What I thought would make me look like a glowing bride later rubbed off on the bridal salon's sample dresses.

barbbhoww · June 2010

Whatever you do, don't wear a black thong!

JeFlanigan · June 2010

i was pretty set on the look I wanted in my dress and explained to the shoppe owner what I wanted. She went into the back and pulled out a dress that I looked at and hated. My mom encouraged me to not be rude and try it on. I tried it on second (to get it over with) and LOVED the way it looked, and felt. It was exactly what I wanted. (to make things better the dress I had picked out was 2500 more than the dress I she picked out for me.)
The big fear I had was that my grandmother was going to hate it. I tried it on for her and the gasp when she saw me was enough to convince it was the perfect dress for me.

My advice, like not judging a book by its cover, don't judge a dress on a hanger.

cwm11985 · June 2010

try on every different style offered. You may think you'll want one style but end up looking FABULOUS in a different one!

kmb6881 · June 2010

Try on another dress after you think you've found your dress. My "just one more style to make sure" became my dress the second I put it on.

megzxo · June 2010

I live in Florida and my mom is in Maine so I knew that there was no way we could go dress shopping together. I kept putting it off because I was engaged once before, and I tried on a gazillion dresses and never found "the one"... maybe because it was never meant to be! But I already knew that dress shopping is not as fun and exciting as it seems in the tv shows.

I went around to several shops by myself on my lunch breaks and found dresses that were ok, or on sale for a good price and I sort of liked. I started looking around online on CraigsList and Ebay, and kept going back to a sample gown on Ebay that I liked. I've heard horror stories about buying dresses on Ebay, but I kept going back for it and the bridal salon selling it had a return policy, so what the heck, I bought it for $200. I got it home, tried it on, and I loved it instantly. I wasn't in front of my family and friends and crying... I did have my neighbor come over to confirm that it was beautiful.

Just to be sure I've gone to a couple more bridal salons with my best friend, thinking I was missing out on the whole experience. But the more I try on $900 dresses that are OK, the more I love my $200 ebay dress. And with the alterations I need, its still going to cost me under $400 which makes me love it even more.

StephHalm · June 2010

Try that is something totally NOT you. I went in knowing I wanted strapless, minimal beading and it must be symetrical beading and only across the bust. The only think my dress has I said I wanted is strapless. It has beading ALL over it, around the top down the back, everywhere. It is champaign colored beadings - I SWORE I wouldn't wearing anything that wasn't completely bleach white. The train is different than what I thought I wanted.
Know what you like, but don't go in with a set image in your mind. I LOVED this dress the minute I put it on. I never would have picked it for myself, but am sooo glad the lady brought it to me.

polichik · June 2010

Be open to trying styles on that you don't like in a magazine. The styles that I loved the most in photos ended up being unflattering and very "not me." I thought I wanted something modern, slinky, and fitted, and ended up with a super-romantic, girly gown. It didn't look like "me" in a magazine, but it sure felt right on!

I also wish I'd known that most stores will have an occasional 10-20% off deal. I was able to buy my dream dress at over 20% off since I had time to wait for a sale.

I also made the mistake of trying dresses on "for fun" over two years out. I wish I'd waited until 14-10 months out to try some on for the first time. I ended up trying on over 100 dresses, and it was comletely overwhelming.

Even though I ended up purchasing my dress from a salon, preowned websites are such a great resource. You can find gorgeous, almost-new designer gowns for a fraction of the price.

princesspgd · June 2010

Never buy a dress 2 years out! I did and I completely changed my mind! The one I picked out was a black party dress because I just wanted to go in front of the Justice of the Peace at the time. Good thing my FI held off on making any more plans because I went shopping with my MOH and BM and found the most gorgeous dress! Also, be sure to try on dresses you couldn't imagine yourself ever wearing. I always pictured myself in a plain white halter dress. My dress is strapless and has a ton of beading on it! Just have fun trying them on because you never know what you might like the most!

ellen73 · June 2010

I was seriously dreading dress shopping. I am a size 22. I had flashbacks to prom dress shopping when there were usually just 2 or 3 to pick from in my size (and I was smaller then, but have a large bust!) My biggest suggestion is don't settle for just an OK dress. There is a great dress for everyone! I would suggest going to a large chain type store to get a good idea of what you want and what looks good. First- they had dresses IN my size to try on. Second- they had a variety of styles and I found a couple I really liked. I then went to a popular local store- and had a horrible experience. The sales person they paired me with was not helpful at all. I said I didn't want straps, she brought me strapless dresses. I said I didn't want too much lace or too much beading- they brought me dresses covered in lace or completely beaded. In addition- she kept undressing me in front of everyone! It was so bazaar. The whole experience was just awful. I was ready to buy one of the ones that I liked from the big chain store... and just happened to have a day off. I found a dress I loved on the knot! I then called and found it at a shop near my house, they had it in my size, and it was awesome! I was by myself, and loved it. I ended up ordering it from a shop near my parents house (closer to the wedding, didn't have to worry about transporting it hours in the car, etc). It was awesome! I just had the second fitting today, and couldn't be happier!

x3Harmony534 · June 2010

If at all possible, find a dress that has meaning to you. I was having a really difficult time validating spending over $1,000 on a dress for ONE night, even my wedding night. However I found a nation wide tour of gowns called Brides Against Breast Cancer where 100% of the proceeds went to grant wishes for terminally ill breast cancer patients. I found a dress that I LOVED and have never once had buyers remorse (even though I bought it over a year before the wedding!) knowing that the dress has special meaning & helped to make someone else's dream come true.

Steph0871 · June 2010

awesome stories so far!

I have two:

Trust your consultant, even if she wants to put you in something you know you'd never like. I ended up walking out excitedly with a dress that was the exact opposite of what I "knew" I wanted.

Eat appropriately. The first time I went, I purposely didn't eat beforehand so I wouldn't feel gross. The appointment ran late and by the end of it, I was famished and ready to pass out. The second time I went to try on the dress again, I ate a little before hand and spent the whole appointment looking for the closest bathroom!

Tell me your dress story...

Re: Tell me your dress story...

Choose Another Board

Search Boards