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Rent a wedding dress or buy one?

pearlluopearlluo member
5 Love Its First Comment
in Budget Weddings Forum
I am going to get married in March next year and I have very poor budget on my wedding dress(I know maybe it is too late to get a wedding dress now,I and my FI had nearly broken up so the wedding plan had been suspended for couple months)If you were inmy shoes,will you rent a designer wedding dress or just buy one that is designed by onbody.There are many stores in my place provide the service of renting wedding dresses and I also know some stores which sell wedding dresses at reasonable price.I really love one wedding dress at the bouquet and it can be rent,however,in the other hand,I think I should have my own weddingdress.

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Re: Rent a wedding dress or buy one?

  • Knottie32501435Knottie32501435 member
    First Anniversary First Comment
    Granted I don't have much experience with these things, but I think you need to answer the following questions and think it over:

    How important is it to own my wedding dress?
    How important is it to have a designer dress?
    What is my budget?

    Base you decision on your answers. You need to figure out what your priorities are and how much you can afford. You could also consider buying one used if you could try it on, but I think that would be more of a last resort. It's not something I would do and I don't know much about it.

    Since you asked, if I were you I would likely rent one or get a non-designer one depending on my budget.
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  • JaxInBlueJaxInBlue member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its First Comment Name Dropper
    What is your budget range?  What type of dress are you looking at or hoping to have?

    I would consider a couple other options to renting.  One would be to look at non-bridal dresses that come in the color you would like.  Start with bridesmaids dress - many come in white, ivory, blush, etc. - since they can be much less expensive.  Also consider general formal wear dresses.  You may be able to find something at a department store.  You might also look at pre-owned wedding dresses.  There are some very good deals that can be had on dresses that were previously worn or purchased and later decided against. 

    One thing to consider is that with some dresses, you will need to add the cost of alterations to your final total.  It may be that because of that, renting something might ultimately be best.  However, if having your own dress is important, you might look outside of typical bridalwear to get a better deal.
    image
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  • southernbelle0915southernbelle0915 mod
    First Anniversary First Answer First Comment 5 Love Its
    I might just do the David's Bridal $99 sale. Ask which dresses you could get before March. Or see if you could buy something off the rack. Or preownedweddingdresses.com.
    *********************************************************************************

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  • wandajune6wandajune6 member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    My dress got beat up at the wedding. I stepped through netting while walking down the aisle, picked up my sticky-fingered niece, then had my friend spill red wine down the front of my dress while giving me a hug. I can laugh it off because I own it. What happens if you have similar luck in a rented dress?
    Daisypath Anniversary tickers
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  • soozikyusoozikyu member
    5 Love Its First Comment
    I would be afraid of messing up a rented dress too. But there's nothing wrong with renting one. You could also see if there are any good sample gowns at local bridal shops. I found mine for half price and it's in perfect condition. And there is always the option of a used dress as well.
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  • CMGragainCMGragain member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    My sister BORROWED her wedding dress!  She might have rented if she could have.
    Once the wedding is over, the dress is a sentimental albatross that you have to store.  Your daughter won't want to wear it, except maybe for a Halloween costume.  I recommend donating bought gowns to charity.  Nobody wants my 1976 long sleeved chiffon dress with Venise lace.  It takes up space in my storage room.
    httpiimgurcomTCCjW0wjpg
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  • pearlluopearlluo member
    5 Love Its First Comment
    Thank you for all your answers,now I prefer to rent one,but I am afraid that I will come across the situation as wandajune6 said!Or,I can find a pre-owned one as JaxInBlue sugested!
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  • climbingsingleclimbingsingle member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    My dress got messed up too. I ripped the bottom of it on my shoes. I'd be way to concerned about wearing a rented dress. 


    CMGragain said:
    My sister BORROWED her wedding dress!  She might have rented if she could have.
    Once the wedding is over, the dress is a sentimental albatross that you have to store.  Your daughter won't want to wear it, except maybe for a Halloween costume.  I recommend donating bought gowns to charity.  Nobody wants my 1976 long sleeved chiffon dress with Venise lace.  It takes up space in my storage room.
    I personally disagree with this. I don't see it as a sentimental albatross at all. I plan on preserving it in a display box and hanging it on the wall in my closet. 
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  • hutchslhutchsl member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its First Comment
    I bought mine at an antique fair. So bviously a used dress. I have seen nice dresses in Goodwill and Slavation army stores too. Maybe look at renting as a backup plan and search resale shos until you would have to commit to a rental. Good luck.
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  • princessleia22princessleia22 member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its First Comment First Answer

    Will you want to keep the dress for sentimental reasons?  A lot of women find it hard to part with the dress and would like to pass it down to children or maybe have the dress material made into special clothing for future kids or something.  If you think you may want to keep it for future use, definitely buy one.  You can find decent priced samples or clearance items that you can take home right away.  Or there are a lot of sites that sell used dresses. 

    But, renting may be an option if you have no desire to reuse the dress.  Or even if you find a cheap dress to buy, you can always re-sell or donate it after the wedding.

    image 

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  • mrsboyd8815mrsboyd8815 member
    5 Love Its First Comment
    davids bridal. 99$ sample sale!  I just bought mine there. was able to take it home with me that same day. worked out great! I also found a couple dresses that I was going to look at through facebook. They were on pages that are a buy sell or trade. they should have some in your area if you look on FB. good luck!

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  • msuprincess04msuprincess04 member
    5 Love Its First Answer Name Dropper First Comment
    I agree with pp, but I wanted to add: Craigslist!
    "There is always some madness in love. But there is also always some reason in madness." -Friedrich Nietzsche, "On Reading and Writing"
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  • mrssurselymrssursely member
    First Anniversary 5 Love Its Name Dropper First Comment
    I highly recommend checking out thrift stores, I found my dress for $50! I found someone extremely reasonable to do alterations and when all is said and done I'll have spent around $100-150 for my dream dress. Tradesy and Craigslist are also great, but it's helpful to try on the dress first to know sizing.
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  • CMGragainCMGragain member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    ClimbingBrideNY said:
    My dress got messed up too. I ripped the bottom of it on my shoes. I'd be way to concerned about wearing a rented dress. 


    CMGragain said:
    My sister BORROWED her wedding dress!  She might have rented if she could have.
    Once the wedding is over, the dress is a sentimental albatross that you have to store.  Your daughter won't want to wear it, except maybe for a Halloween costume.  I recommend donating bought gowns to charity.  Nobody wants my 1976 long sleeved chiffon dress with Venise lace.  It takes up space in my storage room.
    I personally disagree with this. I don't see it as a sentimental albatross at all. I plan on preserving it in a display box and hanging it on the wall in my closet. 
    Good luck with that!  I'll bet in 20 years you'll feel different.
    httpiimgurcomTCCjW0wjpg
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  • pearlluopearlluo member
    5 Love Its First Comment
    If I can find a dress with high quality and does't cost too much,I will definetely buy one.However,If I bought a poor qualitied one,I would rather rent one.Then I will look back my wedding from the pics that taken from my big day.As you suggested above,I find many wedding dresses at very low price.I really like the look of this one.
    http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/Charming-Tulle-Sweethart-Neckline-Natural-Waistline-Ball-Gown-2014-Wedding-Dress/1267423_1885678827.html
    But how can I know the quality of it or the effect on me?

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  • [Deleted User][Deleted User] member
    5 Love Its First Anniversary First Comment First Answer
    pearlluo said:
    If I can find a dress with high quality and does't cost too much,I will definetely buy one.However,If I bought a poor qualitied one,I would rather rent one.Then I will look back my wedding from the pics that taken from my big day.As you suggested above,I find many wedding dresses at very low price.I really like the look of this one.
    http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/Charming-Tulle-Sweethart-Neckline-Natural-Waistline-Ball-Gown-2014-Wedding-Dress/1267423_1885678827.html
    But how can I know the quality of it or the effect on me?

    You can't without trying it on. For $250 you can go to David's Bridal and get a dress vs. a Chinese knockoff. I wouldn't buy from that website, it gets terrible reviews. Try department stores as well.

    At the very minimum, try on different styles in the store to learn what flatters you before purchasing something online.  
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  • klk111415klk111415 member
    First Comment 5 Love Its Name Dropper First Answer
    I say go to David's Bridal and try on some dresses to see what you like.  I wasn't 100% sure what I wanted and tried on a ton of different styles and what I thought I would like I actually didn't like at all. Back when I first got engaged I thought about the dress rental idea, (honestly- those companies make bank on people renting their dresses and the number of people who rent the same dress you will wear is craziness)  Yeah, it would be nice to wear some fancy designer dress, but it doesn't matter in the end.  As long as you find a dress that you feel beautiful in- that's what matters.  The designer, the price you paid and all of that will only matter to you.  

    I told everyone before I went to DB that I was "just looking" to see what styles looked best on me and once I figured that out, I would go to a real dress shop.  But trying the dress on in store and seeing how beautiful it looked and how amazing I felt changed me.  I walked out of the store with my dress and paid a fraction of what I would have paid elsewhere.
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  • atlastmrsgatlastmrsg member
    5 Love Its First Comment First Anniversary Name Dropper
    Rent the Runway has many very pretty white dresses and gowns, and rental bridal accessories.  Definitely check it out.  And, you can damage the dress if you pay for "insurance."  It's an added fee so you don't get charged if the dress gets spilled on, torn, etc.  I was on the phone with a rep once about a dress I ordered, and they have all kinds of crazy things come back--cigarette holes, missing parts--and if the people have insurance on the dress, they just get rid of it or sell it as a damaged sample afterwards.  If there isn't insurance, they have the person pay fees to cover fixing it or charge them for the retail price of the dress, plus a certain percent mark up.  The insurance fee is inexpensive--I think it was something like $10.

    If I could rent the Lazaro I loved, I absolutely would have.  Now I'm stuck finding a buyer for a dress that costs as much as some people's used car.  I know I wouldn't want to keep my dress--I'm not going to wear it again, and if I ever have a daughter, I want her to choose a wedding dress that makes her happy, not feel obligated to try on mine or use fabric from it.  I have no need to keep it when I can look at the photos.

    PS: want a lazaro gown?  I also have two white ballgowns from cotillion I need to find homes for...  :)
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  • doeydodoeydo member
    First Anniversary First Comment First Answer 5 Love Its
    pearlluo said:
    If I can find a dress with high quality and does't cost too much,I will definetely buy one.However,If I bought a poor qualitied one,I would rather rent one.Then I will look back my wedding from the pics that taken from my big day.As you suggested above,I find many wedding dresses at very low price.I really like the look of this one.
    http://www.aliexpress.com/store/product/Charming-Tulle-Sweethart-Neckline-Natural-Waistline-Ball-Gown-2014-Wedding-Dress/1267423_1885678827.html
    But how can I know the quality of it or the effect on me?

    Don't order online from a suspicious website like that. https://www.facebook.com/BridesBeware

    Below are some dress suggestions, you can see if you can buy them off the rack or used:







    David's Bridal can also get dresses in quickly sometimes.  Some suggestions:

    image
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  • pearlluopearlluo member
    5 Love Its First Comment
    Thank you doeydo,the dresses you suggested are very beautiful,buy where can I find the prices?
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  • laurenr819laurenr819 member
    First Anniversary First Comment
    I rented mine! Can't wait to wear it in March :) Also, people are saying they would be afraid of messing it up. The place I'm renting from said not to worry about it, since they clean the dresses afterward no matter what. So I'm not worried :D I recommend it if you really don't mind owning the dress (personally I thought it would be pointless for me to buy it, since it's only for one day)
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  • annakay511annakay511 member
    5 Love Its First Anniversary First Comment Name Dropper
    I had no idea you could rent wedding dresses....

    I would search on facebook yardsale sites and craigslist to see if anyone is selling a pre-worn wedding dress (I see those for sale all the time!)

    I don't think a designer matters, as long as the dress looks good and fits well.
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  • pearlluopearlluo member
    5 Love Its First Comment
    Sorry,I really don't want a pre-owned one now@annakay!
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