Light in the Box, y'all

Heffalump

LSS, my FSIL really loved a flower girl dress she saw on there.  I expressed my reservations and pointed her toward some reviews/horror stories (elsewhere, since they're not on the site itself), as well as similar dresses on more reputable sites.  She says she's not worried.  Okay. 

I mean, I'm not worried, only because it's a dress for my kid.  If it's crap, the wedding can still go on as planned, NBD.  (We're packing a backup dress for DD, JIC.  Not another FG dress, just a nice dress so that if the LITB dress is unwearable, DD has something to wear to the wedding other than shorts and a tee.)  My brother and FSIL were kind enough to pay for the FG dresses (there are 3 FG total), so it's not even like I'll be out any money if this whole thing goes south.  I'll feel badly for them, but I said my piece, FSIL ordered the dresses, and now I'm zipping it.

But Light in the Box is bad, right?  Maybe I'm just out of the loop.  Anyone had any experience with them, good/bad/indifferent?

HID14118

I ordered my wedding garter from light in the box. Although it did take longer then expected to arrive, it was exactly what i wanted and a fine quality. As long as you don't mind the wait for it to arrive, I had no issues with them.

Lulawife

A friend of mine ordered a faux fur stole for her wedding on LITB. When it arrived it was a noticeably different shade of brown than the one she ordered but she wasn't picky and thought the returns process might be a hassle so she used it anyways. It was a good quality for the price. I think it's hit or miss honestly. 

OurWildKingdom

@MesmrEwe has ordered a few dresses from LITB, if I recall correctly.

LondonLisa

LITB uses child and slave labour. 

Heffalump

LondonLisa said:

LITB uses child and slave labour. 

Yeesh.  I thought they just had quality issues.  That's awful.

LondonLisa

Heffalump said:

LondonLisa said:

LITB uses child and slave labour. 

Yeesh.  I thought they just had quality issues.  That's awful.

Yeah, the garment industry is fairly notorious for this. There is a reason they can sell dresses that normally cost hundreds, or even thousands, for pennies. 

CMGragain

As long as she can afford to buy another dress if LIB's dress is a mess, then it is her risk.  I would never order from them.

MesmrEwe

OurWildKingdom said:

@MesmrEwe has ordered a few dresses from LITB, if I recall correctly.

I've ordered from there multiple times as well as JJ's House because I cannot find designers/clothiers domestically who make extended sizes in similar styles to the formals/outfits I've purchased.  I would absolutely love to walk into a clothier/salon and purchase a size 22/24W formal off the rack at a $$$$ price point, but - THEY DO NOT STOCK THEM online or in the store for many of the styles I want to purchase!  They do stock Muumuu form styles which they would NEVER get away with for those wearing smaller sizes.  You cannot purchase what designers/stores do not make available at any price.  This is exactly what Tim Gunn has talked about many times as a normal experience for those of plus sizes!

These are not "Dresses worth thousands marked down" they're a $119 dress priced at $119, plus $ for extended size or $20 for having your measurements sent in so it's fitted to you.  Like any store, they hook you with a "Valued at" price and the "Feel good" price you pay, they are not staffing salespeople, nor are they paying for a store front, or the four levels of markups from the factory to the end user so there is a slight adjustment for that cost of doing business.  You get what you pay for.  That's not to say every purchase has been perfect, I ordered one suit tailored and it wasn't the quality I wanted and my shoulders were too broad for the shoulder wraps, but overall, the dresses I've purchased have been of good quality for the price point with the risk of knowing "there isn't a return policy", and overall I've been happy with the quality of item I purchased whether that be an accessory or dress.  All of my accessory purchases have been flawless.  

The other thing is, when you purchase a dress from a store or salon they've often steamed it out for you, which will greatly alter one's perception from the first look out of the box, so you'll need to plan to do this step yourself.  The dress I wore Sunday not only was higher quality than I expected (even my Mom who is a seamstress was impressed with its construction), it took me a whole 10 minutes tops to DIY this but I've also taken dresses to the cleaners to have them just press it out for me which in that case was worth the $40 I spent given the layers and type of fabric involved.  That one step is vital when ordering formals online from anywhere though!

Heffalump

I'm just bumping this to say, FWIW, they arrived and FSIL is happy with them.  I don't think they look exactly like the photo, but honestly, it's hard to tell because they're different angles, lighting, etc.  But she's happy, so I'm going to say that I was pleasantly surprised.  We'll see how it fits when we get there...