Davids Bridal vs Boutique

krcran06

FYI I am not a large girl.  (I say this to justify that I am just below the american average and having issues dress shopping) my sevens are a size 30 but I was blessed with 38DD.  I keep in shape with rugby... that being said I hate wedding dress shopping and have a whole weekend of it ahead with the ladies of the family who are insisting I go to speciality shops (I wanted unt $800).  Best quote yet while shopping (in response to describe likes/dislikes) "I dont want anything that looks like fairies vomitted on it"




Davids Bridal:
Pro- I could actually fit in the dresses the concept of having larger sizes so you dont have to "pretend" is awesome... so far best experience
Con- One aunt is refusing to let my buy there as she says its a scam
Dresses found:
http://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_Draped-Satin-Bodice-with-Beaded-Embroidered-Detail-CT314_Bridal-Gowns-Features-Designer-Gowns-Oleg-Cassini

http://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_Strapless-Faille-with-Sweetheart-Draped-Bodice-CT326_Bridal-Gowns-Features-Designer-Gowns-Oleg-Cassini
http://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_Taffeta-A-Line-with-Ruffled-Flower-Neckline-ES9899" title=" http://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_Taffeta-A-Line-with-Ruffled-Flower-Neckline-ES9899">
http://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_Taffeta-A-Line-with-Ruffled-Flower-Neckline-ES9899



Boutiques:
Pro- Tried on Maggie Sottero Fiorenza and may have fallen in love, also great customer service
Con- many of the dresses are expesive, barely fit or wont go on at all (generic size 8...ha!), dresses too fancy and bedazzeled for me
Dress loved:www.maggiesottero.com/dress.aspx?keywordText=fiorenza&keywordType=any&page=0&pageSize=100&style=J1076" title="http://www.maggiesottero.com/dress.aspx?keywordText=fiorenza&keywordType=any&page=0&pageSize=100&style=J1076">http://www.maggiesottero.com/dress.aspx?keywordText=fiorenza&keywordType=any&page=0&pageSize=100&style=J1076


So my questions are this
1) Is it worth the boutique price for the experience?
2) is davids bridal good or bad?
3) Why the hell can they not have a size 8 and a 16 in most dresses.... I think girls would feel better puttong on a bigger one and clipping it then trying to pretend what it would look like if your arms could get in the straps....

krcran06

FYI I am not a large girl.  (I say this to justify that I am just below the american average and having issues dress shopping) my sevens are a size 30 but I was blessed with 38DD.  I keep in shape with rugby... that being said I hate wedding dress shopping and have a whole weekend of it ahead with the ladies of the family who are insisting I go to speciality shops (I wanted unt $800).  Best quote yet while shopping (in response to describe likes/dislikes) "I dont want anything that looks like fairies vomitted on it"




Davids Bridal:
Pro- I could actually fit in the dresses the concept of having larger sizes so you dont have to "pretend" is awesome... so far best experience
Con- One aunt is refusing to let my buy there as she says its a scam
Dresses found:
http://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_Draped-Satin-Bodice-with-Beaded-Embroidered-Detail-CT314_Bridal-Gowns-Features-Designer-Gowns-Oleg-Cassini

http://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_Strapless-Faille-with-Sweetheart-Draped-Bodice-CT326_Bridal-Gowns-Features-Designer-Gowns-Oleg-Cassini
http://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_Taffeta-A-Line-with-Ruffled-Flower-Neckline-ES9899" title=" http://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_Taffeta-A-Line-with-Ruffled-Flower-Neckline-ES9899">
http://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_Taffeta-A-Line-with-Ruffled-Flower-Neckline-ES9899



Boutiques:
Pro- Tried on Maggie Sottero Fiorenza and may have fallen in love, also great customer service
Con- many of the dresses are expesive, barely fit or wont go on at all (generic size 8...ha!), dresses too fancy and bedazzeled for me
Dress loved:www.maggiesottero.com/dress.aspx?keywordText=fiorenza&keywordType=any&page=0&pageSize=100&style=J1076" title="http://www.maggiesottero.com/dress.aspx?keywordText=fiorenza&keywordType=any&page=0&pageSize=100&style=J1076">http://www.maggiesottero.com/dress.aspx?keywordText=fiorenza&keywordType=any&page=0&pageSize=100&style=J1076


So my questions are this
1) Is it worth the boutique price for the experience?
2) is davids bridal good or bad?
3) Why the hell can they not have a size 8 and a 16 in most dresses.... I think girls would feel better puttong on a bigger one and clipping it then trying to pretend what it would look like if your arms could get in the straps....

marissa_claire

I had a good experience with David's but I'm sure a lot of people want that really unique thing that no one else has.  David's worked for me just because my MOH is up here in Chicago and my mom was in KS, so I tried on dresses with the MOH and narrowed it down to a few choices to show my mom.  It was the only way to involve the both of them.  

 I am not one of those people who would have fallen in love with a gown way out of my price range and thought it was worth another thousand or something.  And I am a very girly girl but for me it's not about the drama or glamour of the gown (sorry I hate it when girls say that on Say Yes to the Dress).  

I kind of think you'll have a gut instinct on this.  For whatever your aunt is saying David's is scamming you, don't all clothing stores mass produce things and charge ridiculously higher?  It's no different than buying a shirt at Macy's.  I do think that for your price range you'll have a lot more options at David's because they are significantly cheaper than most boutiques will be, and even then David's does have a lot more sizes so agreed that you'll enjoy that aspect of it.  If the gown isn't your personal focal point of the wedding and your bigger concerns are cost and sizes, I would definitely go with David's.

vannymuse

I bought a wedding dress at DB's with no problem. The salespeople were very nice to be both times I went. They have a lot of dresses under $800.
Also, I got the CT 326 dress for myself, so I'm a little biased


The only problem I had is that they give your contact info to a lot of vendors, so I get a lot of spam because of it.

I  didn't go to any boutiques, so I can't give any opinions on the experience

BlckRoses

I loved loved loved the high low hemline dress at Davids!  That's the reason I went there!  I didn't end up getting it because, while I loved it, it didn't feel weddingy for me.  But...I did get my dress at Alfred Angelo is which is very similar to David's.  I didn't go to any boutiques because my budget was really low ($550) and I didn't think they would have nice dresses for me.  I think David's is fine, they have nice dresses at reasonable prices, you might not get the one on one attention like at a higher priced store, but you get a dress.  The thing I loved about David's and Alfred is that they pulled my sized dress (I'm a 14 in bridal) so I was able to be zipped and corseted into my dresses and see what I actually look like it them, it was wonderful.

krcran06

I loved that dress in the pictures but it felt like a giant bell on... it was my first choice on paper though

I wish they would take out the first layer of stuffing.....

[Deleted User]

First of all, I love that Maggie Sottero dress. I was a Sottero and Midgley bride and believe my dress was well worth it - loved it and made me feel wonderful on my wedding day.


So my questions are this
1) Is it worth the boutique price for the experience?

 I think this is something that you are definitely going to get some varying opinions on. I think for some ladies, the dress is very important, but for others, they would rather spend less on a dress and more somewhere else.

I believed the bridal salon I went to was well worth it. I really had no idea what kind of dress I wanted except that I didn't want a lot of lace or tulle. I had no clue what would look good my body. I liked having someone be able to tell me what types of dresses would flatter my figure/shape and which ones to stay away with. Plus, I had one hour of undivided attention, and you don't get that at DB.

2) is davids bridal good or bad?

Well, I don't think DB is bad or they wouldn't be in business. There are plenty of brides who get their dresses there and are perfectly happy. (We purchased the BM's dresses there.) I definitely don't agree with your Aunt that they are a scam. If you want someplace to scam you, buy one of the knock-off dresses from China.

My problem with them was that they were a little pushy (bc they are all on commission) and I don't like being pressured or rushed into buying something that I am spending a significant amount of money on. Second, you don't often get individualized attention, they overbook appt times and run from dressing room to dressing room trying to help every bride.

3) Why the hell can they not have a size 8 and a 16 in most dresses.... I think girls would feel better puttong on a bigger one and clipping it then trying to pretend what it would look like if your arms could get in the straps....

I am not totally sure about this one. I know they didn't have every size in every dress I tried on there. Some were too tight and I had to squeeze into to see if I even liked it and some were too big that my Mom or the sales lady (when she was around) had to hold shut.


All in all, my advice would be not to let horror stories of DB scare you. It all depends on your budget, situation and what you want. I will say they do have some very nice dresses, but I just happened to fall in love with a designer dress. HTH

ogrady88

Yeah, I'd like to preface my statement too...I bought my boutique dress at a sample sale, I love it and it is more comfortable than any thing else I tried on that day.  So we went with it.  So here it goes:
1) Is it worth the boutique price for the experience?
Yes, If your dress is important to you, for me it was what I'd specifically asked my parents to purchase and I let them set the budget, so I went with what they were comfortable with.  My salon stores, cleans, and presses my dress until right before the wedding, which was great for my situation (I live in Los Angeles, but wedding is in Wisconsin)  I've enjoyed getting to know the girls at the salon when I go in to visit or select my veil, etc.  It's been so much fun and much more personal than my David's Bridal experience.
2) is davids bridal good or bad?
Hmm, this is all about what you value.  I had an appointment, I like their dresses, but they were not the same quality as my dress is.  Also, the majority of wedding dresses are made in Asia, and sold to designers here in the states. It's why you see so many similar styles across stores.  They are a large chain store and many people may have an issue with that...but to each his own.
3) Why the hell can they not have a size 8 and a 16 in most dresses.  Many designers do not make sample size dresses in 16.  Depending on the designer many dresses are made to order so they don't really make that many dresses in traditional dress sizes.  Also for smaller salons they may not be able to special order a larger sample size due to pricing.

Ana_2985

1) Is it worth the boutique price for the experience?
Um, I'm not sure what you mean by this.  Dresses in boutique salons aren't more expensive because of the "experience".  They are more expensive because they are designer dresses, they use different fabrics, and they aren't mass produced.  So if you are asking if you should buy your dress at a boutique just because you think it will be a nicer experience than DB, I would say absolutely not.  To me, that is not worth the price difference in the dresses.  The "experience" will be over in an hour.

Now, if you are picky about fabrics, than I would say yes it is worth the price.  I do not think the fabrics of DB dresses are bad, but I think in some cases (satin for example) they are not always as good as a boutique dress.  I liked two satin dresses - one from a salon and one from DB- and I got the salon dress because it just felt and looked better.  It was much thicker (ie. not sheer) but not heavy.

2) is davids bridal good or bad?
I went to DB and had a good experience.  They had all the dresses I wanted to try on, they were friendly and helpful, and they had a range of sizes.  However, they make you fill out an information form and I am still receiving phone calls from vendors which is really annoying.  Other than that it was fine.

3) Why the hell can they not have a size 8 and a 16 in most dresses.... I think girls would feel better puttong on a bigger one and clipping it then trying to pretend what it would look like if your arms could get in the straps....
I would imagine most boutiques are just too small to have every dress in several styles, but I agree with you - it would make more sense to carry the larger sizes so everyone can try them on.  I think the salon I bought my dress from carried 8's and 10's which is actually more like a DB 14 or 16.

Anyway, good luck!

Ashes_3

I bought an Oleg Cassini from Davids Bridal for 1350. I love my dress & have had no problem! I am not going to get the alterations done there though.