Budget dress shops

caitlintaylor07

I am going to visit David's and Alfred Angelo, but are there any shops that don't mark up dresses? My (loose) budget is $1000, but my mom told me she would pay for $500. I live in Denton, so Bridal Boutique in Lewisville would be the obvious choice but i've been in there several times and it seems like the dresses I like there are much more expensive than what i've seen online. I want an all-lace dress in ivory, and I (of course) really like Maggie and Mori Lee dresses.

Are there any other designers I should be looking at that are more on the budget-friendly end? I have seen a few from Allure Bridals I like, but i'm not sure on prices.

cwaggoner07

Terry Costa is where I got my all-lace gown for 900! They were having a 20% off all bridal gowns that weekend... you may call and ask when they plan to do that again. It was great, and I didn't even need an appointment.

downbey

I got my dress at Circle Park Bridal in Addison. They have good prices there. I know it's not very close to Denton, but if you're in the area it's worth a stop. The ladies there are super sweet,

juliebug1997

There's a big wedding dress shop in Denton--Denton Bridal Co.?  There's also Lewisville Bridal and I got my dress at Mii's in Dallas (on Garland Rd.). 

shannonemcd

I know it's out of the way, but I got a $2700 dress for a little under $800 at Mockingbird Bridal. They have a sale rack of their designer gowns in the middle toward the dressing rooms. When I was trying dresses on a girl found one for like $500? So it might be worth a trip to Dallas.

professorscience

I got my dress at Mockingbird Bridal.  I think their dresses start around $450 and go up from there.

fallbride1109

My budget was the same as yours and I wasn't on TK yet so I thought my only options were David's and AA.  I wish I had known about all these shops before I bought my dress.  Make sure you take the time to explore these other options.

cwaggoner07

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_texas-dallas-ft-worth_budget-dress-shops?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:102Discussion:b9f0d9af-188e-490c-a7a9-d3e7745dd54dPost:ef70c488-249f-4d2f-9121-c5bb408c2a4f">Re: Budget dress shops</a>:
[QUOTE]I got my dress at <strong>Circle Park Bridal in Addison</strong>. They have good prices there. I know it's not very close to Denton, but if you're in the area it's worth a stop. The ladies there are super sweet,
Posted by downbey[/QUOTE]

I had my heart set on an earthy, lace, ivory dress, and Circle Park Bridal really didn't have anything close to what I was looking for. They had BEAUTIFUL dresses, but definitely not my style. I don't really know how to describe their style of dresses, except for my outdoor casual wedding it was not a fit at all. Just big poufy couture princess dresses.
If that's what you're looking for... CPB is GREAT but I pretty much wasted my time there.

professorscience

I think Circle Park just sells their dresses off the rack, so there's no custom-ordering.  I could be wrong.

cwaggoner07

Amanda - They are known for having good rack sales, but they do order. All the ones I tried on had major clips in the back.

professorscience

Ah.  I must be thinking of somewhere else.  Or totally have my information wrong.

xobride

This is totally far away for you, but Elizabeth's Bridal in Hurst is where I went and their price for my Casablanca was less than any of the best price online stores.  They also only charged what they had to pay for the rush vs everyone else who doubles it They also only charged me what Casablanca charged them for the sash and the neckline that I had added from another dress in that line.  They do the bustle for free and they are just the sweetest two ladies on the planet!

juliebug1997

Yeah, if you're going to buy a rack dress, you kind of have to be close to that size. 

angelsong21

I think CPB only used to do off-the-rack dresses but expanded to do some ordering now as well.  However, when I went in at the end of last summer, everything that was ordered was $900+.  The sales staff was really nice but that place was a ZOO on a Saturday.  They did offer to take the dress down some in price after I tried it on.  It might be worth it just to stop in and see what they have and how flexible they can be in price on their off-the-rack dresses.

I know several people who have bought at Terry Costa and had good experiences.  They have some great dresses there.  Wish I had realize that place existed before I bought mine, and I wish I had realized that they had some Maggie Sottero dresses within my price range *winces*.

eg4982

I know it's a bit far but Lulu's Bridal in Dallas has some great sales and off the rack prices.  They carry Maggie dresses because I tired on several there.

raehny

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_texas-dallas-ft-worth_budget-dress-shops?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:102Discussion:b9f0d9af-188e-490c-a7a9-d3e7745dd54dPost:26b79a67-b8e3-4089-b809-b86ff0f62f82">Re: Budget dress shops</a>:
[QUOTE]I know it's a bit far but Lulu's Bridal in Dallas has some great sales and off the rack prices.  They carry Maggie dresses because I tired on several there.
Posted by eg4982[/QUOTE]


^^This.  AND they have a store at Willowbend where they sell their out-of-season samples at good prices, but they're only open Friday-Saturday-Sunday.  I also went to Bridal Co. in Denton...they have an ok selection, but really good prices.  Definitely check them out if you haven't already - they also sell a ton of stuff off the rack for pretty cheap!

caitlintaylor07

Thank you thank you!! I plan on checking out ALL these places. FI lives in Fort Worth, so Hurst isn't too bad and i'm willing to drive to find the perfect dress.


Bridal Co. USED to be great.... they actually moved to Allen. I've bought several BM dresses there over the years but their customer service has gone way downhill. And i've heard of brides here lately not getting their dresses on time at Bridal Co.'s fault.

MarieSD

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_texas-dallas-ft-worth_budget-dress-shops?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:102Discussion:b9f0d9af-188e-490c-a7a9-d3e7745dd54dPost:0be682ee-f3f3-4b67-8290-602aa0890289">Re: Budget dress shops</a>:
[QUOTE]I think CPB only used to do off-the-rack dresses but expanded to do some ordering now as well.  However, when I went in at the end of last summer, everything that was ordered was $900+. 
Posted by angelsong21[/QUOTE]

I ordered my dress from CPB and it was only $640. But, that's the only dress there I even tried so I have no idea how many other dresses you can order there for under 1k.

OP, if you love Mori Lee, that's a great brand to look into. Just be aware that that that designer sets a "minimum price" and stores aren't allowed to sell the dresses for below that.

For example, my Mori Lee dress -- the minimum on it was $610. CPB had a sample in stock to try on, and they ordered it in my size for me for $640.

Denton Bridal Co didn't have a sample for me to try on, but told me they'd order it for me and sell it to me for $610, plus they'd throw in $100 store credit (for a veil, etc). Since they couldn't discount the dress any further, this is how they could get around it.

Lewisville Bridal Boutique had a sample in store that I tried on and offered to order it for me for something over $900. Ouch.

I found the exact dress I was looking at for $300 on one of the used-wedding-gown sites -- I can't remember if it was bravobride.com, recycledbride.com, or oncewed.com.

So just an idea of how much prices can vary on the same dress and how Mori Lee does their pricing.

cwaggoner07

OH and I forgot to mention the dress I ended up getting at Terry Costa was Allure. I tried on two of their lace dresses that retailed from 1100-1500 (but like I said, there was 20% off all dresses when I went).

Jen6862

There is a consignment Anonymously Yours in Dallas. They have several Maggie's, including mine! All dresses are dry cleaned before they will accept them. They have lots of beautiful dresses. Sold off the rack. It's a small shop, but full of goodies.

xobride

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_texas-dallas-ft-worth_budget-dress-shops?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:102Discussion:b9f0d9af-188e-490c-a7a9-d3e7745dd54dPost:e419d1f2-b5e0-4237-8c27-bb3a810e1f54">Re: Budget dress shops</a>:
[QUOTE]Thank you thank you!! I plan on checking out ALL these places. FI lives in Fort Worth, so Hurst isn't too bad and i'm willing to drive to find the perfect dress. Bridal Co. USED to be great.... they actually moved to Allen. I've bought several BM dresses there over the years but their customer service has gone way downhill. And i've heard of brides here lately not getting their dresses on time at Bridal Co.'s fault.
Posted by caitlintaylor07[/QUOTE]

I hope you give Elizabeth's a chance.  They sent me a hand-written thank you note after I ordered my dress and I went back a week later with my FG dress to see if it was the same color ivory and they were still so helpful!  They're also Christian owned and not shy about it and that meant a lot to me.  They have a sign that says something to the effect "We trust in God to bring us our clients.  You aren't here by accident."  They're also very much about what the bride wants and not what everyone else thinks the bride should get.

gimoya7196

Selling my wedding dress, $500.00 or OBO, dress is dry cleaned and ready to go. Please email me gimoya7196@yahoo.com, if you are interested. Size 8 Purchased at Terry Costa.