wedding dress made abroad....

mrse2010

hi ladies,
this is my first post so i'm hoping to get some of your expertise! i have found an absolutely gorgeous gown that can be made by hand to my exact measurements. it would come from hong kong or paris. it seems reputable and the people i have spoken with over email have been very professional. i haven't been happy with dresses i have searched for and am wondering if i should take the chance.
anyone else doing this or have any experience with this?
~meg

K-hart

How many dress shops have you been to in Central PA?

I wouldn't order my dress on-line, but that's just me. If it's affordable, I may think about it, but dresses always look different ON your body than on the rack or in a picture. I would just caution you to order before really going out to every local bridal shop (and their are plenty!) and trying on anything and everything. If you still can't find your dream dress, then maybe I'd consider ordering as a last resort. 

~mRm~

If you haven't already, I aggree w/ K-Hart - get out locally and try gowns on. The type of gown I invisioned as my "dream gown" didn't do much to flatter me when I tried samples in the salons. After that it's really up to you. There has been much talk on the boards of Milly Bridal in China. A few ladies have had dresses custom made with great success - some even combining aspects of many gowns into one totally custom design.

http://www.millybridal.com/store/comersus_index.asp

I had a gown made custom to my measurements from an ebay seller based in Cali but the gown was produced in China. I planned to use this gown for a RTD shoot after my wedding. The price was very affordable so I gave it a shot. I was pleasantly surprised when the gown arrived around 35 days after ordering. It fit perfectly and the craftsmanship was superb (I sew a lot myself and am super picky)! It was fully lined and they even included built in bra cups. It was dead on to the photo listed in the ad - which was an actual photo of a gown they created - not a stock designer photo. These are my photos of the gown when it arrived:














What was NOTICABLY different (at least from this manufacturer) from gowns I tried on in salons and my acutal wedding gown was:

1. the fabric quality - taffeta vs satin  - shiner, thiner and much less expensive. The gown appears really shiny from the flash of the camera. 

2. lesser quality embellishments - seqins and pearls vs swarovsky crystals, ect and the gown had no internal boning/support or crinoline built into the skirt.
 



My best advice if you order anything online have a professional take your measurements and don't forget to wear a shoe similar to what you may wear on your wedding day. It also never hurts to have a local seamstress available in case the gown would need minor alterations.

For my intents and purposes this gown was perfect!  There are more photos of it in my bio under RTD.

TaliaLynn007

I've looked online and found the dress i want, but it comes from China. No shop local makes a dress that compares to the look of it.

I've decided to spend the $200 on it, and if it doesn't work out with that dress, i'll go to a Davids Bridal and Alfred Angelo and try to find something i'm happy with there.