recommendations please!!!

dot36

Hi All,

could you please recommend good places to find a wedding dress in cleveland. my mom and I are gonna start our search this weekend.  Also recommendations on places for good yet inexpensive wedding invites and save the dates.

thanks all!  i need all the help i can get!

starshine985

A good place to shop for wedding dresses is Catan's Bridal in Strongsville.  They have the largest selection in Northeast Ohio. 

Bgriz722

I went to Lavendar Bridal in Dover, OH. Great experience so far and a HUGE selection. The staff is so wonderful!

bookgrl924

I bought my dress from Doreen Leaf Designs in Hartville. I really like the consultants there. I also like the ladies at Dora's Bridal in Fairview Park and their prices are better than some shops. I agress with PP that you should check out Catan's. They have a large selection to try on, and then you can narrow down what styles/designers you like.

onthego11

Wedding Dresses: Linda at the David's Bridal in North Olmsted was really great to work with!!! Actually going back to see her on Saturday to order the BM dresses.

Save the Dates: Vista Print

Invites: Do you want order everything or are you planning on printing them yourselves? My FI found our invites. They're basic, off white, with a border around the edges and a cross at the top center at Ollies. We were able to get 150 invites and response cards for about $10.00 and it will cost us maybe $15.00 to have them printed. We decided instead of spending a couple of hundred dollars on the invites (since they will most likely will be pitched), we could put the money elsewhere towards the wedding.

Good Luck

BKJD0713

East: Expressions Bridal in Mentor or Galleria Gowns in Willoughby Hills
My friend got her bridal gown and all of our BM dresses from Expressions.  They were really helpful and kind, and they were "wedding people".  I like that, I feel like we got treated really well there, and the quality of the dresses was very nice.

West: Catan's Bridal in Strongsville
I got my prom dress from there in high school, and plan on going there in a few weeks to start my own dress shopping.  They treated me like gold when I was in high school (8 years ago).  I hope they're still awesome!

I heard there is a really good store in Hudson, but I can't remember the name.  It's in Hudson Square.

starlite21l

I second going to Catan's.  I didn't end up buying my dress there but I went because I heard they had the biggest selection in NE Ohio and I am sooo glad I went!  I was positive I was going to get an A-line dress "because it was best for my body type".  Well, I tried on like 10 A-line dresses and HATED them all!  So, it was nice that Catan's had literally hundreds off different dresses to figure out what looked best on me.  I ended up liking the mermaid style.  I went to another smaller salon to look at some other mermaids but Catan's really had the variety that helped me figure out which direction to go in.

Ember01

Catan's has lots of a selection. But, on a weekend you HAVE to call ahead and make an appointment. They are busy.

Candlelite Bridal in Sheffield is really great to work with. Its small, but the staff is great.

My SIL bought her dress from Leonardo's in Rocky River.

starshine985

I don't think you necessarily must have an appointment for Catan's on the weekend.  I bought by dress there and never once had an appointment (and yes, I always went on the weekend).  However, if it is a concern of yours, then making an appointment certainly wouldn't hurt.

jaclyn&dave

I second expressions bridal in mentor. I just bought my dress there as well as the bridesmaids! Everybody is really nice and helpful.

Invites: Printvista has an awesome selection.

If you are looking to print your own, there are some nice ones i saw at michaels today and I think that you can use 40% coupons on them as well, but not entirely sure.

I think the one is hudson is called All Brides Beautiful

butterflyroy78

Catans is the way to go! They have all brands and price points.

For STD's and invites: VISTAPRINT! I got everything from there and am very pleased with quality and price! Get on their email first, though! They constantly send out sale info! The only thing I have paid for is the invites and everything else has been free! Even shipping!

ellen73

I had a horrible experience at Catan's- yes they have lots of gowns, but some of the staff are not pleasant people. My experience trying on gowns in the middle of everyone at David's in North Olmsted was a thousand times better than my experience at Catan's.  I LOVED Dora's in Fairview Park.   I had found my dress at a shop near where I was living in Columbus, but the reviews for that store were horrible.   I called around, and Dora's said that even though they didn't have that dress, they would order it for me to try on.  I ended up having it altered through them, and the prices weren't that outrageous.  They also will store wedding dresses (but not bridesmaid dresses) until your wedding day.  I picked mine up the day before (nice that it is under a mile from my mom's house!).

As for invitations- I really really wanted to do them myself.  But when you get engaged and set the date for 6 months later, and are inviting 350+ people... that is unrealistic.   I did make the save the dates myself, and the programs and table numbers, etc (most supplies bought at Hollo's in Brunswick, using an HP laserjet printer).   I looked at a few shops for invitations, and loved paper trails in Rocky River.  However... I needed to be somewhat economical.  I was all set to buy them from a shop in Columbus- and then I found the same invitations on this site for 40% off: www.elegantbridalinvitations.com/" target="_blank">http://www.elegantbridalinvitations.com 

They do not have a shop, so there is no overhead.   The invitations took a week or two longer to come in than I would have liked, but if you order with time to spare you should be fine.  Definitely find a place to see the invitation in person before you order- one invite I liked online was extremely flimsy/cheap looking in person.