DW Dress Advice

FSForever

FI and our daughters would really like me to wear a white wedding dress on our big day.  To be honest the thought of spending a lot of money on something I am going to wear for a few hours, sweat in and then set aside doesn't appeal to me.  I also don't wear dresses that often and I don't enjoy trying clothes on.  FI has already said he is fine with me the trashing the dress afterward if I will just wear one. Funny I have already talked to our WC about an booking the additional photo shoot for the TTD, but I don't even have the dress yet.
So with that being said I would like to find something simple and have looked at DW dresses online but all of the stores I have looked at around our area don't really have good selections.  Any ideas? Where did some of you get your dresses and did you go with simple DW?

motoLyn

I'm still looking for a dress, but what FI and I have come up with is that I will have a dress for the day of the wedding something that's classic, light weight and with movement and then I'll get a DW simple wedding dress to TTD session.  We were at DB once and found a flowy dress for $150 that would look awesome floating around me in the water.  I definitely say that you go try on what you feel comfy in.  Perhaps a sheath dress?  Soft and light fabrics?

Tanq&Tonic

I am a big fan of Nordstrom -- lots of expensive gowns, and some really reasonable ones:

http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/calvin-klein-sequin-trim-mesh-gown/3107066?origin=category

http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/js-boutique-beaded-waist-jersey-gown/3115860?origin=category

http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/js-boutique-beaded-crisscross-matte-jersey-gown/2984554?origin=category

JCrew also has some dresses:

http://www.jcrew.com/wedding/Wedding_Bride/gowns/PRDOVR~19836/19836.jsp -- SALE!

Also, you can try to find almost any bridesmaid dress in white / ivory -- there are a TON available under $200 and lots of styles.

kaesha

The dress I trashed was one I picked up off ebay! It was a BCBG dress cost me 40$, and if I hadn't wanted a wedding dress that felt like a wedding I might have chosen to wear it for the wedding too!

breaness

My wedding dress is an Alfred Angelo dress and it doesn't look like a typical DW dress.

I have found that since I'm so small that most of the flowy DW style dresses made me look young. They don't really do much for my figure and they looked more like prom dresses on me than a wedding dress. I went with something that I felt looked more mature and I was comfortable in.

Tanq&Tonic

Oh I didn't answer your question.  No simple DW dress for me.  If I had gotten married at home in a giant ballroom I probably would have picked the exact same dress

WinstonsGirl

I'm in a regular wedding dress too, though it's a lot lighter than a lot I tried on.  I have a book called Bridal Bargains that offers ways to save on wedding stuff.  There was a big dress section including lots of discount websites and stores that do wedding dresses for cheaper.  You might want to check it out and try some of the stores.  Sorry, but I don't know them as lots were American, and my book is currently packed, so I can't post them for you

sld0618

I had a normal wedding dress.  If I could go back and change it, I probably would.  Although I love my dress and I did the whole crying number....I was super hot in it.  I would have liked to enjoy the moment a little more instead of sweating and feeling sticky in the dress.  At the same time, I tried on all the flowy dresses and they looked like crap on me, so I have no idea what else I would have gone with.  I found my TTD at Macy's for 28 bucks. 

breaness

Sarah-- Was your TTD dress floor length?

FSForever

@Tanq, I like all of the dresses you showed.  Especially the first one. I wouldn't order from JCrew because I would be worried about not trying it on but I like the chiffon.  Nordstroms in Seattle has a bridal section and I was thinking I may give them a call to see how their appts. work. 

If I was to get married at home I would still pick a simple dress. 

@Breaness, Love your dress.  It looks great on you.  

I kind of have a similar problem with the younger look. FI is 50 and I am 42 but I look about 35 so if I wear something a lot younger looking then I look like I'm trying to fit it with our teen and twenty year old daughters.   

Oh and the idea of having two, one to trash and one to wear, is just too much to think about. LOL I need to focus on one and then know I get to trash it. 

fabutan

Great suggestions on here!  Ditto what everyone else has said...  If you prefer buying something in store where you can try on, you might want to go around to different stores and buy a dress off the rack (i.e. a sample).  There are great deals out there!  Almost every designer has a destination wedding dress line.  I had a Maggie Sottero dress and I know they have light DW dresses.  As Tanq said, also check out the bridesmaids section, find a dress you like and order it in white!

If you purchase a dress on-line, most stores have refund policies and even free shipping (i.e. J.Crew).

Check out designer websites, flip through magazines, etc. to get an idea of the style of dress that you like.  Decide whether you like straps or no straps, embellishments or plain, etc.  I did a lot of research beforehand, so when I went into the store, I knew exactly what I was looking for.  In fact, the first dress I tried on is the one I ended up buying!  Of course, I went around and tried on a dozen more dresses and tried to "challenge" my original pick...but in the end, that's the final purchase I stuck with.

Like others, I went with a non-DW gown...mine was HUGE and HEAVY satin!  But I'm not usually sweat-prone and surprisingly, I was completely fine and comfortable the entire time (and we had a loooong event...from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m.).  Plus I wore it the entire afternoon (2 p.m. to 6 p.m.) the next day for our day-after shoot and was completely fine.  It was the most beautiful dress that I've ever worn and I wouldn't have changed a thing!

Just an idea...my sister actually "re-used" her wedding dress afterwards by hacking off the bottom part and turning it into a cocktail dress!  I was shocked by the idea, but it worked for her.  It wasn't just a  one-time use!  Sorry this was long...HTH!  

breaness

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_hawaii_dw-dress-advice?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:73Discussion:6e259758-9adb-4acf-abf3-10a236618e42Post:b8e907e8-09e7-4798-b73f-4b279cee8931">Re: DW Dress Advice</a>:
[QUOTE] Just an idea...my sister actually "re-used" her wedding dress afterwards by hacking off the bottom part and turning it into a cocktail dress!  I was shocked by the idea, but it worked for her.  It wasn't just a  one-time use!  Sorry this was long...HTH!  :)
Posted by fabutan[/QUOTE]

<div>I plan to do just that with mine!</div>

sparklegirl84

I got my dress from davids bridal in tacoma,  I think there's one in tukwila too. It's not a DW style dress and it's what I'd wear if we were having a local wedding. (pic in bio) It just fit better than others I had tried on.  I plan to wear it again the next day when we TTD. I won't be wearing it at the AHR so it's not a big deal if it gets wet and sandy (i'm not going all out crazy with the trashing). Good luck!

FSForever

@Sparklegirl, we are actually in Lacey and DB in Olympia keeps calling to see if I'm ready to come in.  I signed something at a show last winter for them. They haven't been too pushy and very nice when they call so I will probably start there and work my way to Seattle. 
Thank you for all of the feed back.