Cheap bridesmaid dress or a seamtress?

thurmanpowell

Hey Guys,

Does anyone know of a place that sells reasonable priced bridesmaid dresses?  I wanted something full lentgh, and not ugly but also wanted to stay around the 100, but I can't find anything good!

I feel bad asking my BMs to spend much more on MY wedding, but I would also feel bad asking them to buy an ugly 100 dollar dress (and I don't have the cash to pitch in much). 

Anyone know of a good place to get cheaper dresses or a good seamstress to have them made?

saacjw

Have you looked into stores like Macy's or Kohls or even something like Forever 21 or Target? What color are you doing, because that might make a difference in what you can find. 

I've seen dresses that would make great bridesmaids dresses at Macy's, The Limited, Forever 21, H&M, and pretty much any department store. You might have to sacrifice something to find what you like for your price (color maybe or length, since we're getting to summer, everything seems to be shortish). I'm also assuming you've looked into places like David's bridal already, where there are a lot of dresses that are just around $100 that are pretty nice, if simple. 

thurmanpowell

Hmmm, I haven't looked at the Limited! 

I've almost given up on color and decided to go with black, although I wanted something in wisteria. 

I'm debating whether or not I should just choose the dress that I like and ignore the price tag...

And Davids bridal is kinda gross! I'd feel better asking them to spend 200 on something cute that they could wear again, versus wasting 100 on something nobody likes. =(

akbrown19

Ok, I don't think David's Bridal is "gross"... my girls are all getting their dresses there for under $150 (including tax!) and they are all cute!

The ones below are $139 except for the third one (v-neck, 2 straps) is $99. They have a huge selection at DB and the main reason I went there is I have bridesmaids all over the country and this was the easiest way they could all try on different styles of dresse. They are all different sizes and shapes so I didn't think choosing one dress from a department store was appropriate.

saacjw

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_ohio-columbus_cheap-bridesmaid-dress-or-a-seamtress?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local%20Wedding%20BoardsForum:112Discussion:1fd6334f-34cf-4328-9ea7-0597b9c2ba13Post:cd37557d-1247-455f-938f-15cf1ba08230">Re: Cheap bridesmaid dress or a seamtress?</a>:
[QUOTE]Hmmm, I haven't looked at the Limited!  I've almost given up on color and decided to go with black, although I wanted something in wisteria.  I'm debating whether or not I should just choose the dress that I like and ignore the price tag... And Davids bridal is kinda gross! I'd feel better asking them to spend 200 on something cute that they could wear again, versus wasting 100 on something nobody likes. =(
Posted by thurmanpowell[/QUOTE]

<div>Do not get something that you like regardless of the price. It's rude, and I know at least with my bridesmaids, I'd much rather have them in something I find kind of "meh" than them having to pay so much for a dress that they have to go without something else. In all honesty, with a long, formal dress, how often would your bridesmaids ever wear it again, regardless of what they pay and how much they like it?</div><div>
</div><div>Also, I don't find David's bridal "gross," any more so than any other chain store. For my best friend's wedding, the entire bridal party was dressed in DB stuff and it looked great. No, I very likely won't wear my dress again, but that has much more to do with the formality of it (I don't go places that require formal dresses, like, ever) than the style. I can understand if some of the styles aren't to your taste, but I can say that a lot of their dresses are things I would wear out, especially shorter ones. </div>

Cassandra999

I'd suggest getting a regular off the rack dress at a department store or something.  I know some people dont like DB.  my BMs got their dresses there (all different styles in the same color  & fabric) the prices ranged from $30 on clearance to $140, but it was their choice.

thurmanpowell

I'd like to make it clear than no one needs to defend how they feel about DB to me.

I don't particularly care for them, as they seem to be in poor quality not to mention not very flattering ( I actually had a couple of my bridesmaid try some on in store and we found them somewhat tacky, too short, and simply not worth 100 bucks). 

Also, you guys are talking about DBs shorter styles. My wedding is in December and I'm asking for a place with lower priced, full length dresses around the $100 mark. When I talk about ignoring the price, I'm still talking about less than 200.

It's great that some of you guys like DB, but that's not what this was supposed to be about. 

saacjw

When I was looking around at dresses, I was having a hard time finding long dresses around the $100 mark that weren't glorified sun dresses, which I'm guessing you find inappropriate for December (I do, my wedding is also in December). The difficulty with looking for dresses outside of the bridal world, where they'll be less expensive, is that styles are at the whim of trends and the season much more so than the bridal stuff, so right now the season calls for short dresses. 

If you're looking to go in the $100-$200 range (which definately makes a difference from your original post) totally check out other bridal brands. I'm pretty sure that Alfred Angelo falls pretty comfortably into that catagory and I know that a line called Pretty Maids does, they have it at Trumpington in Westerville. They're also national brands, if that makes a difference  (if your bridesmaids are in all different states, like mine). 

Brit12

I would recommend off the rack JC Penney or or Macy's dresses. Places like banana republic and j Crew have bridesmaid dresses online also. Otherwise DB is about the cheapest place to get BM dresses. Have you tried online stores? Some of my BMs tried on dresses at Alan Ray and Wendy's then ordered the dresses cheaper online.

laciex13

I was the maid of honor in a friend's wedding last August and, since I work in Eastland mall, I took my dress over to Sone's Bridal. Sone had my dress altered perfectly in THREE days for only $30. She's fantastic. Definitely take it there if you can! Good luck. :]

thurmanpowell

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_ohio-columbus_cheap-bridesmaid-dress-or-a-seamtress?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:112Discussion:1fd6334f-34cf-4328-9ea7-0597b9c2ba13Post:d6da2a5f-4832-45c9-8267-8692e31acdf5">Re: Cheap bridesmaid dress or a seamtress?</a>:
[QUOTE]I was the maid of honor in a friend's wedding last August and, since I work in Eastland mall, I took my dress over to Sone's Bridal. Sone had my dress altered perfectly in THREE days for only $30. She's fantastic. Definitely take it there if you can! Good luck. :]
Posted by laciex13[/QUOTE]

Is Sone's bridal the random dress store in the mall? I keep wanting to say it's called fashion city or something?

I've been wondering what kind of work they do... I hear they're very reasonable...

SClouse3

I had a hard time too finding long dresses for $100 but I ended up getting a great, classy, with straps, well made DaVinci bridesmaids dress at Wendy's bridal for $150. Wendy's runs 20% sale on their Bridesmaids dresses a lot and thats how we got that. Sale is currently going on right now.