Dress Predicament

MamaBear904

Hey ladies. I hope you can help me. Im in a predicament about my dress and I'm hoping you can help...

So my budget for my dress is insanely low. I have fallen in love with 2 dresses. They are almost polar opposites.

Dress 1: Alfred Angelo 1816 - Its very sparkly and I love how I look in it. This dress would run me $900 new. I found one on craigslist for $75 used (im ok with that) but it has some stains that I am not sure if I can get out. The girl selling it says that if I pay the shipping I can basically pay for dress if I can make it work. If it doesnt work out, Im not obligated to buy it. Sounds like a deal to me!
http://www.alfredangelo.com/collections/styles/1816

Dress 2: Davids Bridal V9743 - Its hard to appreciate this dress by photo only. Its simple and flowy. This dress is for sale, new for $449. I found one on craigslist for $100 used and does not appear to have any major issues.
http://www.davidsbridal.com/Product_Chiffon-soft-A-line-with-Beaded-Lace-on-Empire-V9743_Bridal-Gowns-Features-All-Gowns

The venue hasn't even been finalzied be we are either leaning toward a country club or old house turned reception. Its going to be a garden-style wedding. Basically Im torn. Do I buy a dress new or is Craigslist ok? Do I buy the sparkly one that may be over the top (remember: this is my second marriage) or do I buy the simple flowy one (which is more along the lines of what I thought I would end up in).

Any help would be appreciated.

Carson386

I personally would not buy a dress off of Craigslist. What if something goes wrong with it, you can't return it to the store and get your money back. That's just me though. As for which dress to pick, I LOVE the David's Bridal dress. The Alfred Angelo dress is very beautiful as well but, since you are saying it's a garden style wedding, I think the DB pick really is the best for that.

Danny&Mel2003

I've never bought anything off craigslist I've heard good and bad with them. I like both dresses and I think Alfred Angelos could also go for garden wedding. Id say go with your gut on this one.

Annas2013

I vote you go with your gut on the wedding dress.  As for where to buy it?  I bought my second dress (didn't end up liking the first) off of preownedweddingdresses.com.  Honestly I'd trust that website a little bit more than Craigslist.  Unless you can see the dress in person before you buy it, I'd stay away from Craigslist.  But that's just me.  

SSaltzman87

I don't think buying off Craigslist is a bad idea, just be sure to see the dresses in person first. FI and I have gotten so much stuff off there (even adopted our dog from an ad), it really is a great way to get stuff for cheap :-)

Also there are special wedding dress cleaners out there, so could take the one dress there and see what they can do.

Sundaylou

I'd also say go with your gut on which dress to get. My personal style would be the DB one, but the Alfred Angelo is quite beautiful. You could try recycledbride.com to find a used one.

FLGatorGal88

I agree go with your gut. If you can see the dress before purchasing it then I would go that route. I have actually tried on the dress from DB. If you want a new dress can you not move some things around in your budget to give you more room?

MamaBear904

I keep coming back to the Davids Bridal dress and I absolutely love it. I think my gut is taking me to that dress.

As for where to buy it, I tried PreOwned and they dont have this style, nor does Recycled Bride. I basically look at it as a $100 lottery ticket. So long as the dress is not the wrong size or have any major rips or tears or dark stains (which the phtos show it doesnt), I can't imagine it being a problem to buy on CL. I wish it were closer, but there is just no one near me that has this style for sale. So its either the CL risk or Retail.

Ggoughen

Be really cautious of Craigslist. Purchases through the website are meant to be in person, cash transactions. The banker in me is very cautious of anything that requires shipping or an exchange of account numbers. That being said, I did buy my car from someone through Craigslist but we were able to meet in person to complete the transaction. The site is truely awesome when used properly but people are scammed everyday by dishonest people.

[Deleted User]

I love the DB dress...being so simple, you can go crazy with accessories (and of course the shoes)! If I were you, I would try to move some things around in the budget in order to buy it straight from DB.

RebCappon

I would be wary of craigslist and either dress is gorgeous.

FI and I are having an outdoor wedding so I am actually wearing your DB pick and it is an amazing dress.