How long did it take?

belle7fl

So I'm curious because I haven't gone yet and won't for another 2 months, to the ladies who have their dresses.... How long did it take to find THE dress? Did you go to a few places or just one? How many did you try on? Did you just know or did you have to think about it? Did you bring pictures? If you did did you end up going with something that you already had chossen or something different? I'm so nervous that I won't know which one I want because there are so many choices. On a side note, I'm so excited I finally got my ticker to work!

emilyb213

I looked online for ages leading up to dress shopping, so I had a pretty good idea of what I wanted before I went shopping. I didn't take pictures or have one specific dress in mind, but I knew I wanted something with straps, lace, and not a lot of poof. I went to one place that has one of the biggest selections in the area, and I was able to try on about 15-18 dresses. The dress I ended up buying I tried on about midway through my appointment, and when I put it on, I knew that I loved it. I tried on another 6 or 8 dresses after it just to be sure, and then I put it back on, and I knew I was going to buy it. Do you have any particular dress/style in mind?

Miss Esa

I went to my first salon appointment with a list of dresses that I liked. I ended up trying them all on, and disliked every last one. The lady that worked with me picked out a few dresses that she thought I might like. I ended up hating one particular dress, but I tried it in just to humor her. I fell in love with the dress. I went to one salon. Tried on 20 or so dresses and that was all it took.

Nightt

I just started looking at dresses but I think I found "the one". Everyone told me when I try on my dress I would know that it is "the one" but I didn't feel that way. It may also have just been my bad experience.

I first went to a David's Bridal just to look around at dresses for the first time but the sales lady practically forced me into trying on a dress. Not only did she have me in dresses but she had my friend in bridesmaid dresses too. Thank God I had my friend with me to take pictures. DEFINITELY have someone take pictures for you so you can look back at them!! The first dressed I tried on was beautiful. I think it might be MY dress!! The sales lady was so pushy though that I didn't feel special...I just felt awkward with everything!! I went to another store and tried on a Disney Princess dress and had that feeling of not wanting to take it off. Many people describe that as the moment when you know it's your dress BUT.... Since my amazing friend took pictures, I keep looking at myself in that original dress and think how beautiful and timeless it is, how other dresses don't seem to compare. That dress that I didn't want to take off I now think is hideous and cheap looking.

I'm going to go and try on dresses again soon but I learned from this experience to keep an open mind. What I thought I wanted in a dress definitely now isn't at all what I thought it was.
Bring a good scrunchy to tie your hair back.
Bring water!! It gets hot fast!
Don't wear a lot of make up. (I accidentally got some foundation on a dress oops!)
Even after trying on dresses though I still have the same feeling of being overwhelmed as there are so many pretty dresses out there, I'm worried I won't choose the right one!

wright944

I actually ordered sample dresses online for the first two dresses I tried on and that was a complete failure. I felt so defeated after that. I wanted to try on my grandma's dress and she didn't get back until the first week of May from Florida so I waited two months to try any other dresses on until she got back. Her dress was in terrible shape, which I was very sad about so we went to the bridal district in Cincinnati. The first store we went to was the store I bought my dress. My mom actually found my dress. She pulled it and I had 11 other dresses as well. The dress she had picked out was the very first dress I tried on and it fit like a glove...it was meant to be! The consultant actually told us that it the dress was not supposed to be in the place my om found it and it was a sample dress they were selling, it was actually marked down from $1495 to $199. It was also exactlly what I wanted, all lace, just a little bit of bead work and it is a fit and flare. I tried on about eight more dresses and narrowed it down to three. I tried my dress on again and just said this it! I didn't cry or anything, but everyone else did lol. It took me about two hours for the whole process. I also was able to get a really pretty beaded sash to go with it since it was marked down so low. The only thing I am having done to it are there are few beads that just need to be tightened and I am getting the neckline altered into a sweetheart instead of straight across. 

I just feel realy really pretty in it and super comfortable. My suggestion is have a price in mind when you go in, the worst thing I could imagine is falling in love with a dress that isn't in your budget and make sure that the consultant sticks to that!

Good luck. 

bar10521

I started trying on dresses because David's Bridal was having their sale of up to $300 off their dresses. I went there first with a list of dresses I wanted to try on. My consultant wasn't the best and didn't really want to pull dresses I had picked and instead picked dresses she thought would look good. So I only ended up trying a few off of my list and more off of her list. I think it was about 15-20 dresses in all. I found one I liked but wanted to check somewhere else before I bought it. 

I saw some dresses on TK I loved and went to a small boutique that sold those dresses. They didn't have many plus size gown and only had 1 on my list. I tried it on and hated it and tried on 2 others. The 2nd one I tried on then I LOVED! I felt like a bride, it was comfortable,  my mom and I both teared up and I could just picture myself walking down the aisle towards my FI in that dress. My mom bought it for me and my veil and I felt bad because I didn't want to spend more than like $500-$700 for the dress but the dress and veil were $1025 so it wasn't too far over my original dress budget and I was ok with going over it.

I agree with Nightt that you need someone to take pictures of you in the dresses. I went back and looked at my possibilities between appointments and found things I hated about most of them. I still look at the pictures of my dress and can't find anything I'd change. Wright also had great advice to try things on in your budget. I can't imagine what would have happened if my dress had been much more. I don't think I would have bought it and would have hated probably every other dress because it wasn't that dress.

CN: 

How long did it take to find THE dress?: About 2 weeks, but I was rushing so I wouldn't miss the DB sale if that was the dress I wanted. 
Did you go to a few places or just one?: 2 places, DB and a local shop. 
How many did you try on?: about 20-25.
Did you just know or did you have to think about it?: I just knew, I got all emotional and could picture myself walking down the aisle in that dress. 
Did you bring pictures?: Yes to both appointments. 
If you did did you end up going with something that you already had chossen or something different?: Something different, and I actually hated it on the hanger so don't rule dresses out just because you don't like how it looks on the hanger.

SugarFoote

I haven't went yet but I have been attacking every bridal website I know to try to find one I love...I have found a few that I really like but I think to get the one I love, I will have to have it custom made or something.



I want something like this...since I have yet to one like it anywhere, I will probably just have to get a flowy type dress and then have the lace added to the top.

rmp4996

I went to 4 places, and probably tried on about 50 dresses. Crazy, I know, but I kept finding something that I didn't love with each dress, and wasnt getting that "feeling." After the 3rd place, I told my mom that I should just go back to the ones I liked and pick one, becase maybe I would never get that feeling, it just wasn't me. She convinced me to take a month off and try again, so I did. I had been trying on different dresses of the same style, and at the 4th place my mom said lets try something completely different, you've tried on the same things over and over. So she found one on a manacin, and before I was even tied in, I know that was it. I got all flushed, had a huge smile on my face, and could find nothing wrong. I never thought I'd end up in a lace dress, but I did, and I'm so happy I kept trying and trying.

Don't get discouraged. I would say definetly go in with what you THINK you would like, but don't close yourself off to any style, material, decoration, because once on it's such a different feeling. Good luck, and have fun playing dress up!!!!!

emilyb213

Oooh, I know what else you should keep in mind...make sure you try to sit down in the dress if you think it's the one. I tried on one that I really liked in a sample size that fit me, and the way the boning in the bodice dipped down (even with it being tugged up so it fit more like it would when it was altered) dug into my hips so badly when I sat it in a chair that there was no way I could imagine making it through dinner with that dress.

SugarFoote

Grrrr...my picture didn't show up!

ETA: Nevermind. It's working now.

ashlidie

I went to 4 different shops and went to try on my dress 3 times (once by myself, once with my dad, and once with FIs mom, grandmom and my MOH).  I got it from David's and it took maybe 2-3 months to come in.  Basically it wasn't due to come in until the end of January but I got it the week of Thanksgiving.

I probably tried on 10-15 dresses total, and there were 3 I really liked, and two of them were half the price of the third.  I wasn't sure which one I liked more so when I brought my dad with me the 2nd time, I tried on like 5 in front of him and he loved my dress, and that sealed the deal for me.  When I showed the ladies they agreed this was the right dress.  I actually completely overlooked it online, the picture barely shows anything about the dress on the website so I remember pulling things off the rack with the consultant and when I told her I wanted lace, she grabbed this one and said i am going to love it.

kellyeliz

I went to one place (David's Bridal). I had originally scheduled the appointment so I could try on styles and find a style that I liked. I figured then I could look online some more and see what was out there in the style I liked best. I ended up buying the first dress that I tried on. I did try on about 10 other dresses just to be sure. I was so scared to actually purchase a dress and since I am usually an impulse buyer I was trying not to be! Every dress I tried on I compared to the first dress. I tried the first dress on three different time and every time I had it on my mom and my grandmother would cry. I did end up buying it at the first appointment and I am glad I did because it's perfect! I've read that a lot of people have had a bad experience at David's however I had an amazing consultant and the manager was great too!

anastassiiat

I did some research on-line before going to the store, and I found the dress that I loved how it looked and I thought it would be the one. There was only one store in the area that carried it since it was from '09 collection, so I made an appointment there. When I got to the store the consultant had the dress ready for me, and I've tried it on but it didn't look as good on me as it did on the pictures (it was one of those 2-in-1 dressed with a detachable skirt, and the short version was amazing but the longer one was too puffy). So I ended up trying maybe 10 or so dresses, and one of them was the one!!! I loved the way it looked and the way it felt! It was the dress that I've tried half way through my visit, and I've tried a couple more after that just in case, but I knew in my head that it was the one! I had my mom and my FMIL with me, and they both loved it, too!

A side note on the pictures - the store that I went to didn't let you take pictures until after you buy the dress, which they said was their policy. So it might be something you want to check before you make an appointment just in case you really want to take pictures in different dresses and look through them later.

blueikaos

I was at DB with my sister, trying on maid of honor dresses when her and mom told me to try on some wedding ones while we were there.

I tried a few, kinda liked one of them, put them in my favorites and moved on.

A few weeks ago I went back with my sister (as a ploy to throw her off for her bridal shower) and tried the same one on again- I really liked it this time.

I have a feeling that is the one... I still want to try more on since I have some time...

iloveu4ever

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-club-boards_june-2013-weddings_how-long-did-it-take?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding Club BoardsForum:f30b0bfc-508d-415c-bf59-ab83e327da37Discussion:2e367937-0af3-450d-b64a-92a4542cbf97Post:ae6d07f1-6d26-4e84-8b01-501b6a06c2fa">How long did it take?</a>:
[QUOTE]So I'm curious because I haven't gone yet and won't for another 2 months, to the ladies who have their dresses.... How long did it take to find THE dress? Did you go to a few places or just one? How many did you try on? Did you just know or did you have to think about it? Did you bring pictures? If you did did you end up going with something that you already had chossen or something different? I'm so nervous that I won't know which one I want because there are so many choices. On a side note, I'm so excited I finally got my ticker to work!
Posted by belle7fl[/QUOTE]

I would say I went to 3 different places but I went with the cheapest dress. I tried on about 25 dresses.

belle7fl

Thanks ladies! I loved reading all your stories. I'm super excited to go but I'm waiting until the end of July when my mom comes to visit. I think I'll book appointments at 3 different places and bring pictures. I am definitely going to try to keep an open mind I'm actually afraid I'm going to like so many I won't be able to choose or commit. Ugh I can't wait I'm so impatient!

aggiegirl2012

I went to one place. Loved the first one. Tried on 3 others and they were nice too but I went back to the first dress because I knew it was the one. It was so me. It was such a fun, easy process that I am glad I was able to share with my mom and sister. It doesn't have to be stressful!