Dress Advice! Help!

Sammers19 · January 2012

I went to shop for dresses for the first time yesterday....

The first place we went to was a mom and pop type shop and the service was incredible! Beyond what I expected. I tried on about 16 dresses and I really loved the first dress I tried on. I kept coming back to it after trying on others. It turned out that that dress was going to be discontinued so instead of $1300 it was $450! :oD This is also appealing because I won't have to wait 6-8 months for a dress to come in. The only problem is that she can only hold the dress till tomorrow since it's on sale.

We went to one other shop and didnt have as good of an experience. We went to lunch to discuss and, instead of feeling giddy and excited (like I felt in the first dress) I became confused. It's my first time trying dresses. Do I buy the first dress because I love it, it's a good deal, and the shop was awesome? Or do I keep trying on to see what's out there?

I was considering trying David's Bridal to see what they had but i keep hearing bad reviews about their gowns/service and I know the dress quality isn't as good.

Any advice?

mcmeghan311 · January 2012

I bought my dress from Alessandra's in the exact same situation as you are in. It was the very last one (and their personal brand, so it's not available elsewhere) and deeply discounted, so I bought it. My only issue now is that I've had a dress in my closet for 2 months now that I desperately want to wear asap lol

Buy it and then if you find something you like more, you can probably sell that one on craigslist or OnceWed or RecycledBride for at least as much as you paid for it, esp if you don't alter it.

Hope this helps

emarston1 · January 2012

Take the time crunch out of it and focus on the dress.

The fact that you kept coming back to the first dress says a lot. It seems to be the benchmark you were using to compare all dresses to. When you put it on, how did it make you feel? WHY did it make you feel this way? Could you see yourself walking down the aisle and marrying your fiance in this dress?

I was stuck between two dresses and when it came down to it, the dress I chose was just "me" and I felt like myself in it although a very glamorous version of myself (if that makes sense.) The other dress while very pretty just wasn't me. Do you feel like yourself in the dress?

If you still have lovey dovey feelings for the dress after answering those questions, answer these:

Is the sample you tried on in good condition and is it close enough to your size? Are there any stains/tears/other issues what would need to be addressed? Look really carefully. If it is not in your size, will a seamstress be able to alter it to fit?

My final thoughts are once you've found the dress, you've found the dress. If you love it, that's what matters - not when you found it (meaning your first trip out.) By continuing to dress shop you may only cause yourself more confusion.

Good luck!

entropicbeauty · January 2012

I say buy the dress! At that price it's a steal and you obviously liked it quite a bit! Even if you look around and find something you like better, you CAN resell and probably make back all your money.

Go for it!

rcj2rcd · January 2012

I had almost the same experience as you. Found a dress I loved (that was way less that other salons) but was worried it wasn't the one. I went to two salons, tried on about 15 dresses, but kept going back to the same dress. Not sure if this is how you are feeling, but it's totally normal to NOT have the Say Yes To The Dress moment where you start bawling because you found the perfect dress. I liked my dress, but finding it didn't make me cry. If you like the dress and can picture yourself walking down the aisle or dancing with your new DH, then go for it (and come back and post a pic!). However, if you only like it because of the cost, then it may not be the one for you. Also, welcome to the board

tell us a little more about your plans

emarston1 · January 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/local-wedding-boards_michigan-detroit_dress-advice?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Local Wedding BoardsForum:88Discussion:4a73f503-3822-4a1a-8f86-0c12ab672f05Post:4ed8fadd-c71c-47e3-9b3c-52217c5fa6c3">Re: Dress Advice! Help!</a>:
[QUOTE]I had almost the same experience as you. Found a dress I loved (that was way less that other salons) but was worried it wasn't the one. I went to two salons, tried on about 15 dresses, but kept going back to the same dress. <strong>Not sure if this is how you are feeling, but it's totally normal to NOT have the Say Yes To The Dress moment where you start bawling because you found the perfect dress</strong>. I liked my dress, but finding it didn't make me cry. If you like the dress and can picture yourself walking down the aisle or dancing with your new DH, then go for it (and come back and post a pic!). However, if you only like it because of the cost, then it may not be the one for you. Also, welcome to the board :) tell us a little more about your plans :)
Posted by rcj2rcd[/QUOTE]

Excellent Point. I so did not have a "say yes to the dress" moment at all. It was more like "well this looks good, let's buy it" and that was that. I think I was more feeling relief that dress shopping was over because I <em>hated </em>dress shopping.

I will say though that after I bought it and I would try it on, I would get all giddy :)

Milsey32 · January 2012

I agree with Liz - once you have a dress, I would not look at/shop for others. You may be confused. While there's the option to sell the first dress, it's not always the best situation (nobody wants it for the price you're asking, it sits in your closet for months and months, etc).

acaponi87 · January 2012

Buy it. PPs gave a lot of great advice. I went to Alessandra's, then DB and then to a 'mom and pop' store & had an amazing experience like you did. Do not go to David's at this point. You'll hate it.

Allycat11 · January 2012

I would absolutely buy it. That is an incredible price and like you said, you keep going back to it. After that I would stop looking at dresses, or you will continue second guessing yourself.

MMRoberts11 · January 2012

I agree with PP. I say buy it pending the answers to Liz's questions.

Jashley05 · January 2012

I went to one dress shop and did not have any intentions on buying anything that day, because I thought I would want to try on all kinds of dresses. I probably tried on a 5 or 6 dresses and the last one was the dress bought. Like Liz said, I did not want to try on anymore dresses and was relieved I found something. Don't think that you have to try on a bunch of dresses just to try on dresses. It's ok if you buy one of the first ones you've tried on, especially if you can't get it out of your head!

Sammers19 · January 2012

Thanks everyone for the advice! I really appreciate it!
Here's what happened.....

I went back on Friday with my parents and little sister. I tried it back on and loved it but stil felt confused! My dad suggested trying a few more on so he could see others (he didn't attent the first shopping trip) After trying on a few others, there was detailing I liked on one but didn't like the dresses as much as the first. My dad (to our surprise) had the idea to take that detailing and put it on the original dress. We made the change and I fell in love with it! I absolutely knew it was the dress, I felt amazing, couldn't stop smiling and my family loved it! So after the shop gave us all a champagne toast, we bought it! :oD I'm so happy and relieved!

mcmeghan311 · January 2012

I'm really glad it worked out. That's a steal and you're lucky to have found it. Pictures!!! :0)

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