XP: Order all Bridesmaid Dresses at the same time?

sweet guppy · December 2010

My girls and I are planning to pick and order the dresses this weekend. One of them told me that she cannot currently afford the dress, but will order at a later time. I have two quesitons about this....

1. Wedding is 5 months away (May 21st). With Xmas right around the corner I assume the earliest she will order the dress is early January. Is it likely the dress will come in by then? We are ordering Mori Lee Affairs collection. (I realize I should call the bridal shop to ask them this, but it's 10:45pm and I am a little panicky about this.)

2. How important is it to order all the dresses at the same time? If one of them cannot order on Saturday should I pay for the dress and she can pay me back, or should we all put off ordering? I have heard that colors can vary if the dresses are not all cut from the same bolt of fabric. I would really hate for just one of the dresses to be different.

Thanks for your help Ladies!

Robyn5298 · December 2010

Take a deep breath.... it will be okay!

I would bet my bottom dollar that ordering in January will be fine. That gives you over 4 months to order the dresses and get alterations done (if needed). Its plenty of time.

In my opinion, dresses from the same designer cut from different bolts are not distinguishable from each other. Maybe to someone who works in fabrics and has a very well trained eye could tell the difference, but to the average person they look the same.

Call the dress shop to be sure (and please keep in mind they may pressure you to order now to get their sales numbers up before year end,) but I'm sure it will be okay. Also I bet your bridesmaids would appreciate a little extra time to put deposits down on the dress what with the holidays being just around the corner.

Also, please try not to be annoyed with your bridesmaid. I'm sure it wasn't easy for her to come forward and say "I can't afford this" even if she did have plenty of notice. Find out the drop dead order date from the store and give it to her. Then its off your plate and up to her to get the order in.

Good luck!

GeauxTigers17 · December 2010

I agree with Robyn for the most part, just slightly disagree on the dye lots - they can be different if they weren't ordered at the same time, and in that case I'd place the entire order in January when she can afford the dress, provided you won't encounter rush charges (and I doubt any will charge rush fees at 16 weeks). If rush fees are an issue and you can afford it, I'd front her the money (absent any other issues).

I say this because we have received swatches from the same company at two different times (my sisters got a little overzealous when I first got engaged) and they are different enough to see the color discrepancy. That's the only reason I'd advise waiting - if it's obvious on a 1" x 3" swatch, it's certainly going to show on a full dress.

I might even try talking to Mori Lee about the absolute order deadline, if that's possible - just in case the salon tries to pressure you.

waitingformay · December 2010

My wedding is May 28, and when I went with my bridesmaids they said we should order by the end of January. They all decided to go ahead and order right then. Also the salon (Priscilla of Boston) doesn't actually order the dresses until all orders are in to ensure matching dye lots.

I think you'll be ok until January. People at these salons freak you out on purpose. I went wedding dress shopping in October and they told me i was so late to be dress shopping... now they're saying my gown will be in soon.

Brycedance · December 2010

If your concerned about it you might want to check with the Bridal shop and see if they will accept a deposit to order the dress rather than payment in full. The shop I went to wanted a 50% deposit on each dress to order which made things easier.

aerinpegadrak · December 2010

At my sister's wedding, the bridesmaids wore dresses that were ordered from different times from different locations around the country (one was even purchased used on eBay). The colors were all identical. That sort of thing is controlled by machines now, and a designer's reputation hinges on the color being consistent. If there is any variation, it's not likely to be something that's detectable to the naked eye.

It's very unlikely that the dress will take more than three months to come in. You still have plenty of time. Give the girl some breathing room.

Manwaithiel · December 2010

My ceremony is around the same time as yours and the girls aren't even really thinking of ordering dresses right now. I think mid-February is what we're shooting for.

sweet guppy · December 2010

Thanks all for your comfort.

I am going to call the shop this morning and see what they say. If they think that the dress will come in with enough time for any alterations by mid April then I am going to find out at the appointment when is the latest they recommend ordering and ask her to order by then. LIke you said, she is perfectly capable of ordering the dress in time for the event. And it is not my place to dictate when/where she spends her money.

If they really think that the dress needs to be ordered sooner (and not just to boost their sales numbers!) then I will offer to front the money for the dress and she can pay me back when she can afford it.

I am confident the color will match, or be very unnoticable... And if not, it's going to be okay.

Money does wierd things to friendships sometimes, and it is really not worth rocking the boat over something as silly as this.

aerinpegadrak · December 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_wedding-party_xp-order-bridesmaid-dresses-same-time?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:37Discussion:7467cb8a-f857-4b73-b053-289f19d0200dPost:044056bd-4ab0-4e71-9f89-40da29bca71b">Re: XP: Order all Bridesmaid Dresses at the same time?</a>:
[QUOTE]Thanks all for your comfort. I am going to call the shop this morning and see what they say. If they think that the dress will come in with enough time for any alterations by mid April then I am going to find out at the appointment when is the latest they recommend ordering and ask her to order by then. LIke you said, she is perfectly capable of ordering the dress in time for the event. And it is not my place to dictate when/where she spends her money. <strong>If they really think that the dress needs to be ordered sooner (and not just to boost their sales numbers!) then I will offer to front the money for the dress and she can pay me back when she can afford it.</strong> I am confident the color will match, or be very unnoticable... And if not, it's going to be okay. Money does wierd things to friendships sometimes, and it is really not worth rocking the boat over something as silly as this.
Posted by sweet guppy[/QUOTE]
Just remember, they're not going to tell you that they're only trying to pad their numbers. They'll tell you whatever you need to hear to convince you to order the dresses right away. You'd probably be better off contacting the manufacturer directly and asking how long their dress orders usually take to be filled.

Manwaithiel · December 2010

Ask for the "drop dead" date. The last day they can order the dresses while leaving 3 weeks for alterations without rush charges.

Prepare for:

"They all need to be together for dye lots." <<< False
"This dress may get discontinued." Ask for a discontinuation date, if they can't give you one, that's also a load of baloney. And I mean a specific M/D/YYYY date.
"The color may get discontinued." <<< Yeah right.
"If they all order together, it's a certain percentage off," You say, "That's nice," and continue asking for the drop dead date.
"We won't order the dresses until everyone puts their order in," You say, "Then I'll take my business elsewhere," Guarantee they'll start singing a different tune. There is no reason to order the dresses at the same time besides their commissions.

Good luck

bablingbrooke · December 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_wedding-party_xp-order-bridesmaid-dresses-same-time?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:37Discussion:7467cb8a-f857-4b73-b053-289f19d0200dPost:044056bd-4ab0-4e71-9f89-40da29bca71b">Re: XP: Order all Bridesmaid Dresses at the same time?</a>:
[QUOTE]Thanks all for your comfort. I am going to call the shop this morning and see what they say. If they think that the dress will come in with enough time for any alterations by mid April then I am going to find out at the appointment when is the latest they recommend ordering and ask her to order by then. LIke you said, she is perfectly capable of ordering the dress in time for the event. And it is not my place to dictate when/where she spends her money. If they really think that the dress needs to be ordered sooner (and not just to boost their sales numbers!) then I will offer to front the money for the dress and she can pay me back when she can afford it. I am confident the color will match, or be very unnoticable... And if not, it's going to be okay. Money does wierd things to friendships sometimes, and it is really not worth rocking the boat over something as silly as this.
Posted by sweet guppy[/QUOTE]
Good call! Best of luck.

GeauxTigers17 · December 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_wedding-party_xp-order-bridesmaid-dresses-same-time?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:37Discussion:7467cb8a-f857-4b73-b053-289f19d0200dPost:1fa14189-d338-4971-9232-ce0c763c423e">Re: XP: Order all Bridesmaid Dresses at the same time?</a>:
[QUOTE]Actually, I'm pretty sure the dye lots thing is true. One of the bm dresses in my sister's wedding was a noticeably different colour: Even then, it didn't really make a difference. So even if it's a bit different and people notice, no one's going to CARE.
Posted by lalap69[/QUOTE]

<div>If it's not true, my eyes are seriously playing tricks on me with these swatches! It must depend on the type of fabric. But yeah, I agree that no one is going to care, even if they happen to notice. </div>

ootmother2 · December 2010

dye lots do differ so they aren't lying about that.

I do knot that synthetics dye better than natural fabrics but they do differ

thegnat · December 2010

I'm ordering my girl's dresses separately. Unfortunately, I don't have much of a choice.

Im getting married this summer, and I've already ordered my MOH dress. I'm doing the 2nd BM dress later this week because she was tight on funds, and the 3rd dress when my future step daughter comes to visit for Christmas.

The bridal shop I went with said they never have had an issue with the colour matching when doing separate orders. I'll have their dresses within 3-5 months and mine within 6-7 months.

XP: Order all Bridesmaid Dresses at the same time?

Re: XP: Order all Bridesmaid Dresses at the same time?

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