Out of state brides - what to do with the dress?

debbieupper · March 2010

I got a much-anticipated call from Brides of France in Uptown today saying that my dress is in! Yaaay! Now the question is do I keep it in MN (where we're getting married) and do alterations there on my mini-trips to MN, or should I bring it to Chicago and have it altered here?

What do ya'll suggest?

Bimbi284 · March 2010

I've kept it in MN...mostly cuz I figured it would be a pain to try to get it to Chicago and then back to MN eventually, but also because I figured Louise would be more reasonable than seamstresses in Chicago. So, my dress is at her house! It works out okay cuz the fittings are pretty quick. Also, I'll be in MN 2 more times before the wedding, so that should work well with getting enough fittings in.

drdifabio · March 2010

Well I am in state - but I think I would want the dress with me if I was going to do a good amount of alterations. That way I would be sure to get the exact fit I want and not run out of time. Otherwise if you only need a hem an bustle you could prolly get away with doing it in MN.

theophania · March 2010

I also kept mine in MN. I usually take a bus or fly when I go to MN from Chicago, so I wasn't sure how I would bring the dress to Chicago without squishing it. It has worked out just fine for me, and now I don't have to worry about my cat chewing on it - lol!

debbieupper · March 2010

@theophania - the cats getting to it is one of my BIGGEST concerns with bringing it to Chicago! I'm leaning toward bringing it back, but I think I'll first need to find a tailor who will let me keep it at their place.

@drdifabio, bimbi - I'm just nervous about exactly what drdifabio said -- not having enough time to fix it if something isn't right. I don't know when I'll be in MN before the wedding other than the entire week-of, but I don't trust that timeline to fix a messed up dress. I also know I'll need more than a bustle and hem because I've gone down a couple sizes since we ordered it and hope to go down a couple more by the time I need to start alterations.

blondie424 · March 2010

One of my friends who lives in DC used Louise and kept her dress here and was only able to get home twice for appointments before the Thursday before for her final fitting...she ended up having some issues (it was taken it too much) but Louise had already blocked the entire day off for her, so she could correct any last minute issues. Granted, my friend was super stressed out because of the mix-up but Louise went above and beyond to make it perfect in the little time she had.

Maybe you could talk to her about doing something like that if you are worried about the size and last minute alterations? I think if Louise knows the situation, she would make sure to allow enough time for you!

schmood · March 2010

I'm not currently living in MN but am getting married there. I have the dress with me....but I also didn't buy it in MN. I plan to have any alterations done here....although I think I lucked out that the dress pretty much fit me like a glove off the rack. Like the PP mention....might be a good idea to have the dress with you so you have the time for the necessary alterations.

Steph0871 · April 2010

Well... I live in MN and bought my dress here. I'm also planning on having it altered here in MN (hopefully Louise!). However, I live with FI in a one-bedroom apartment. The wedding isn't until November and my dress came in back in late January. So, for now, it's sitting at my mom's in WI. I was worried about it taking up too much space and I wanted to make sure FI could peek!

I'll probably grab it one of the times I go back to WI in late summer for the fittings. I think I'd be uncomfortable not having it near me for fittings though, to answer your original question.

debbieupper · April 2010

@Steph - I'm feeling the same way re: not feeling comfortable if it's not near me. I'm definitely leaning toward taking it to Chicago.

TriSaratops10 · April 2010

My dress is coming to MD & I plan on doing alterations there since I can't be sure that I will be able to make it out to MN more than once more before the wedding.

In your shoes, I guess it would depend on how often you can make it up to MN, if you can make it up frequently enough (2-4x for fittings) then I would think it wouldn't be a whole lot different than having it in Chicago. With the bonus of not having to worry about it getting wrinkled on the trip there from Chicago.

dmplz02 · April 2010

i bought my dress in FL and kept it in MN, which for me turned out to be a big mistake. while each time i've gone back to MN i've gone for other appts, i just had to buy one more plane ticket specifically for only a dress fitting. so there went about $250 i wasn't planning on spending. if i had the option of driving back to MN maybe i would have felt differently...

plus, while i was looking for shoes, it was really hard to guess what would go with the dress without having it here with me. i couldn't imagine how certain height heels would feel with the weight of the dress, and i had issues with what style to go with (would a backless shoe be annoying? would flip flops get caught? etc). same issue with buying undergarments for the dress.

i had a very easy time bringing the dress from FL to MN- i actually had to stop in atlanta and chicago on the way up, and the staff on each flight was extremely nice about finding a place to hang my dress- and that was on thanksgiving weekend. even if it did get a little squished, steaming the dress immediately fixed it.

if i could do it all over again, i would have done all of my alterations here in FL and brought the dress with me for the wedding.

debbieupper · April 2010

Thanks so much, all. I think I've decided to bring it to Chicago. Now the challenge will be finding a great alterations person AND finding a friend without cats/dog to store it for me. In our small Chicago apt, there is no space we don't use that our kitties can't get to, and OMG what a horror story that would be!

Out of state brides - what to do with the dress?

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