Oh Kleinfeld, why can't you have a west coast cousin?!

Mtess1 · August 2012

So I know I'm not alone when I say I love SYTTD. I live in CA and I've been obsessing over the Kleinfeld bridal store. I m in Sacramento and I know I should just go to the bay area or down south to L.A if I wanna check out other boutiques but I can't get Kleinfeld out of my mind.

Any Kleinfeld brides out there?? If so share your experience. I would love to hear it!

StephBeanWed61502 · August 2012

Hate to rain on your parade, but my own experience with them was not good. They were overbooked, overcrowded, and seriously overpriced. I had a much better, more personal experience at a local bridal shop.

NcsuPsych · August 2012

I also hate to be a downer, but I feel like with Kleinfeld, while yes, they have gorgeous dresses, I feel like you're mostly paying for the 'experience'. I never went to Kleinfeld, but I did go to a local shop that was small and got an amazing amount of attention and felt like I was their only bride there. I also didn't pay more than 1k for my dress, which I was very happy about.

Just my 2 pennies though.

daria24 · August 2012

I bought my dress at Kleinfeld. I had a great experience, but I would say about half the peple I know that have shopped there HATED it. it wasn't crowded at all, I was away from the screaming hoards of 20 year old sorority girls from Kentucky that seem to be their #1 client, and my consultant (Debbie) was very helpful. I had a small budget (for Kleinfeld) and Debbie brought me a lot of dresses I liked and there was zero pressure. They weren't filming while I was there or during my alterations.

I really enjoyed it but it wasn't the be-all to end all experiences. I'm sure wherever you go on the West Coast will be as equally enjoyable.

Mtess1 · August 2012

Yeah I guess the whole allure of the place is cause I watch SYTTD religiously. I'll get over it eventually. I just need to continue my search locally.

Thanks all for setting me straight!

StephBeanWed61502 · August 2012

Also keep in mind that basically all of the designers featured on the show are sold in tons of other stores. The small local shop I visited was an authorized seller of at least four of the brands commonly featured on SYTTD, and had about six hundred dresses for me to choose from on site. I know they make a big deal out of the selection they have, but other places will have just as much selection available, often at a fraction of the Kleinfeld price.

NcsuPsych · August 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_chit-chat_oh-kleinfeld-why-cant-you-have-a-west-cost-cousin?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:14Discussion:d26db9f2-cd7b-4a50-8b85-582506f22b0cPost:b30b9cde-fcac-49d5-b6de-589cc96eb65b">Re:Oh Kleinfeld, why can't you have a west coast cousin?!</a>:
[QUOTE]<strong>Also keep in mind that basically all of the designers featured on the show are sold in tons of other stores. The small local shop I visited was an authorized seller of at least four of the brands commonly featured on SYTTD,</strong> and had about six hundred dresses for me to choose from on site. I know they make a big deal out of the selection they have, but other places will have just as much selection available, often at a fraction of the Kleinfeld price.
Posted by StephBeanWed61502[/QUOTE]

Yeah, I was about to add that I'm <em>pretty</em> sure that in one of the shows, Kleinfeld didn't have the specific dress a bride was looking for, but they called another smaller store (not a Kleinfeld store), and had the dress brought over from there.

So the dresses there can def. be found elsewhere and it'll save you a HUGE trip or two (with alterations).

music11 · August 2012

I live fairly close to NYC, and while a trip to Kleinfeld's would be totally doable, I chose not to. I wanted a more personal experience and DID NOT want to deal with crowding or TV filming. I don't think you're missing much

t12ubeauty · August 2012

I agree with PP. You don't necessarily need a big bridal salon to find your dress. If you are really looking for that kind of store, there is Mon Amie in Costa Mesa (Orange County). I think they were asked to be on "Say Yes to the Dress" for California or something like that. I'm sure Sacramento or especially San Francisco should have plenty of nice bridal boutiques though. I don't think you need to travel that far

QueerFemme · August 2012

If you want to take a trip to the bay area, you might want to consider Trudy's in Campbell near San Jose or Gesinees in Dublin. Out of all of the bridal salons I went to in the bay area (and I went to a lot!), they had the best/biggest selection of gowns.

The service at Trudy's was much better though and the setup of guest chairs and area to try the gowns on is much nicer (not as croweded). And I've seen bridal parties bring in bottles of champagne and drink while they were trying on gowns.

Mtess1 · August 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_chit-chat_oh-kleinfeld-why-cant-you-have-a-west-cost-cousin?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:14Discussion:d26db9f2-cd7b-4a50-8b85-582506f22b0cPost:73b2d168-fe2e-4fb3-b7f7-b318e5ab1bb1">Re: Oh Kleinfeld, why can't you have a west coast cousin?!</a>:
[QUOTE]If you want to take a trip to the bay area, you might want to consider Trudy's in Campbell near San Jose or Gesinees in Dublin. Out of all of the bridal salons I went to in the bay area (and I went to a lot!), they had the best/biggest selection of gowns. The service at Trudy's was much better though and the setup of guest chairs and area to try the gowns on is much nicer (not as croweded). And I've seen bridal parties bring in bottles of champagne and drink while they were trying on gowns.
Posted by cmgilpin[/QUOTE]<div>
</div><div>Thank you for the suggestion. I'm gonna look both up. Driving 2 hours to the bay would be a lot more feasible than a flight across country. :D

</div>

lboogie99 · August 2012

I also didn't have a good experience at Kleinfeld's. It was definitely nothing like watching the show (you probably won't get any of the sales ladies on the show and no Randy). My saleslady kept bringing me in dresses that were nothing of what I was explaining and winded up getting upset with me and sent me to a room to pull my own dress. By the end of the appointment I was so over the experience. Went to a smaller bridal shop and got the dress of my dreams.

sarabirnbaum · August 2012

There are some great places in San Fransisco that cater to the glamous bride feeling. Check out amy kuschel. I LOVED trying on dresses there... not croward... still special.

Mtess1 · August 2012

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_chit-chat_oh-kleinfeld-why-cant-you-have-a-west-cost-cousin?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:14Discussion:d26db9f2-cd7b-4a50-8b85-582506f22b0cPost:6499890e-00f6-447b-bfbd-e068d35355e7">Re: Oh Kleinfeld, why can't you have a west coast cousin?!</a>:
[QUOTE]There are some great places in San Fransisco that cater to the glamous bride feeling. Check out amy kuschel. I LOVED trying on dresses there... not croward... still special. :)
Posted by sarabirnbaum[/QUOTE]

<div>Ooh nice! Thank you</div>

Oh Kleinfeld, why can't you have a west coast cousin?!

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