Bridal Salons

edenisle · February 2015

Hey NOLA Brides!

Just thought I'd see where everyone's been dress shopping and how their experience was. I'm still in the throws of dress shopping and was hoping to get some advice on the bridal salons in NOLA and the surrounding areas.

Thanks ladies! I hope everyone's planning is going well!

louisianablue · February 2015

I went to Town and Country, Pearl's Place, Bustles and Bows and Mae Me. Out of those, I thought Mae Me was the best experience. If you're willing to venture out to the Northshore, Olivier Couture is very nice.

emmyk2016 · February 2015

I went to David's Bridal, Off the Rack in Baton Rouge, and Pearl's Place. I ended up getting my dress at Pearl's Place.

I was a little hesitant about going because they don't take appointments at Pearl's and I had heard mixed reviews, but I ended up having a very positive experience. I went on a Saturday afternoon, so it was busy, and my consultant was doing other things besides just tending to me. I actually liked that because at David's when the consultant hovered and asked me if I was saying yes to the dress every 3 minutes, it stressed me out. I actually had time to make the decision without the pressure at Pearl's.

But if you are looking to be very pampered and waited on, Pearl's might not be your place. I thought that, although busy, my consultant pulled dresses that fit the description I gave her and did not try to upsell me or put me in the styles I knew I did not like. They also had the ability to dim the lights so you could see what your dress looks like in low light, which was great.

Overall, I was very happy with my shopping experience at Pearl's. I would recommend maybe going on a weekday so its a little less hectic.

jordanmllr · February 2015

I went to Pearl's Place and it was a nightmare. It was super crowded, I waited almost an hour before I finally decided to leave, and for some reason the lights kept going out. I wound up getting my bridesmaid's dresses at Mae Me and the girls there are super helpful. My gown is from Yvonne LaFleaur uptown. When you first walk in it throws you off because it isn't solely a bridal boutique. However, they have a bridal section in the back where all of the dresses are hanging from the ceiling, which was helpful. The dresses are very reasonably priced as well.

nolanoele · February 2015

I went to Town & Country and Blanc Bridal Couture. You read my review on Blanc, I absolutely LOVED my experience there. My consultant was super sweet, super helpful and I love their set up.

Town & Country was great. They have a huge selection and my consultant was great about not being pushy and helping me stick to my budget. She really took my opinion to heart and was great. I nearly bought a dress from her, but I already had an appointment at Blanc and wanted to honor that, so I went to lunch with my mom and some BMs and went to Blanc and fell in love with what is now my dress!

I would definitely recommend them both.

Knottie59783736 · February 2015

I will without a doubt use Pearl's Place. They have enormous selections and if you go another day than Saturday they will help you a lot. I was not happy with Mae Me and I think Blanc is the person who used to own Mae Me. I just think that Pearl's has the most experience. Yes they are crowded on Saturdays but that should say something about the store in general. As for Yvonne, I saw the same dresses for a lot less at Pearl's, Yvonne has their own labels in the gowns, but the same dress at Pearls is a lot less.

edenisle · February 2015

Thanks, ladies! I really appreciate it! I have heard a lot of mixed reviews about Pearl's and MaeMe. It sounds like both of them can be a hit or miss. I'll have to check out Town and Country and Blanc Bridal. @nolanoele were the prices at Blanc higher than Town and Country? I also met some of the girls from Olivier Couture at the bridal show this past Wednesday. I'm probably going to check them out too!

I'm glad you all have found your dresses! Thanks so much for the input!

Knottie61759860 · March 2015

I had a WONDERFUL experience at MaeMe. I only went on Saturdays and it was never overwhelmingly crowded, but they have an awesome selection and good prices. The consultants were not pushy at all and were so kind even though I went to 3 appointments before I settled on a dress. I have had awful experiences with friends at Town & Country and Pearl's Place. You also can't make an appointment for alterations at Pearl's Place and have to SIT ON THE SIDEWALK and wait until your name is called when you go. I am happy to pay $50 more to not have to deal with that and have a good experience.

Knottie59783736 · March 2015

How did alterations work with Mae Mae. Do they do them on Saturdays?

nolanoele · March 2015

@edenisle, no, actually the prices at Blanc were less expensive than Town & Country. I was pleasantly surprised, considering my rep at T&C said their (Blanc) dresses started at $3000...none of the dresses I tried on were even close to that. I stayed in the $1000-$2000 range and tried on several gorgeous dresses.

edenisle · March 2015

AH! Awesome, @nolanoele! You just made my planning so much easier!! Thanks, girl!

Knottie59783736 · March 2015

Well I visited the three Metairie stores yesterday. Was not impressed with Bustles, liked one gown at Mae Mae, but loved three at Pearl's. In fact the very best service was at Pearl's. The lady Ruth was amazing and so helpful. Pearl's helped me in every dress and were very attentive. Will go to Blanc on Friday and TC, and let you all know.

Knottie59783736 · March 2015

Well went and walked out of Town and Country, not friendly people at all. Very expensive. Blanc was nice and they do have expensive dresses and some not so expensive. The moderate end is just about all Mori Lee. Those prices are ok and in fact the same styles at Pearl's Place were a little lower at Pearl's. Also if you do not do their free alterations, you get even lower prices. Have three gowns in mind so will review and decide. Have not been to Wedding Belles so might just peek there also.

alyrey89 · March 2015

I went to Bustles and really didn't like it very much. I went on a tuesday right when they opened because I had an appointment and they were late to open the store, which left me waiting outside. I went to Pearl's after and had Ruth who was the sweetest woman ever (much better than Bustle) and she really helped tame my group (who kept picking too many dresses) and get my in and out of the dresses. I ended up getting my dress that day (as did 4 other people in the hour that I was there) so I would say don't worry about the negative reviews, the place has great gowns and the prices are good. My dress came in already after 2 months so we'll have to see how the alterations go! But i'll be sure to not go on saturday.

Knottie59783736 · March 2015

After all of the places I am about to finally settle. I will buy from Pearl's Place as they are the only ones that have my fabulous gown. It is by Eve of Milady and so, so incredible that I am just dreaming of it all of the time. Amazing gown, and the service at Pearl's was also the best.

nolanoele · March 2015

@edenisle, very happy to help! Let me know if you visit Blanc! They said my dress would probably ship July/August and it has a ship date of June 10! Super excited!!

@alyrey89 & @knottie59783736, so glad you both had great experiences at Pearl's place. I went in this Saturday (and maybe that was my first mistake, but only available day) with a bridesmaid to check out the BM dress I like and not a single person acknowledged we were in the store. We found the dress and a dressing room on our own. I even asked for help and did not get any! I was appalled by the lack of service.

Ended up at Mae Me's and had great service immediately. I am so glad I took a chance and went to Mae Me because they had the same dress I wanted.

edenisle · March 2015

You guys have no idea how much this helps me! My Mom is coming in 3/18-3/22 for an all weekend- find the dress mission, and I am making our plan of attack! I really appreciate your feedback @knottie59783736 , @alyrey89 , and @nolanoele ! You guys rock! I will definitely have to let you know how my appointments go!

I know Olivier Couture is having a sample sale on Saturday 3/21, and I'm really thinking about braving the crowds!

So happy for everyone who found their dress! And thank you for including the amount of time it took to get yours in! I am worried I'm running a little behind- just under 8 months to the day!

Knottie59783736 · March 2015

Ok I have visited most of them. I ended with Me and with Pearl's Place. Frankly I am not sure why people say service at Mae Me is great, I was just left alone. At Pearl's Place I was truly waited on this am and service was great. They were busy and also with fittings. But I found an amazing dress and bridesmaids and the price break was fabulous!!! So this is the place I would suggest to every local bride.

edenisle · March 2015

Hey guys! I also got my dress shopping done today and yesterday....and I can happily say I said YES to a gorgeous Maggie Sottero dress! I didn't think I'd end up with Maggie, because I'm obsessed with a lot of Sophia Tolli dresses, but I think it's perfect.

I started out at Pearl's. Got decent service, though my consultant seemed to get distracted a lot by other brides (who had their own consultant) while I was standing there in mine waiting for her to get a veil/belt/etc. I also kind of felt like she was getting frustrated with me when I wasn't really feeling settled on any of the dresses. Overall though, I have to wait (made an appt) and its was an okay experience.

I next went to Linda Lee Bridal, which was lovely. The consultant was nice and seemed to be enthusiastic about my theme of the wedding. She didn't seem to know the names/designers of gowns I was in and didn't ask my budget before trying on dresses, but those were small things. Overall, I really enjoyed my experience there. I even found an awesome dress, but I had an appt at MaeMe shortly after so I wanted to at least honor it.

MaeMe was the best experience out of all three of those bridal shops. I was assisted by Michelle (who is getting married in a month!) and was very impressed with her knowledge and helpfulness. I even found a dress that she and my mother were IN LOVE with for my Halloween wedding...I loved it too...but I wasn't IN LOVE, so she happily offered for me to sleep on it and come back in. Overall, I received amazing service and was impressed with their selection. I'm not sure if that was because I had an appt on a weekday, but I would definitely recommend them.

I found THE ONE at The Bridal Boutique in Baton Rouge. We had an appt later in the day for a different bridal shop with a Stella York trunk show, so we made an a.m. appt with Bridal Boutique to see their selection. They had a wide selection of dresses, and after grabbing a few gowns, I passed by the Maggie Sottero gowns, and one caught my eye. I tried it on after a few other gowns and couldn't believe how much I loved it. I also had an awesome consultant who tailored everything to me and was honestly the most knowledgeable regarding gowns/materials/guidelines than any other consultant I'd met! What really sold the gown for me was not only it's beauty, how fitting it is for my event, and how amazing it makes me look, but the fact that- after about 20 something dresses- my mother actually started to cry because she could just see me coming down the aisle in it. I'll admit, I even welled up a little. If you're up for the drive, or live a little west of NOLA, I'd definitely take the trip to Baton Rouge. I didn't experience any of the other salons in BR (no need to), but Bridal Boutique really appeared to cater to all of the patrons in the salon that day.

Thanks so everyone for sharing their experiences! Good luck to those still in search of the gown!!

onefootinthebayou · March 2015

In case anyone is still reading the thread even if OP found dress, I went to Wedding Belles on Magazine. Excellent service and I quickly identified 8 gowns I loved, narrowed it to 5 I would be equally happy with and then picked the one. I love the dress and I loved the experience.

I had gone to Towne & Country and found them to be very pushy. I also think they sold my information on the card I filled out b/c it's the only place I provided my Nola mailing address and since then I've received piles if junk wedding mail. Also, the sales lady told me I looked like the bride of Shrek in one of the dresses (I'm a size 2). I know she was joking but it didn't sit well with me. Finally, in an odd move, the owner of T & C wandered into Wedding Belles during one of my fittings and just pretended to browse. Obviously she was looking for competitive info but it was so weird and awkward.

Anyway, several shout outs for Wedding Belles.

edenisle · March 2015

@onefootinthebayou That is awful! I can't believe she made that Shrek comment! That's so inappropriate, regardless of size! Ew! And then seeing you in Wedding Belles- super awkward!

I'm glad you found your dress! Wedding Belles was definitely on my list of places to hit if I was unsuccessful in Baton Rouge.

Good luck planning! How far off is your wedding, if you don't mind me asking?

onefootinthebayou · March 2015

@edenisle I know, right?! I just felt like T&C was more of a "bridal factory", totally lacking in the service dept!

My wedding is exactly 2 months from yesterday, May 30th! I had a relatively short (7 month) engagement but I got my dress right away b/c I was just hanging around New Orleans and the lady at T&C had freaked me out about not having a dress yet (all this business about Chinese New Year holding up dresses made in China, yada yada...). The dress I found is by Amy Kuschel, and every one of her dresses is made in her studio in San Francisco. I'm thrilled that the gown will be made in the USA

I think we're in fairly decent shape, planning-wise. It was a fast timeline for a large wedding that is also destination for a number of people (we were living in New Orleans, so initially it wasn't technically destination but then moved away so now it is...).

I assume you're getting married in New Orleans? Although I haven't actually gotten married yet, I'd be happy to share information on vendors, experiences, etc. Feel free to PM me anytime.

Congratulations on your dress!

edenisle · April 2015

@onefootinthebayou Wow! That's exciting! You're so close!! Mine isn't until October 31st. And yes, we're getting married in New Orleans, in the Quarter!

That's how I felt about Pearls....it was definitely lacking a little in the service area. But I guess everyone has their own experiences? I'm just glad to have found a dress! And that is AWESOME about your Amy Kushcel dress being made here in the US!

I totally know how you feel. I started planning at the year mark and it is a destination wedding for everyone except the groom and I. We just moved to NOLA back in October, so I'm doing this sort of blind. It's hard planning without a support system nearby! Over the phone is just not the same as having someone to go to vendors with you! My groom works nights and he works a lot so its hard coordinating!

That'd be awesome, because I'm still lacking on a few vendors! I'll definitely PM you!

Best of luck to you! So exciting that you're only two months out!!

Knottie59783736 · April 2015

I had about the same experience at TC. There was one lady there that downed every store I visited, not very nice. I still think the gown, that is THE GOWN will be from Pearl's Place. I visited a trunk show a couple of weeks ago and pretty much settled. I found the ladies nice but I went in the week.

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