My S3 is getting married in August in San Francisco. It is a two-day affair. Wedding Friday with maybe 40-50 people, reception Saturday for 150+. So I need two dresses. 
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Congratulations! This new MOB, MOG dress thread canāt come soon enough!
It is up and running full speed! 
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I vote yes. Stores have closed, some vendors no longer exist. Some dresses are no longer being madeā¦or not available in colors available in past years.
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Agree. So glad a new thread was started. Have fun to all of you with your dress shopping!
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I made mine, plus three others ā my youngest sister, a friend and one of my SILs. Fabric isnāt cheap these days, esp in NYC! I have found better prices in Philadelphia and the DC burbs.
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I take the 5th. On the cost of my daughters dress. Itās from the designer Berta.
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Dās was around $1100 before (minor alterations/bustling) at New York Bride (chain). D had looked up dresses she liked and what stores they were at. Fully expected to go to smaller bridal places out of town that many friends used. Started with NY Bride since easy, no appt necessary, etc with idea of trying few she had seen and getting a feel for preferred styles. Ended up loving two dresses and settled on one that was perfect. Nice to be in town for fittings, etc.
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My oldest spent around $800 for her dress as it was a sample. Her wedding was only 3 1/2 months out so she was limited to samples or what the shops felt they could get in time. She looked at two bridal shops and at BHLDN (Anthropologie). She loved a dress at one of the shops and was set to order it when the stylist realized she had may a mistake on the price. That dress was almost $4000.00. Wedding was Fall 2022. At that time the shops and Anthropologie were all saying they were having trouble getting dresses. She went with the sample and was happy. It needed alterations which I think ran several hundreds of dollars.
Younger daughter had her heart set on a certain designer and dress. Her dress I think was $3000.00. Afterwards she felt it wasnāt worth it and wishes she had gone with something less expensive.
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Anyone else remember the Running of the Brides (Filenes). Too bad that doesnāt still happen. Hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of bridal gowns. Very low price!
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I had a friend in college who was one of 8 girls in the family. Her mom went to one of the Fileneās sales and bought 3 wedding dresses. I think they were $200 each (maybe less). Mom figured with all those daughters, somebody was bound to wear one of the dresses.
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Yesā¦most at the running of the brides were $200. They had a ācoutureā sectionā¦I think those were $400. Some of these gowns were worth thousands and thousands. Many were last year models that couldnāt be custom ordered anymore. We had several friends whose girls got their dresses there and they were gorgeous. They also had accessoriesā¦veils etc.
We would have goneā¦but it was discontinued long before DD got married.
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My girls arenāt engaged yet, but I expect both to be in 2023. So there has definitely been talk! (And the race is on who gets a ring first. I think the boys are going to talk to each other about timing.)
Older DD is aiming to stay under $1000 for a dress, which is what I had been thinking. A couple years ago just messing around we saw one she loves online at Davidās Bridal that started at $999 but was on clearance for $400. Of course it out of stock now. I kind of donāt want to do Davidās because of the negative stories but weāll see. Iām sure they get plenty of brides taken care of without issue.
Younger DD will probably be harder to stick to the same budget but thatās my plan. There is a bridal shop in her city that had a 90% off sale in December, so Iāve followed them on FB to keep an eye out. Another thing Iāve noticed with Davidās Bridal is they offer petites. Being 5ā1" that might help reduce her alterations.
I wish they lived closer. They are 4 hours apart and wouldnāt dream of missing the otherās dress shopping and so it would be nice if it didnāt involve tons of driving back and forth.
FWIW my D is petite and was able to order her Maggie Sotero bridal dress shorter (maybe 5 inches shorterā¦i donāt remember exactly). It made alteraltions easy and more importantly there was a lace flower design on the bottom of the dress that she wanted to keep intact. Worked out great. Basically wanted to note that shorter sizes are available out there.
Enjoy your daughterās upcoming joy!
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Years ago I had a young office mate who could not find a dress she liked and hired a seamstress. The seamstress wisely insisted on making a prototype in muslin, based on the brideās input. Well the resulting prototype didnāt please the bride, so they parted ways.
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D actually lives in Philly. LMK if you have a specific recommendation for fabric there and Iāll pass it on.
Jack B Fabrics on 748 S 4th St Philadelphia, PA ā jackbfabrics.com
Theyāve been around forever and have good bridal fabric, lace and such. Prices and quality are excellent. I made four wedding gowns from things at their shop, and have driven up from Maryland to get veiling materials and lace for a couple of nieces and DIL over the past few years. They had a big fire in their building in 2013, and temporarily set up across the street afterwards, but my understanding is that theyāve finally moved back into their previous location.
I found them in the early 1980s and got to know the original owners and their son. Used to also make costumes for a local Gilbert & Sullivan group and would get fabric there. Jack Bās is one of the things I miss most about Philadelphia (we lived there for seven years).
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The right dress $, dress shop, dress style, is the one that is right for the bride. There should be no judging on the price, where it was purchased or borrowed or the style. The only expectations should be that the bride loves it and puts a smile on her face and makes her feel like a million bucks for the day - who cares if it costs a million bucks!!!
I think both my girls might choose an unconventional dress route. Possibly a vintage dress. Not to say they also canāt be expensive but I think both (and one potential spouse for sure) would rather have extra $$$ for a honeymoon or home!
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Back in the day, many decades ago, I bought the sample dress off the floor for under $200. It didnāt need much in the way of alterations and was light and very comfortable.
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There is a wedding dress re-seller near me, and a friend said 3 of her daughters got dresses there, very inexpensively. (You donate your dress, and they keep the proceeds of sale for the cause).
I donāt know if this type of place exists in many places.
My DIL got her dress from a local bridal shop near me. She is tall and very thin, and could wear a sample size with no alterations. She got it at what she thought was a very good price, but when she did a little research, she realized the store had it on sale on-line for half the price she paid. I called the store, and they gave us the credit within seconds. (She wanted me to handle because I have more experience with being cranky if I need to). I think her final price was less than $600, and she was so lucky not to need alterations.
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