Wedding dresses ... the cheap and the not-so-cheap!

[glinda]

Thank you ladyknight.    It arrived yesterday and it suits me to a T.  I'm very happy.

[ladyknight1]

Hurray! We need pictures after the ceremony!

[hannahmollysmom]

I bought my dress in 1985 in a "head shop". It was a Gunny Sax that I spent $75 on. It was made of that filmy Indian cotton, with lace and a high neck. It reminded me of the Victorian/turn of the century dresses. I dressed it up with a satin sash around the waist that tied in a bow in the back. I didn't have a veil, but wore a hat with some netting, which was popular in the mid 80's.  I wore it with a hoop slip. It was the perfect choice as we got married in August and it was quite warm.

My husband had an all white tux, but the men wore gray tuxes with suspenders. I opted not to go with the cumber bunds or vests,  as I wanted them to look like Victorian gentlemen out on a summer day. They did have baby blue bow ties.

The girls wore baby blue tea length dresses.

[VorFemme]

This:  http://www.lightinthebox.com/sheath-column-queen-anne-floor-length-stretch-satin-and-lace-mother-of-bride-dress-682760_p682760.html is my dress.

I ordered it in Ivory.  Just waiting for it to come in. 

I love that!

[glinda]

Thank you too VorFemme.

LadyKnight - I'm getting married in August - but I will try to post a picture afterwards.   

[Katana_Geldar]

http://www.dailylife.com.au/life-and-love/dl-weddings/99-hm-dress-is-the-best-thing-that-will-ever-happen-to-the-wedding-industry-20140311-34jku.html

Interesting article, particularly with the signaling thing. So, my dress which was $450 meant I didn't take the wedding or the relationship seriously? I just couldn't justify in my kind spending that much on a dress I was going to be wearing once.

[Ceallach]

http://www.dailylife.com.au/life-and-love/dl-weddings/99-hm-dress-is-the-best-thing-that-will-ever-happen-to-the-wedding-industry-20140311-34jku.html

Interesting article, particularly with the signaling thing. So, my dress which was $450 meant I didn't take the wedding or the relationship seriously? I just couldn't justify in my kind spending that much on a dress I was going to be wearing once.

I do really hate the whole "They’re conspiring to rob you" thing as perpetuated in that article though.   It's not as if we are forced to buy a wedding dress in order to marry, and forced to pay exorbitant prices.  There are alternatives.    Ultimately there are many brands and products in this world that I personally consider to be a huge rip-off, I don't see any value in paying more than $100 for a handbag or a pair of shoes for example, and doubt that would change even if I were a gazillionaire.     But I understand the concept of other people valuing the brand - I don't think they are being "robbed" or "conned" they are just choosing what items are worth to them.  Likewise with wedding dresses, I paid $1500 for mine but I value the work that specific designer does, the quality of the materials and workmanship, and the high quality customer service of the salon.   I don't think anybody should spend money they don't have or more than they think an item is worth, but that doesn't make the rest of us gullible victims for choosing to spend more.

I think it would be a boring world if everything were the price or the same mark-up.   People vote with their wallets and if there's a market, there's a market. 

[CakeEater]

^^I agree.

Plus, the myth that vendors just mark up the price unreasonably when they hear the word 'wedding' is just untrue.

I'm involved in cake, but I'm positive that it's the same with other industries. The idea in the article that anything over $99 for a wedding dress, or a wedding cake is just a 'weddng mark up' is a bit insulting, actually. I spent about 25 hours making a three tiered wedding cake last week. I'm not slow at making cake. It just takes that long. Should I earn $4 an hour for my trouble, and just donate the ingredients so that people don't have to spend more than $99 on their cake?

People who are horrified that a cake can cost into the hundreds or thousands of dollars because it's 'just flour and sugar and eggs' can go and get some flower and sugar and eggs and attempt to make something that doesn't end up on Cake Wrecks.

Same with the example in the article of the write being horrified at spending $150 on a posy of native flowers. Sounds ridiculous. But where did they have to transport the flowers from? How many places sell the kind of native flowers the bride wanted. How easy are they to grow? How long did it take to arrange that small posy? Anyone who does any kind of craft knows how people who haven't done it under-estimate the time available. And sometimes there are legitimate extra costs for a wedding. That posy has to last, not just in a vase with some water, but being held, carried, photographed all day, and still look good when it gets thrown that evening. It takes skill to do that properly.

I think people forget that they're not just paying for materials and a markup, they're paying for the skill, knowledge and time of the person who has created it.

[lady_disdain]

Yes, specially when people compare the cost of a wedding dress with a fast fashion dress. The fashion dress will sell thousands, the buyer will expect very little help from salespeople, little alterations (so no need to have a seamstress, alterations room, marking, etc), not to mention simpler construction, etc.

A wedding dress salon will only see a few people each day, since each bride requires a dedicated salesperson for a good while. Each style will sell fewer dresses, with more customization, so the costs won't be diluted as much (designing, setting up, marketing, etc as well as the cost to have dresses made to more measurements - bust, waist, shoulder - instead of a simple size set). A salon needs to maintain a large inventory of sample dresses, which tie up money (whether the salon's or the maker's doesn't really matter, as it goes into the value chain regardless and has to be paid for at some point) and require a lot of square footage, which also costs money.

I wish more people understood the value chain of products before criticizing price. The writer decided that the dress shop was out to get her, instead of thinking why things are that way. Why is there an appointment? Because you need a dedicated salesperson to carry huge dresses out, help you into them, pin them so the sample dress fits and so on. Why the questionaire? Because a bridal shop is not organized like a clothes store, where everything is out on the floor. Since the dresses can be delicate and dirty easily, they can't really be out on the floor. There is often a lot more dress choices than would be viable to put out on display. So, the shop asks questions to understand what the bride wants and is willing to pay, so they can show her what she wants, instead of pulling out every sheath, mermaid, ballgown, empire, lace, bead and satin in stock.

She didn't even bother to do a little basic research first. It is quite easy to identify the high end, beginning at $4000 salon or the more cost conscious alternative.

Sure there are people out to scalp the client and squeeze every possible dime out of them. But, generally, the open market does weed these out, specially in a competitive industry like bridal.

[Katana_Geldar]

I really didn't like how the DJ's dresses were appointment only as I wanted to browse dresses first to make sure the shop was worth making an appointment in. If theybdifntbhavevabythibg I likes I simply wouldn't waste mine or their time.

Besides, I got my dress off the rack and walked out with it the same day. Not sure how I would have liked waiting for it to be made.

[CakeEater]

I really didn't like how the DJ's dresses were appointment only as I wanted to browse dresses first to make sure the shop was worth making an appointment in. If theybdifntbhavevabythibg I likes I simply wouldn't waste mine or their time.

Besides, I got my dress off the rack and walked out with it the same day. Not sure how I would have liked waiting for it to be made.

I'm tall and weirdly shaped - there is very little chance of finding anything long enough to reach my ankles in any item of clothing anywhere - I really needed to have a dress made.

I understand not wanting to wait to make an appointment if you can find a dress off the rack, though - especially if you don't know if the shop has what you want.

[lady_disdain]

But in most cases, there isn't a way for the customer to just browse: the dresses are bagged up to avoid dirty and tearing of delicate fabric, the trains may be pinned up, etc. Sure, there are dresses that look just fine on the hanger but the store isn't going to have a separate area for the "browsable" dresses.

I am glad you got your dress off the rack but that is much more the exception than the rule and the shops reflect that.

One good way to know if it is worth while to make an appointment is to browse online, see a few dresses you like and are in budget (which helps so much!) and call ahead, asking if they have those available.

[Katana_Geldar]

Most shops I went in had a rack of dresses, or at least a book I could browse. But the websites rarely had prices, just pictures.

I really hated that with wedding stuff, no one tells you how much stuff costs.

[alkira6]

I really didn't experience the whole markup scam when I bought my few actual wedding items.  The most expensive was my reception and my bouquet, and my bouquet was about $30 worth of out of season flowers that lasted for over a week. I was very pleased with my white and purple roses and white and purple freesia in September.

[alkira6]

http://www.dailylife.com.au/life-and-love/dl-weddings/99-hm-dress-is-the-best-thing-that-will-ever-happen-to-the-wedding-industry-20140311-34jku.html

Interesting article, particularly with the signaling thing. So, my dress which was $450 meant I didn't take the wedding or the relationship seriously? I just couldn't justify in my kind spending that much on a dress I was going to be wearing once.

Okay, just read that article. So the author has no problem taking (for free) a design that someone else spent days and hours drawing, tweaking, adjusting, searching for materials, making mockups, probably changing some material because it wouldn't fall properly when actually made, sourcing wholesale materials, contracting a fabricator, paying for models and a photo shoot, and paying for advertisement.  Yet a trip to Bangkok for a getaway and a sweatshop knockoff is completely A-Okay.  Sooooo, if you want it, pay for it.  If it's too much or you don't want to pay that much, don't steal.