To ask where to buy a prom dress in London?

[brodybear]

Any advice on where to look for a prom/formal dress for DD that doesn't cost £500

The OP was told about Finsbury Park very very early on in the thread.

For me, I would have been grateful to be told some of the information that this thread has contained, buit some people you can't help.

And if you live in NE Scotland, state a maximum of £500 budget people ARE going to try and look at cost effective ways of getting a prom gown - most people would be more concerned at getting the gown that their dd wants rather than a specific shopping area. Sorry to have wound you up OP - we were only trying to ensure your dd got a dress she liked, but it appears that isn’t the key part of the brief......

Apologies for calling prom dresses ugly. A bit mean I agree. And yes it's rude but you have been rude through the whole thread. If you had started off with "I live in scotland but travel to London regularly. I work/stay in xxx so would be interested in shops in that area". Or "I have an oyster card and map so can travel to anywhere in Zones 1-6". I should imagine there are 100s of dress shops in London and one persons opinion of what makes a good shop or price will be completely different to the next. Without knowing a budget, style or whatever then no one can say "yes go to xxx shop on xxx High St".
I would quite like to go to Scotland at somepoint as we have a family link. Could you recommend me a good place to buy second hand books ? No you can't answer that because Scotland is a big place and you have no idea of my transport limits, price range, type of books I want. I hope your daughter gets what she wants and the 3 or 4 hours she spends wearing it is worth all the time you spent buying one!

Presumably OP knows that she can head to Oxford and Regent Street and go to a load of big department stores, because most people in the UK know that. She doesn’t live in London so doesn’t know the other options in London - it’s a perfectly valid question, surely.

Top thread, though. Love that OP obviously can’t afford to travel to London as she wants a dress less than £500.

If you had started off with "I live in scotland but travel to London regularly. I work/stay in xxx so would be interested in shops in that area". Or "I have an oyster card and map so can travel to anywhere in Zones 1-6". I should imagine there are 100s of dress shops in London and one persons opinion of what makes a good shop or price will be completely different to the next. Without knowing a budget, style or whatever then no one can say "yes go to xxx shop on xxx High St"

I shouldn't have to say any of that for people to recommend a shop in London. It's then up to me to decide whether to visit said shop or not. I feel like I'm constantly being berated for nothing here. Give it up already.

Love that OP obviously can’t afford to travel to London as she wants a dress less than £500.

I and several others only pointed out that buying a dress from an independent will likely mean several fittings. I was trying to be kind in letting the op know that this would involve several trips to London and likely cost £100's of pounds. Someone buying a prom dress for the first time might not know this and think it was likely only going to take one trip.

Forgive me and others for trying to offer practical suggestions. The dress will be worn for a few hours at most, surely most parents would be glad of help in saving money when spending it was unnecessary.

Downstreet - it’s the potential multi trips down to London - the OP didn’t state that travelling down regularly wasn’t an issue, so it was quite plausible to think that this was a 16 year old girl that had been told ‘I’ll take you down to London for the day and we’ll pick a dress’. If that had been the case wouldn’t you want to avoid disappointment?
As the thread has gone on we have seen this isn’t the case, but hey, my crystal ball broke years ago!

No one needs and Oyster Card and map, though, do they? OP likely has a phone and a contactless card, so can get anywhere in London.

I would have written every detail had I realised asking for shop recommendations required it.

I and several others only pointed out that buying a dress from an independent will likely mean several fittings. I was trying to be kind in letting the op know that this would involve several trips to London and likely cost £100's of pounds. Someone buying a prom dress for the first time might not know this and think it was likely only going to take one trip.

This was my exact reason for asking the questions I did and making the suggestions I did. trying to save the OP and her dd disapointment when they got all the way to London to find that firstly they couldn't even get into half the shops without an appointment and that secondly the only dresses the shops contained were not for sale samples.

But hey, seems like that's not important.

But hey, seems like that's not important.

You are right though. But isn't important.

I was asking rather lightly if anyone had any recommendations for shops.

*it isn't important

Ignore the battering OP, if you regularly travel to London I assume you will have had a look on Oxford St.

OK a few questions.

Does your dd want a specific type of dress? Length? colour?style??

Is she a goth? Like retro styles?

Does it have to be new?

I'm not an expert on London, I have not lived there for years and when I did my prom days were over.

However the reason I asked about second hand is that when I lived in Oxford I got my ball gowns from charity and second hand shops.

My grandmother had a theory that if you went to 'posh' places you got better charity shop clothes.

That's rather sad if your daughter's disapointment isn't important.

Gawd op you gave little information and people were genuinely trying to be helpful. For all your apologies you still come across terribly rude.

Gawd op you gave little information

What information do I need to give?

I asked about shops because I was looking for recommendations of shops!

OK I give up.
But as plenty have said London is a big place and someone who lives and shops in somewhere like Teddington (South West) will have nothing in common with someone who lives and shops in Walthamstow (North East) other than they live in a large geographical area known as 'London'.
Anyway. Bye.

That's rather sad if your daughter's disapointment isn't important.

I have no idea what you mean or where you have taken that from.

*This was my exact reason for asking the questions I did and making the suggestions I did. TRYING TO SAVE THE OP AND HER DD DISAPOINTMENT when they got all the way to London to find that firstly they couldn't even get into half the shops without an appointment and that secondly the only dresses the shops contained were not for sale samples.

But hey, seems like that's not important.

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brodybear Tue 09-Apr-19 12:43:21

But hey, seems like that's not important.

You are right though. But isn't important.*

OP - Go to Finsbury Park. There are lots of prom dress shops there. Who cares whether you need an appointment or not and who cares whether your dd will need fittings or have to wait for a dress in the right size to be ordered in.

It isn't important. Just go there.

This whole thread 🤦‍♀️

I feel sorry for the shop assistants that are going to have to weed out tiny detail after tiny detail to help your daughter get the perfect dress for her as, 'hey I just want a shop' will become 'I just want a dress'. stomp feet

This is what Google is for.

I feel sorry for the shop assistants that are going to have to weed out tiny detail after tiny detail to help your daughter get the perfect dress for her as, 'hey I just want a shop' will become 'I just want a dress

Asking for recommendations of shops to consider translates to that how?

that is what google is for.

Indeed. I have mentioned more than once I was just asking if anyone had any recommendations and that I would google and decide if said shop would suit.

I never said my daughter wasn't important. I said the details of my life prior and after asking for a recommendation of a shop is not important.

Honestly ccomefrom you should just stop.

I second sashh's comment about charity shops in posh areas. Some wealthier areas of London have charity shops just for clothes. They usually have high quality clothing - sometimes even handmade - which have been either worn for one season or for a one-off event, such as a prom. The prices won't be cheap and cheerful, but you wouldn't be paying £500 either.

OP - Go to Finsbury Park. There are lots of prom dress shops there. Who cares whether you need an appointment or not and who cares whether your dd will need fittings or have to wait for a dress in the right size to be ordered in.

I care. I care about all of these details. Which is why I was asking for shop recommendations before going to look. So we can plan the trip. Why is that so strange?