Friend forced to sign a waiver agreeing to diet by wedding dress shop

[MotherofGoats]

Shocked. My friend has ordered a very expensive wedding dress from a well-known designer.... she went to be measured this week and was told that because she was "in between" sizes she would either have to pay £450 extra to have it made to her exact size or sign a waiver agreeing to lose around a stone before her final fitting, which is four months before her actual wedding next June. Is this normal? I think it's horrifying and toxic!

my sister lost loads of weight after buying her wedding dress - nearly a stone in the last ten days - and on the actual day we had to take it in with bulldog clips in desperation. It looked not great but the photographer did lots of photoshopping….

In between sizes ? So for example she’s a 15

14 needs to diet and lose a stone

16 may need altering

far better to go for larger size and have taken in then not lose weight

@mam0918 ok ill change it to say
She could possibly spend far more on a PT or nutritionist to fit into a smaller size, or else pay a fortune to get it restructured and change the original dress to fit. 🙄

In all my days this is the most entitled post I have ever read,
Your upset because your friend has ordered a dress that is too small and the Bridal shop had her sign to say if she doesn't diet , it won't fit.

Lol love this ‘in a nutshell’

I'd be finding a new bridal shop to give my custom to if that were me.

Never ever order a dress that is too small.

Don't blame them tbh.
My friend bought her wedding dress in a size smaller than she was with the aim of losing weight.
She has since put on 3 stone and is refusing to pay for the dress, which may i add was excessively expensive.
This is after she confirmed all the other alterations/customisation.

I’d cancel the order and shop elsewheee!

Does she have to order her dress so far ahead? I know nothing about wedding dress protocol, but surely she could buy it closer to the date when her weight is settled?

..... And find the exact same waiver in every other bridal shop if the bride is ordering a dress too small 🤣

Really disappointing thread. Was hoping to read about a shop assistant was like this.

No, the dresses are not made to measure. They are measured and made to the closest size that is large enough. Then they are altered down.

the Combination of some dresses and some bodies results in more substantial alterations than others. The bride likely could have chosen a different dress and the Same size, just a different style would not have required as extensive of alterations.

ordering the smaller dress is foolish. If she can’t afford the anticipated alterations, plus a bit of a buffer for unexpected alterations, she can’t afford that particular dress.

Does no it actually say 'you must diet' or does it really say something like 'you are buying a dress size against our advice therefore you must be aware of the difficulties you may face if it doesn't fit when it arrives'

Buy the bigger size. It will be easier to alter at the last minute, and if she gains weight, she may not need to.

You can probably find someone who does alterations if the shop won't do it.

She isnt being forced to do anything

This is everything I hate about Wedding Culture and the madness that descends so often because of social expectations.

Of COURSE the woman isn't going to willingly allow herself to put ON a bit more weight so she'll fit the larger size dress! Weddings in our culture are all about slimming down as much as possible, sometimes unrecognisably so. The very idea that you might want to look like yourself is untenable. Yet if she did put on a tiny bit she'd fit a ready-to-go dress size.

I do get that you want to look fabulous but this doesn't necessarily equate to 'lose as much weight as you can' - which is anyway unsustainable if done quickly.

If a significant amount of money is going to be spent on a one-use wedding dress, maybe rather than paying huge amounts for what is essentially an off-the-hanger dress with a designer label attached, she should look for a good but not designer dress maker and have something made to fit her own unique shape.

I did this about 17 years ago and while I now wince at the amount I spent (it was £700 including the cost of a lot of silk, so I suspect much cheaper than now, but all the same) I ended up with a dress that I knew damn well cost considerably less than the identikit dresses by 'famous names' wedding dress designers available in bridal shops, and it fitted me perfectly. And no, I did not try to lose weight. It had a corset top (a proper corset) to give me a great silhouette and I knew the bottom was going to be tweaked if necessary a couple of weeks beforehand. Sadly, I honestly think I was the only woman I knew at the time who wasn't desperately trying to lose weight to fit either the very expensive frock they were committed to, or social expectations of what a 'bride' should look like.

When I found my dress I was on the upper size of an 18 but I ordered a 14 as I was determined to loose weight for my wedding (and I did). Quiet rightly the shop made it clear that I was ordering a dress that didn’t currently fit me so obviously I had to loose weight and they checked with me several times before putting the order in that I understood and was happy with this. They don’t want any bridezilla’s refusing to pay for dresses that they’re unable to wear and giving them hassle. If the waiver is saying ‘you must loose weight’ then I think that is worded poorly but if they are just getting her to sign to say the dress she’s ordered won’t fit unless she looses weight then that’s fine, they’re just covering themselves.

I once ordered a sofa and couldn’t get it through upstairs but I have to accept it and put downstairs. The principle is the same, I’m ordering a particular size - the responsibility is mine.

personally id go elsewhere unless shes set her heart on this dress women go up and down in weight anyway and forcing her to lose weight she will be so miserable and not enjoy the day alternatively get the bigger size they can always take it in a good semstress will make it look awesome

I got an 'off the rack' dress that cost less than this bride's alteration price and had it taken in to fit me by a seamstress. I can see why the shop don't want to be held liable, but the bride is putting ridiculous expectations on herself. Just get the dress made to fit, ot if that's too expensive then go elsewhere. Tbh I don't know why exclusive wedding dress shops don't include the price of alteration with every dress, most people don't fit an exact dress size

Yes is this not an option?

I don't understand the part when a designer shop has their sizes so wide from each other that being "between" means so big issue for them in adjustments. It sounds like design issue to me.

I kind of understand why they want waiver for people ordering something which doesn't fit them now, but in the same time, if the customer really loose some weight and the dress doesn't fit anyway, it isn't fair to the customer either..

Overall, I have the feeling that this shop is more "well-known" than "professional in dress design".

but in the same time, if the customer really loose some weight and the dress doesn't fit anyway, it isn't fair to the customer either..
Not fair? How do you suggest the shop "be fair" to a customer buying a dress that doesn't actually fit, and insisting that she's going to be a totally different shape in a couple of months?

There are too many cheeky fuckers who think they have zero obligation to buy the dress they ordered a size too small and subsequently can't fit into because they are not afraid of the fridge light.