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Original poster

Anyone regret how much they did (or did not) spend on their wedding dress?

76 replies

EmyK35 · 06/08/2014 19:09

I don't have a massive budget (max £750ish) but I always thought I would go to bridal shops with my mum and friends, try beautiful dresses on, go for fittings before taking away a beautifully packaged dress.

However I have seen a couple of things I like on the high street, which would save a lot of money (and time and hassle). But would I regret my wedding dress being something I picked up from a high street store in my lunch hour? Would I be missing out on the whole wedding dress experience? Or am I being ridiculous?

Does anyone who went designer wish they went high street or vice versa?

OP posts:

Squtternutbaush · 06/08/2014 19:12

I'm getting married next month and my dress cost a whopping £29.95, I ordered online having never even tried a dress on and I LOVE IT!!

I'm glad I haven't spent a lot of money on a dress but its never been top of my list, I also love that I can wear it again :)

Squtternutbaush · 06/08/2014 19:17

This is my dress :o

lostinindia · 06/08/2014 19:24

I totally regret spending £800 on a dress that I only wow once. What was I thinking? I didn't even like our that much. Should have gone to monsoon.

enriquetheringbearinglizard · 06/08/2014 19:25

I really think the important thing is how you feel in it.
I had the first dress I tried on, my mother liked it and it seemed ok. It didn't seem too big a deal at the time.

I regret not having much more of the whole experience, but the best thing is that I've never regretted the groom

If I were choosing now I'd spend more time and try out more ideas, not necessarily 'bridal' I'd go for something much more 'me' than bride and if it were right I wouldn't consider that the price or where it was from was important at all.

plinth · 06/08/2014 19:25

£2.5k on the dress and I was only married a year.

It was a lovely dress though

Tinkleybison · 06/08/2014 19:33

I regret my high street dress. It was monsoon and part of their wedding collection not just a normal dress, but what I didn't realise was that they made the design in other colours so at a couple of weddings I went to around the same time either the guests or the bridesmaids were wearing my wedding dress just not in cream. It really took the shine off it.

Chipandspuds · 06/08/2014 19:35

I think my dress was £1050 and I don't regret a single penny! I loved my dress as soon as I tried it on and although I can't wear it again I am happy to still have it. I did compromise on other things and I regret a few things about my wedding day but not my dress :)

LondonRocks · 06/08/2014 19:35

Mine was £250 but I actually got it for £80 in the sale. Beautiful dress. Was exactly what I wanted.

morningsarepants · 06/08/2014 19:38

Try going to a shop that does ex catwalk/wedding show dresses. Mine cost £230 plus alterations about £120 and it looked like it cost 5x as much!

Schmoochypoos · 06/08/2014 19:41

Mine was reduced to £1000 from over £2000 and I absolutely loved it. My friend got one from phase eight I think and it was much cheaper but looked stunning and was exactly what she wanted. As long as you love it, it doesn't really matter!

MagnificentMaleficent · 06/08/2014 19:44

I spent £1k and am glad I did. My DM told me she thought a wedding dress should be something that wouldn't just be a posh frock if a different colour and I realised I agreed with her for once

I loved the train and the veil, and the fittings...

Why not go to a large bridal shop and try a few on. There are really only a few dress shapes and everything is a slant on that, so go and try them and then you'll know if you prefer your high street dress but with have had a go at the fussier side as well.

Oh and I wanted a totally plain, column type wedding dress with straps. I ended up in a sparkly a line strapless number with long train and a veil and glittery shoes

sooperdooper · 06/08/2014 19:45

I tried to do the whole 'bridal shop experience' and hated it, standing around in my knickers in front of strangers and being made to feel fat (I'm a 12/14, most samples were a 10 and no way did I want to pay for a dress I hadn't even tried on in my size!)

I got my dress from House of Fraser, it was from their wedding section but it was light and floaty and pretty, I loved it

BiscuitsAreMyDownfall · 06/08/2014 19:52

I wish I wore a dress. Stupidly I wore a pink trouser suit. Im so annoyed with myself TBH. Cant roll back time though.

TheFirmament · 06/08/2014 19:54

Ooh squtter I love yours!

I haven't had a wedding but Ive always thought I wouldn't like the posh bridal shop fandango. I went once with a friend and it was bizarre, women parading in front of a gaggle of relatives and friends who would all cry and flap at their faces with each new dress. You get champagne and "feel special" I suppose but then you are parting with a vast sum.

I think getting a dress you like is all that matters and if it's high street and cheaper/less hassle, so much the better.

gemdrop84 · 06/08/2014 19:54

Yes I did regret buying mine. It was 699, I get so upset thinking about it. It wasn't available to be picked up until 4pm the day before and when it came to the big day and I put it on they'd given me the next size up, it was a lace up back so didn't effect the actual body but they hadn't altered the top of the dress to fit me. Suffice to say I wish I could travel back in time and get the 200 monsoon evening dress Id seen that day.

itsnothingoriginal · 06/08/2014 20:54

I bought a bridesmaids dress to wear at my wedding from a bridal shop. It was really just to cut costs as much cheaper than a bridal gown but when it arrived I regretted it instantly and it also didn't fit properly. I just didn't feel it was anything 'special'. I nearly bought another one before the wedding but just felt I couldn't justify it!

Shenton · 07/08/2014 03:09

Mine was £2,500 and yes I regret it, I didn't buy proper underwear, lost another dress size in the last few weeks leading up to the wedding and I've now divorced him so the daughters I thought I'd hand it down to don't want the tainted item. I got offered £300 for it on eBay and tbh will end up giving it to a charity who make christening gowns for babies born asleep because I think that's the best that can come of it.
Go to the high street and don't get sucked into to all the crap. If I ever do it again, it'll be jeans and tshirts at the town hall and a pint afterwards.

Greenstone · 07/08/2014 06:35

Mine was a non-weddingy wedding dress & colour, I ordered it online and it cost about 350. I don't regret the cost or the style as both felt right to me (although it's still a fancy dress and I can't see myself ever wearing it again).

I'd never in a month of Sundays be interested in doing the bridal shop experience - that's just me. It took me a long time to even be OK with being a bride!

What I DO regret: wearing a strapless bra instead of getting the bust tightened to fit me perfectly. When I first tried it on, I was still breastfeeding (nice full boobs); by the time my wedding day came around, they had deflated a bit :(

starsandunicorns · 07/08/2014 06:39

41.50 from ebay no regrets :)

AmericasTorturedBrow · 07/08/2014 06:49

You should set still go to a few shops and do the whole try on thing - first shop I went to I knew I wasn't going to buy any of the dresses but had so much fun trying them on and it did help when it came to finally commissioning a design from a dressmaker (I couldn't find anything I liked on the high street and my budget was reasonably limited)....tried on some beautiful jenny package dresses and knew those were the style I was looking for.

No regrets over my actual dress at all in the end - £250 all in, designed and made by a lovely dressmaker, she did all fittings at my home, we went shopping together for the fabric and she even got it dry cleaned for me after the wedding so she could present it at a wedding show.

Keep thinking I ought to get it altered so it's not so "weddingy" so I can wear it again

PlentyOfPubeGardens · 07/08/2014 06:53

£30 in monsoon sale. I just had it cleaned ready to wear out to dinner on my first anniversary

George9978 · 07/08/2014 07:04

£150 tbh we spent very little on our wedding, it was a bit alternative.
I regret nothing.
All of our friends have spend £15K plus on weddings (which they couldn't afford) we could have afforded a huge wedding but it's just not us, we even declined an offer from parents to pay for the sort of wedding they wanted us to have.

We have a tiny mortgage on a huge house. Because we are sensible.

Wedding have got out of hand IMO just like children's parties my friend just spend £500 on her three year olds party wtf?

Logarhythm · 07/08/2014 07:51

I spent about £50, lucky it was even that as I planned to get married in my jeans but we changed our minds at the last minute....I don't regret a thing - barely think of my wedding day...it's simply not important to dh or I - I suppose we didn't really see the wedding as a big deal, we were so in love it just didn't matter, so maybe not the best person to ask.

MsJupiter · 07/08/2014 07:55

Mine was £350 in Debenhams. It was the 2nd dress I tried on and I was quite disappointed I didn't get to do the whole thing of trying on loads. I kind of wish I had gone to a 'proper' bridal shop to compare and also that maybe I'd got someone to alter the dress and possibly add a bit of structure just so it fitted perfectly. It was a 16 and I was a 14 by the time of the wedding.

However I loved the dress and felt amazing so I don't regret it as such, just would have liked to think about it more.

TeaAndALemonTart · 07/08/2014 07:56

Mine was a white dress from monsoon, I loved it. It cost about £50.I tried on lots of real wedding dresses but didn't want to spend loads on one when they didn't look any better.

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