I'm A Bridal Stylist (Dresses) AMA!

[LittleBlonde27]

Just that really! I'm a bridal stylist/bridal consultant.. I work in a wedding dress store. Our dresses range from around £1000-£5000, with the majority around the £2200-£2600 mark. Ask me anything!

@TaxiPlease Oh wow you've kinda stumped me there I'm afraid!! It's not a style I am familiar with but on first glance I thought of Esther by Sassi Holford (maybe too traditional for you) and a few gowns by Jesus Peiro but probably not close enough to what you are looking for.

I think bespoke could be your best avenue to go down.. I also think it would be quite easy to have a dress like that designed and made without even letting on it's for your wedding and saving you a fortune! I'm sure there will be dressmakers in your area, just make sure you investigate them thoroughly and only choose someone who has experience working with Mikado type fabrics!

@TaxiPlease Actually, how about something like this...
www.etsy.com/uk/listing/639550125/bridal-coat-wedding-cashmere-coat?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=bridal+coat&ref=sr_gallery-1-18
That would be stunning paired with a high/low or even a tea length Mikado skirt!!

@TaxiPlease One more for good measure!!
www.etsy.com/uk/listing/287088455/bridal-coat-warm-elegant-bridal-felted?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=bridal+coat&ref=sc_gallery-2-2&plkey=67d61f260e756e861cf8a171dc90c6665adf6764%3A287088455&col=1

www.etsy.com/uk/listing/588083987/alpaca-bridal-jacket-warm-elegant-bridal?ga_order=most_relevant&ga_search_type=all&ga_view_type=gallery&ga_search_query=bridal+coat&ref=sr_gallery-3-38&organic_search_click=1

Are you ever horrified at extravagant purchasing and/or the cost of some gowns?

Have you ever had a bride try to later cancel her purchase because the wedding was called off? I would think that would be an awful situation to have to deal with.

@Thatsnotmyotter Hmmm I wouldn't say horrified. What people choose to do with their money is none of my business really. I am sometimes shocked at the prices of gowns though - mainly as I usually have a rough idea of how much they cost the designer to make!

My bread and butter budgets are around £2000/£2500 and, while that is a lot of money, it equates to approx. £3.65/£4.56 a day for 18 months (the average period of engagement I see). When I think of it that way (buying lunch versus making lunch at home) I don't grudge someone spending that on themselves for a one off occasion!

@TixieLix Love your name !! I haven't dealt with that personally but I know my manager has. Unfortunately, while we are (of course) sympathetic to whatever reason is given for a wedding being called off, we still have a business to run and cannot afford to just "cancel" a dress. When a wedding dress is ordered, we ask for 50% of the total amount upfront. Depending on when a dress is cancelled and depending on the designer, this may cover the cancellation. If someone were to cancel a few months before their wedding then they would have to pay the full amount as the dress would have already been made and delivered to the store.

Hi @LittleBlonde27 I have another question - what do you think of all the "Say Yes to the Dress" programmes? Do people really take that big an 'entourage' with them to try on dresses? Sometimes they have a huge crowd with them (probably all desperate to be on TV )

@TixieLix You wouldn't think it but Say Yes is my guilty pleasure! I'm a total wedding obsessive though, I love everything about weddings and genuinely can't get enough of them!
I much prefer the US version and now the Lancashire version with Gok Wan than the UK version with David Emmanuel.. Maybe it's just the choice of gowns they have on offer.
Entourage wise - absolutely!! We advise brides to bring only those really closest to them to their appointment and usually suggest no more than 3 but I quite regularly have brides with parties of 5/6 and occasionally 8/10. In my experience, brides that bring large parties with them are less likely to find their gown that day because there are so many opinions flying around and you can never please everyone!! They can also be quite hard to "crowd control" in the store!!

Those are beautiful ❤️ your taste for myself and other ladies on here is impeccable! I wish I knew where you worked..I would be there in a heartbeat 😂 xx

@HappinessIsKey Thankyou so much! That really is the best compliment I can receive!! If you're ever wedding dress shopping in the West of Scotland, send me a message

Loving this thread!

I'm going for the first fitting of my dress and veil next week - they've been made to measure so I've got my fingers crossed will only need tweaks and I'll get a pretty good idea of what it will look like. Is there anything I should do/bring/think about to make sure I'm as helpful as possible? I'm taking shoes/underwear/jewellery and will do decent hair and make-up ...but don't want to miss something!

@TaxiPlease Fairy Goth Mother had some like that.

@LittleBlonde27 I'm getting married later this year. My dress is 50s style, just above the ankle, and was in a sample sale. It's strapless, but I've also bought a lace top from the shop. The top is beautiful quality, but I'm nervous about having most of my arms out. I've looked online for another lace top with sleeves, but the cheap ones look awful and the nice quality ones are ££. Do you think I'll just forget about my arms being out on the day?!

Do you ever feel guilty when someone buys a dress they actually can’t afford? I feel bad when a Say yes to the Dress bride spends $5,000 on a dress when their budget was 2,000 and it looks dated already ( think the shows I’m watching are 8-10 years old).
There are so many sample dresses and cheaper options including the high street or eBay There are also thousands and thousands of worn once dressesout there,
Do you think wedding dress boutiques will still be around in 20 years?

Such a shame you're based in the West of Scotland as you have great taste and have just helped me find my dream dress (now to become engaged...)

I'm a bit late to the thread but if you're still around OP. What should I take / wear to my first bridal shop visit? I'm booked in next month and don't have a clue what I should know? What actually happens? I'm terrified at the thought of stripping down in front of strangers I'm considering cancelling.

Also any advise on a very chunky (size 22) short bird would be great.

@CurbsideProphet You might not like my answer... No, I don't think you will forget. Well, you will - just not initially. When you're about to walk down that aisle you'll feel every feeling possible and one of those will be "how do I look?!". But I can reassure you that not one person will be looking at your arms. Yes, they'll be looking at your dress but they'll be focusing on how beautiful and happy you look that you're about to marry you're partner.
Once you've tied the knot and it's time to dance, you won't give your arms a second thought!!
I'd like to highlight photographs here though.. Do your arms bother you in photos? We're our own biggest critic and if that's something that will bother you then it may be an idea to invest in a lace topper afterall - or maybe some kind of cover up. Are you wearing a veil?

@SheWoreBlueVelvet In short, no. I make a point of asking my brides what their budget is and I try to stick to it as much as possible. Sometimes what people want isn't what they can afford so I will push budgets a couple of hundred if I have to.
There are lots of options for dresses and everyone is entitled to buy what/from where they choose but you could really say that about any luxury item couldn't you? Why is someone driving a Ferrari when a Vauxhall Astra would get them from A to B all the same? It's about aesthetic, quality, etc.
I think there will always be a demand for brick and mortar bridal stores. Yes, you can go online and order a dress but, for many brides, there's nothing quite like taking your closest friends/family to a bridal store and finding your gown. It's an experience, not just a purchase.

@RavenLG I'm sorry to hear you're feeling that way lovely!
Size 10 or size 22, in my opinion no woman is more beautiful than when she's in a wedding dress!
Any stylist/consultant worth your time will make you feel comfortable. We see so many bodies every day that you won't be remembered (in the nicest way!). We aren't looking at your body and judging you - we're looking at you and thinking what would suit you best, what will do those boobs/bum justice!!
Wear underwear you are comfortable in (strapless bra if possible). Don't dress about underwear though as nothing will fit perfectly anyway. Also, take a pair of heels incase the shop doesn't have any - your posture totally changes in heels.
Lastly, if you are mainly concerned about size then maybe book into a store that caters specifically to curvy girls so you can be sure the sample dresses will be in a size that suits you!

@RavenLG Also!! If you don't want to stand semi naked in front of the Consultant, maybe take a silky robe or something for in between changes if it will make you feel more comfortable!
Ultimately, go and have fun!! This is your wedding dress girl!!!!

This is a great AMA, I recently went dress shopping and had two very different experiences. The first shop just gave me 6 tags and told me to put those on dresses I liked, but beyond that no guidance or input whatsoever, the second got me to try dresses they pulled (and choose some myself)

Guess what, I bought one that I wouldn't even have glanced at on the rack but she got me to try on!!

Do you ever struggle getting people to try some of your choices on?

@scratchyfluffface Oooh that's a valuable bit of info there!
I do tend to let my brides choose their dresses themselves initially. It gives me a better idea of what they're drawn to then once we've tried those on and I've seen that they do/don't like about each one, I can then start pulling in dresses I can think of.
Just this weekend I had a return visit from a bride ready to say yes to a dress she'd tried on with me in March. I ended up trying her in something completely different based on what she said she had tried on since - she loved it and bought the dress I recommended!
I don't usually come up against much resistance doing it my way. Plus, trying on dresses is quite a vulnerable position to be in so most just accept what I suggest!
So glad you found your dress!!

@LittleBlonde27 thank you for your advice. I messaged the wedding dress shop (small family run, so read messages easily!) and they're happy for me to try different lace toppers with different sleeve lengths when I go for my fitting, whatever makes me happy. Honestly been fretting for months and now feel so much better

Thanks @LittleBlonde27

That is very reassuring. The shop I have booked into does cater for plus size, and have been lovely reassuring me that, they do cater for my size in a range of dresses etc. I'm just panicking.

Thanks for your response :)