Wedding dress is too small and shop didnt take my measurements

[FirmTiger]

Can I please have some advice? Am I in the wrong in any way?
Last year in march I travelled hours to a wedding dress shop where they sold my dream wedding dresses, all went okay, I chose my dress and wanted to order it. When it came to ordering it, the lady didn’t even take my measurements and just said the sample fit me fine. Obviously she’s a reputable wedding dress shop with loads of 5/5 star reviews, I don’t know any better so that was that and we paid the deposit which was more than half of the dress (I don’t know if that’s normal)
3 months later I was asked to pay the outstanding balance, which to be fair was agreed when I ordered the dress but when speaking to other people, apparently this isn’t normal practice and normally the outstanding balance is paid upon first fitting of your dress arriving to shop. I honestly didn’t mind paying it when she asked but there was a lot of chasing from that point about when my dress would arrive in the store. I was told it would be the start of jan, which came around and it wasn’t there, chased again and anyway, the dress didn’t arrive until the march (4 months before my wedding) When it came to collecting the dress, baring in mind I had to do a round trip of 5 hours, she asked me when I could come. I asked her for a Saturday which she said they are far too busy (that’s completely understandable) and asked me to come on a week day. Arranged this with my mum and step dad, who took time off work to come with me, for her to message me and say that can I now come on Saturday as brides have moved around there appointments? And gave me a time slot for if I wanted to just collect and a different time slot to actually try the dress on. I replied and said I wouldn’t be able to do that as my mum and step dad took time off work and anyway she said okay that’s fine just stick to the collection day I had before. When it came to collecting the dress, tried the dress on, it wouldn’t zip up. As soon as she realised this, she asked me if I had put on weight (I haven’t, as I have been weighing myself basically since I’ve been planning my wedding). I actually stood there in the shop and just wanted to cry as I just had enough. The dress was A LOT of money, paid in full 8 months before, took basically a year to arrive to the shop and I had 4 months to go. She convinced me that it would do up with someone strong enough to do it and that was that, I just wanted the dress of me. Came back home, and needed to get the straps and length altered so took it to a seamstress straight away as basically everyone near me was fully booked until September.Went with my mother in law, who when I tried the dress on told me it wouldn’t zip up by a long way. Like even if I lost a few pounds it wouldn’t do up. Seamstress said it’s fine, she’ll add in a bit of material and have corset back. Roll round to today, message off her saying she doesn’t want to do it, she doesn’t know how it will work because of placement of straps etc the dress is too intricate. So I message the bridal shop, not that they can do anything 11 weeks before my wedding and she just said straight away they have the same dress coming in a bigger size next week and I could swap. Sent me the measurements of the bigger size and asked me for mine. I took my measurements and even the bigger size is way off my measurements! So yeah, I’m up all night stressing and panicking. Hopefully can find a seamstress who can do it, if it will even be done. Upon speaking to another bridal shop, they told me that regardless of if I sample dress fit (especially a dress like mine which has a structured, boning top section) measurements should always be took because the sample dress will be a lot more worn and fit looser, where as the new dress will have no give. Just needed a rant and a bit of advice really, am I wrong for thinking the bridal shop is in the wrong? I’m so upset and my experience has been so bad

When you tried on the dress, did you take a video or a photo of you in it? That will show that the dress fitted you at the time.

But, the message also sounds to me like the shop has screwed up.

But

This shop is unreliable and not good with communication. I'd be looking at plan B (new dress etc) as that 11 weeks will go by quickly. You also need time for the dress to be altered. Plus the million other things to do.

Thanks for your message, I am sorry that you are having issues with your dress that must be really upsetting.

Cheeky cow! Making it sound like the issues are nothing to do with her!

The shop is in the wrong they should of taken measurements

They should have taken measurements - but the enquiry about whether the seamstress has touched the dress screams of "oh fuck, we've given her the wrong dress", as does the bit about needing your sample size dress for another bride. They've screwed up and don't want to admit it. Bet you anything the "bigger size" dress is the right size for you because it was your dress all along.

Please tell me you have paid for some of this on your credit card ? If so Visa or MasterCard will go into battle for you. I managed to get a Vera Wang dress off the Internet shipped over from New York that arrived looking like a bloody dishrag.
I think it was Visa, but they got me every penny refunded apart from the postage, unfortunately.

Get the dress back to the shop and insist on a refund.

Then go and buy a lovely off the peg dress from a much more local retailer. You can get some beautiful dresses that way, or hire one.

This shop has behaved very unprofessionally and I wouldn't trust them any more.

I’d be shouting all over the internet until they sorted it personally

So would I

I would go back to the shop with your dress. When there I would ask the shop to bring out the sample dress you tried on, and then I would try on both the sample one, and then try on your own. This demonstrates that your dress shop didn’t size you correctly (by simply using the sample dress to ‘size’ you without measurements), then try on the bigger dress they’ve offered you and see if it fits. Then, if it doesn’t, be very clear with the dress shop that your wedding is on X date and they need to provide you with your dress, sized correctly, ready in time for your wedding. They have created the problem, they need to provide a solution.

I would also request compensation for the inconvenience with a partial refund.

Awful service. Definitely ask them what they are going to do it

Definitely their fault. When I got my wedding dress the sample fit perfectly but my measurements suggested a different story. The shop still took the measurements and discussed with me what I wanted to do given the dress was much smaller than my measurements would have suggested would fit properly. Sending you away with a dress they knew didn't fit at all is disgusting. I'd be searching for a backup whilst pressing them for an appopriately sized dress and partial refund. Terrible service.

Yes - some of your size is determined by your frame, how wide your hip and shoulder bones are and the size of your rib cage - similar to shoe size, losing weight doesn't alter that and unless OP is significantly overweight, it isn't a good idea to try to lose 4 inches from her waist in a short space of time.

This sounds more like the dresses are coming from China, rather than Ukraine! They don't sound a very trustworthy outfit to deal with. Sorry you have all this stress. If you'd intended spending a lot of money on it anyway, you may have been better served with a British designer/maker.

Do you think she’s given you the other brides dress by mistake? Hope this gets sorted so that your special day is all you’ve dreamed of x

Refund.

The more you engage with this and pin your hopes on this shop the more stress.

Look for another dress, closer to home so you can get to fittings more quickly or easily. At an absolute push find a seamstress and see if you can get a copy made but I’d expect this would cost more due to short notice.

Aww thats awful how on earth do they get 5 star reviews when you have been treated the way you have knowing its one of the most important days of your life. Hope you get it sorted seems there is little you can do as you have payed in full.

How is buying a sample size at the first viewing ever a good idea. People will gain or lose in the next six months by the time they get the dress.

A wedding shop should take measurments. Then if the dress doesnt fit at next viewing, the wedding shop should do alterations.

Wedding shops sound so stressful and the waiting times are so long, i think i would prefer to buy a wedding dress off the rack in monsoon when my time comes

Absolutely outrageous service, complain immediately and demand, as a minimum, free - invisible alterations to fit and if not possible a full replacement dress or a full refund - their fault, especially if the never even took your initial measurementsand weight! (though of course a customer could have gained, or had some "weight redistribution" over such an extended waiting petiod, but they shoukd know this and have a neans of accomidating such changes if necessary)

Great idea , did you know there’s a war on ?

It is bad service by the shop,

But i also think its naive behaviour by the bride.

I wouldnt buy a wedding dress without having my measurements taken.

Also as the bridal shop is taking this long, i would have a back up dress on standby

The first dress I bought arrived and didn't fit me, I was devastated at the time but in a panic I bought one from eBay and I loved it. It was brand new, unworn, and cost me £120. Didn't even need altering.
I would be reporting the shop to trading standards and would leave a calm, factual review once you've given the owner a chance to rectify her errors. If she refuses, I think you may even have grounds to seek legal advice. She has not kept to timescales at all and hopefully you can prove this via email?

It was a mistake to not be measured but can it be returned? The one they said was coming into store would that fit you?

If you've never bought a wedding dress, and the expert, ie the lady in the shop says you don't need to, why and how would you know that you need to have measurements done?

You wouldn't.

Shes not an expert or a seamstress. She has just openerd a shop. Anyone can open a shop.

Yes of course i would know enough about dresses to know i would have to grt measurements taken

When my mum bought me a prom dress when i wad a teenager, i had my measurements taken for that. I also had alterations done to that dress at a later stage.

When i was a bridesmaid later on, i had my measurements taken for that dress.

Surely we all know that we need to get measurements taken for important dresses