@musicmom1215 , I am also second guessing my MOB dress. I love the dress, but I am not 100% sure I love myself in it. D thinks it looks great, but … Yesterday, I ordered another dress, just so I could be sure. I plan to put them on one after the other & decide. Sleeveless or short sleeved … I think that is what I am not quite sure about. I won’t bore you with my upper arm issues, since I am probably the only one who notices. But along the lines of what @oldfort said, I will only by the MOB once … I want to be comfortable with the me that gets preserved forever in pixels!
As for alterations, that sounds steep to me, but it could depend on the area. She should look online for reviews of wedding tailors - no need to use the tailor at the store or even the one down the road. That said, my friend’s DIL paid more than $600 for alterations in the Atlanta area. She is very petite, though, and needed a lot of alterations.
I second, third, and fourth the idea that you will, hopefully, only be the MOB/G to this B/G once, and you should feel great on that day! I will say that I loved my dress but didn’t love the way I looked. I think it had more to do with the hair (done by the woman the bride hired and she really didn’t get what I wanted and I didn’t have time to redo it) than anything else. I felt good in the dress and it was so comfortable that I would love a chance to wear it again. Unfortunately, my life doesn’t involve many occasions that call for ruffled one-shouldered navy gowns!
That’s a bit less than what my daughter spent. Her wedding gown was about $200 more, I think, and the alterations were about $100 more. They included cups, boning, and a bustle, as well as some adjustments so that the dress would fit her properly.
Also, re bustles: Be aware that the person wearing the dress cannot do this herself. And be aware that there are many kinds of bustles, some of which are quite difficult to fasten or even figure out. It’s very helpful for the person who will help the bride with the bustle to attend the final fitting and get a lesson in how to do it. And that person will have to take some time out during the wedding to go off somewhere with the bride and fasten the bustle.
Note also that a $1200 dress (which ends up costing $1800 with alterations) is not considered expensive. Several of the bridal shops in my daughter’s area divide their collections of dresses into less expensive and more expensive groups. The dividing point is typically $3000 (plus alterations, of course).
My DDs bridal purchase included the alterations. All she needs is a hemming. They also are storing the dress for,her until May. We told her…ask for this…and see. They agreed to these terms.
My nephew’s wife ended up buy her wedding dress in the regular formalwear section - she was appalled by the prices in the wedding shop for things that ultimately were not that different. She looked lovely in any event and spent less than $500.
I saw a picture of the dress MOB is wearing. She is wearing champagne lace (looked kind of crocheted) with some sequins or something shiny. I think I am going to shop again to see if I find something dressier. I tried on a couple of contenders in the store and saw one on the internet that I love but may not work on my body. I think it is the same as the lavender one someone posted except it is knee-length and 3/4-sleeve. Will need to check it out. Running out of time! If I switch, it will still be navy so I can keep the shoes I bought. This one in navy (I love the eggplant, but the bridesmaids are wearing burgundy and I want to be different.) https://www.dillards.com/p/alex-evenings-rosette-sheath-dress/504785346?categoryId=-10041
That dress is a shirt version of the lavender long dress I got. I love it. Order it…and see what it looks like. You can always send it back. FYI…it has a small amount of bling…just right.
@thumper, I thought it was your dress, but I couldn’t remember for sure and was too lazy to go back up thread to confirm. I love yours. I have disproportionately fat upper arms, so I sometimes have problems with sleeves being too tight. I am going to the store after work to see if they have one to try on. If not, I will be ordering. I also want to see if they still have one I liked before.
@musicmom1215 at that price, if they have your size, order today. Don’t delay, you can return.
My experience was that things sell fast and it was better to return than wait. I missed out on a few dresses because I decided to try one size and then wanted to order in another and it was gone. That was especially true with sale dresses. They went fast.
I do not think that you will regret being more dressy. Whether or not you want to be, you are a primary person there. And as everyone told me, when are you ever going to be able to wear a fabulous dress. So embrace that and go with it.
The rosette dress is not available in my size. I saw one at the store and tried it on. It was way too big so it was hard to tell about it. The saleslady said it was an internet return so they didn’t have another size. I was surprised by how lightweight it felt. I ended up purchasing this dress in navy (the merlot is pretty but the bridesmaids are wearing that color). It camouflages my tummy better than some of the others. The length hits just at the bottom of my knee which is what I need. The jacket thing has mesh inserts and the dress actually has some shape to it. Anyway, it is comfortable and has a little bling around the neck. I’m tired of shopping! https://www.dillards.com/p/r–m-richards-beaded-neck-jacket-dress/505280700?di=04472882_zi_merlot&categoryId=894&facetCache=pageSize%3D96%26beginIndex%3D0%26orderBy%3D1%26facet%3D-1002823238327732821059910497114100115
Love the dress mm2015 posted link at post 1165 - I wanted the violet in my size, but that color in my size was sold out. Any other similar links with violet with similar style?
@thumper1
The dress in the store (internet return) was not my size. I just tried it on for grins. It looks like it would be heavy but it’s not. I didn’t notice spandex in it, but then it was just sort of hanging on me so spandex did not come into play.
I posted earlier about finding a Pisarro dress to wear for the wedding. Most of the ones I saw were at least 57" long and one was 61". The one I bought was listed as 55" and when I tried it on it seemed perfect. Maybe it was my imagination but it seemed as if the dress grew longer each time I tried it on. I ended up shortening the under skirt myself, while the chiffon-like outer skirt didn’t seem to have stretched out as much.
What I really prefer is the Komarov dress I found for the rehearsal dinner. If D hadn’t asked me to avoid wearing a color similar to her MoH, I would have chosen it for the wedding.
Dh encouraged me to buy a back-up outfit after hearing about some last minute disasters. I bought some evening separates, with the intent to return anything unworn; tags were left on, just in case. I’ve already decided to keep the Alex Evenings skirt; it’s a lovely taffeta fabric and has in-seam pockets. I may throw a party this winter, just to have an excuse to wear it.
Noted a comment upstream about bustling the dress.
Yes, someone must not only know how to do this but actually practice.
D’s BFF’s started at the wedding to help and I waved them away.
D’s bridal shop --the owner–not only showed me but made a video that I was
able to watch. Took minute or so but without this information it could have been
a sad thing.
My DDs dress is gorgeous. It has beautiful buttons all the way down the back…down part of the train as well. The train isn’t very long…and can be bustled up anywhere along those buttons…a very slick design. The bridal shop showed me…by but really…here is easy.