As Wedding Gown Specialists, we've had experience with hundreds and hundreds of wedding gowns over the years. The advice we are about to give you is WORTH reading. Of course our ultimate goal for your wedding day is for you to look your absolute, most gorgeous, best. This advice might just help you do that and save you some headaches along the way!
TIP #1
Wedding gowns are expensive. A bridal salon's job is to SELL you a gown. Educate yourself. Check the fiber content on the gowns you are interested in. Synthetic gowns are much less expensive than silk gowns, and many synthetics today look absolutely lovely. Of course, if only silk will do, make sure it is 100% silk; not a blend! You will generally pay the same price for a solid silk gown and a blended silk gown. Get your money's worth! Also, blended silk gowns do not clean up very well because the silk fibers and the blended fibers react differently to stains and cleaning chemicals.
TIP #2
Stay away from gowns made with acetate. Acetate stretches, shrinks and is very difficult to get stains out of. We see a lot of bridesmaids gowns made with acetate that say "Professionally Spot Clean Only". It is next to impossible to spot clean acetate without leaving a ring on the fabric. We are successful with most, but it's not easy!
TIP #3
Many bridal salons use in house resources for alterations and pressing. To pay for this they want to sell you a package deal that may include these services with the cost of your gown. None of these additional services are inexpensive. Make sure that you are not overpaying and that you are comfortable with their expertise. If you feel that you might be overpaying, ask for a discounted rate on your gown that would exclude those services. Then check outside resources that you are comfortable with.
TIP #4
Consider wearing your mother's or grandmothers gown. Now wait a minute....I know....you don't want lace up to your ears and down to your fingertips! You should know that if the gown just isn't your style, consider having it restyled to make it your own! We've done several, and would be delighted to talk to you about the possibilities! We also restore vintage gowns back to their original color.
We hope these tips are helpful to you in searching for your perfect gown! If we can help you please give us a call.
