(More) Adventures In Dress Shopping
July 25th, 2007 @ 10:32 am by Mrs. Radish
After my very productive dress shopping experience in Syracuse this winter, I returned to the good old windy city and got to work on finding the right dress. I didn’t end up picking any of those dresses but they gave me a better idea of what I liked/didn’t like. My first appointment in Chicago was at the House of Brides Couture. They did not allow photographs, however, and I didn’t really find anything there that I was in love with anyway. Not to mention, the sales associate was incredibly pushy and somewhat rude. I actually wrote a review of the experience on Yelp if anyone wants to hear more about it.
Anyway, my next appointment was at Dame Couture on Chicago’s Northwest side. This shop specializes in custom dresses with a vintage, 40s-ish flair. I met with one of the designers for a consultation and told her what kind of dress I was in the market for. Of course, at this point I still wasn’t exactly sure what I wanted, but I showed her a bunch of magazine clippings and she got the idea. Then I started trying on some of their sample pattern gowns. The way it works there is you start with one of their basic patterns and then they customize it for you by changing the way it is cut, the type of fabric, and they can add flourishes and details.
Here is me in their “Greta” dress (please pardon my black bra straps hanging out). This was a pretty basic A-line dress in a beaded silk dupioni.
Here I am on the left in the “Vera” dress sample. In their picture on the right (from Dame Couture’s website) it is shown with a little belt thing around the waist, which I think really adds to it. The thing I remember most about this dress is that the lace was a very good quality.
There were some other very cute samples that I tried on, but I didn’t get pictures of them for some reason. This was a really fun experience and the girls at Dame Couture were so awesome and helpful.
In the end, though, I did not get my dress from them. The kind of dress I wanted would’ve cost over $3,000 and I had set $2,000 as my limit. Also, I hate uncertainty and not knowing exactly what it would be like until it was finished would have driven me bonkers.
But I would recommend them to anyone in the Chicago area who is looking for a custom dress maker.
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7 Responses to “(More) Adventures In Dress Shopping”
I also have a deep dislike for HOB on Franklin in Chicago. I went there to look for bridesmaids’ dresses 10 months before the wedding and was told that I’d have to order that day or they wouldn’t be ready in time. Yeah, right!
I had a similar experience of saying no to the dresses and heavy alterations because while I could kind of get it, if I didn’t have the beautiful almost end picture in front of me, I got antsy.
yuck. I had the same thing happen to me here in Rochester at a place called Peggy’s. No pictures and really inconsiderate salesy person. Isn’t that the worst?
also, those dresses look wonderful on you. The first one makes you look incredibly tall and willowy.
second the Dame Couture recommendation! i’ve had my dress made by them and it was an awesome experience throughout. I actually brought a dress i liked and they made a similar one in proper color & length, so you don’t necessarily have to start from one of their dresses :))
If you’re still in Chicago, I recommend I Do Bridal Consignment way west on Belmont. They have lots of vintage gowns– some couture, and more recent stuff too for good prices.
Mrs. Radish, Chicago/Syracuse
Age and Occupation: 27, Executive Assistant/Journalism Student/Musician
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 28, Anthropologist/Musician
Engagement Date: December 20, 2005
Wedding Date: August 18, 2007
Blogging Since: June 26, 2007
Venue: The Wellington House in Fayetteville, NY
About Me: Mr. Radish and I are both from upstate New York, so we are planning a wedding in Syracuse from about 700 miles away. When I’m not obsessing about our wedding I play the cello in my band (which Mr. Radish is in too), read as much as I can, sleep even more, travel whenever possible, and try to find time to have fun with my friends. I’m also working on finishing up my journalism degree with a concentration in environmental reporting and I’m the VP of my campus Amnesty International chapter… so I’m a pretty busy bee.
I live in Chicago and I’ve never heard of Dame Couture. It looks like a great recommendation. Also, I had several bad experiences with HOB and would not recommend them. They seriously need to work on their customer service.