Wedding Blog

I was going to wait until after I bought a dress to post this review but I can’t wait! I wanted to share with everyone my wonderful experience at Bijou Bridal in Paramus, NJ.

My friend Diane recommended Bijou Bridal because she’s friends with the owners. She even attended their opening party and was very impressed. At the time, I was very discouraged by the entire concept of wedding dress shopping because most of the bridal salons I had visited were rude, I felt rushed, and most importantly, didn’t carry anything I loved. Some facilities were downright dirty and tacky. One bridal consultant kept pressuring me try on dresses I didn’t care for at all and another watched over me like a hawk, never leaving my side, even in the dressing room where I like my privacy.

But I decided to make an appointment with Bijou Bridal anyway since Paramus isn’t too far from where I live. And as soon as I walked in, I knew it was different.

(All pictures taken from their website)

Now I haven’t been wedding dress shopping in high-end stores because I didn’t want to fall in love with a gown that is out of my budget…but Bijou definitely has the best facilities of everywhere I’ve visited (and I’ve been to 6 so far). The building is four stories tall with very elegant finishes. As soon as you walk in there is a waiting area with comfortable couches, where you can watch bridal fashion shows on a plasma TV or read from their large selection of wedding magazines.

After filling out a form and waiting just a couple of minutes (at another salon I had waited 45 minutes….with an appointment!) my mother and I were introduced to our consultant. I love, LOVED our consultant! I’m so angry at myself for not remembering her name (I’m horrible with names) because I would recommend her in a heartbeat. After explaining how the gowns were organized, she pulled up a empty rack to place the dresses I wanted to try on and kinda…disappeared into the walls. Whenever I saw a gown I liked and started to lift it out, she would come out of nowhere and take over right away. Whenever I had a question she would answer it thoroughly and patiently. She was just the right combination of not-too-pushy, friendly, enthusiastic, and knowledgeable.

When I was done picking out the dresses I wanted to try on, we all boarded the elevator to the fourth floor where the dressing rooms are located. Usually I’m so nervous about stripping down in front of a stranger and having them dress me, but our consultant was so nice and kept the conversation going that I didn’t mind at all.

I tried on five dresses that day…..and instantly fell in love with one dress by Sophia Tolli. I think this may be THE ONE. When I expressed my feelings for the dress to my consultant, she told me that their in-house alterations (done by two Italian ladies who used to be former wedding dress designers and makers) cap at $250. Say what?

“I’m sorry, I must be mistaken. $250 is the minimum for your alterations, correct?”

“Good gracious no! We would charge $250 if we had to take apart the entire dress and resew it top to bottom. In most cases it’s a lot less.”

All the other salons I’ve been to had a $300 minimum. One even charges a $375 flat fee, even if all you need is a hem!

I have two more appointments this week, and I don’t want to cancel them because my credit card will be charged if I do. However, barring acts of God, I’m pretty sure that I will be purchasing my gown from Bijou, and I want to take my bridesmaids there too since they have a great selection of attendants’ dresses. The best part is that since it’s in NJ, we don’t have to pay taxes!

I think I knew for 100% that Bijou was super-customer-oriented as I was preparing to leave. At every other bridal salon I’ve visited, the consultant would give me a business card with her work hours written on it so that if I returned to buy a dress, she could get the commission for it. So before I left, I asked our consultant at Bijou which days she works and she said, “Just come back whenever you’re free! If I’m not here someone else can help you - whenever is most convenient for you is fine with us!”

…..can I marry a bridal salon?