Wedding Blog
One of the biggest of those issues has been the bridesmaids dresses. From the beginning, I decided that I wanted to pay for the dresses myself. My ladies were hauling themselves all the way across the country. The least I could do was try and help them out with a few of the expenses, right? So I got the cost question out of the way quickly, but then it gets a bit dicey. I also wanted them to be able to try the dresses on themselves. I am a firm believer in trying on clothes before you purchase them because you truly never know what they will look like on you. (This makes internet shopping very difficult for me!)
I wrote a post many moons ago about dress lengths and colors. Well, I finally made some decisions (a huge deal for an indecisive girl like me).
Color: Black.
Length: Tea Length.
Style: Simple, elegant, with a hint of vintage.
Price: $150 or less.
While the choices seemed practically endless (little black dresses around the world, UNITE!), I scoured the internet for hours trying to find one dress that would fit the above criteria, flatter all body types, and also be housed in a store with locations in New York. Then I realized that I had failed to look at the one store with affordable dresses and locations across the country: David’s Bridal.
This weekend, I checked any negative assumptions of David’s Bridal at the door, and traveled to the closest store in Los Angeles. I say “negative assumptions” because I have read many bad reviews of this place in the past, and therefore was tentative of what I would find. But I tried to keep an open mind. Lucky for me I did keep an open mind, because who would’ve imagined my surprise when I found this dress (pictured in green, but I would buy my dresses in black):
The makings of a fabulous little black dress!! It fit the criteria and seemed to be very flattering for most body types (in particular, it isn’t too clingy and leaves room for an ample chest). Also, I am a bit of a stickler about fabric. I like to see the fabric in person and touch it. I have noticed that when browsing online, it is always a bit difficult for me to tell if fabric looks “cheap” or not. The above dress is made well and the fabric is nice: details that I would have never been able to differentiate if I hadn’t been able to see the dress in person. I only mention all of this because I originally had my heart set on a different dress that I saw on davidsbridal.com. In fact, I didn’t even notice my final choice when I browsed the website. So my advice? Try your best to see the dress in person. It could save you time and money in the end.
I will also mention that while I was there, I registered at David’s. Now all my ladies have to do is go to their nearest David’s store, give the salesperson my name, and they can pull up the color and style number. Voila! Long distance bridesmaids done easy. Now I am just hoping the ladies like it.
Do you have a long distance bridal party? How have you dealt with the difficulties of distance? Also, if you have had experience with bridesmaids dresses and David’s Bridal… I’d love to hear your feedback!
Image Source: David’s Bridal Spring 2009 Wedding Party Catalog, pg. 19.
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Share this post: A Tale of Long Dstance Bridesmaids
just a warning - since you registered with David’s you will probably receive TONS of spam, phone calls, mail, etc. That is the only problem I have had with DB!!
I’m thinking of David’s Bridal for the exact same reason. I’m in Missouri, and my Maid of Honor (and possibly my only attendant) lives in Ohio. I’ve heard horror stories about them too, but maybe if I do it early enough we’ll have time to fix any mistakes they make. Or so I hope!
3 of my 5 bridesmaids are out of state, so I feel your pain! I had them order from White House Black Market for their dresses, it was such an easy process I was astounded.
My big reccomendation with a place like David’s Bridal is that they tend to order a size up (without tell you!) so that you have to have alterations done…such a pain! I was at a wedding where, even after we’d all had alterations done, half of our dresses were falling down!
But for convenience, a nationwide chain like that can’t be beat. But don’t rule out a more conventional store that you’d commonly shop at - especially since it sounds like you’re looking for a black dress. So many options that aren’t technically for bridesmaids.
2 of my 4 BM live out of state, so we needed something that would work in different places. Ultimately, I let them choose a dress from JCrew, which they could have shipped right to their houses, which really worked out for them.
My David’s experience wasn’t great, but my tip about BM dresses is that they’re not lying when they say that the dye lots really are very different. This might not be an issue for you in black, but when I ordered a dress for my best friend’s wedding a few years ago, not all of the BM ordered at the same time at the same store. As a result, our dresses (in their peri color) varied greatly in color and shade. Some looked blue and others looked almost lilac. Just something to keep in mind, but I think with black, you should be fine.
This is a GREAT dress! I tried it on for a friend’s wedding in the fall. She has 5 girls in the wedding party of all different shapes and sizes and we all loved it. It’s not the one we ended up choosing (she had her heart set on floor length), but it was a close second so good choice!
My girls are all in different states as well, spread across the entire country. I went with David’s for all the convenience reasons, as well as the fact that their dresses are reasonably priced. I’ve had a mixed bag with them. Sometimes they’ve been very helpful and accommodating, other times I’ve wanted to pull my hair out trying to deal with them.
I will note that my MOH is going to be 8 months pregnant at the wedding. She bought her bridesmaid dress from Davids, but then realized it would never fit right and couldn’t be altered. David’s allowed her to exchange it, but she needed to spend the 100 dollar credit that day in the store. She ended up being able to buy the same color material (2 yards of the fabric for $25) as the rest of the girls’ gowns, and she’s having someone make her a dress from scratch (similar to the other girls). So, on the one hand, it’s nice that you can buy fabric from them, and they were nice enough to take the dress back, but 1) why did she need to spend the money that day? and 2) why didn’t the seamstress that helped her try the dress on when she originally bought it, warn her not to purchase because it wasn’t going to be able to be altered?
Sorry this story got a little rambling, but it’s how it is with most chain stores; there are benefits, but also drawbacks to working with a big company. Hope your experience goes smoothly!
David’s really makes it easy! And that dress is very cute. 
1/3 of bridesmaids are in Michigan, 1/3 in NY and 1/3 in LA.. ahhhhh hahah I totally hear ya!
I have ordered from DB a couple of times, with hardly a problem. They have always orded the sizes we requested and they arrived in plenty of time. I needed $10 alterations by my own seamtress, but only because I’m short.
I’m lucky to have all my BM’s in the same area…but 5GM in 4 different states!! so that will be our challenge.
That is the nice thing with a ‘chain’ bridal store…super convenient!
My MOH lives not only out of state but she lives in LONDON. This is a dress nightmare! Thank god we are close-ish in size and she trusts my judgement enough to try her dress on for her and pick the style. Such love! The rest of my bridesmaids are fortunately in state and within driving distance!
i think that dress is really cute! i have 8(!) bridesmaids allllll up and down the east coast so i definitely tried to factor that into picking a dress. in the end, i went with jcrew (sophia short dress in silk tricotine, navy) which everyone loved (actually i gave them a choice of three dresses and every girl picked the same dress—easy!). the dress is $150 and really nice (especially in person, pics online dont do it justice—i agree with the importance of seeing the dress/fabric in person so i ordered one to try on myself as a sample). looks like you did a good job figuring yours out!
Half of my wedding party is out of state and I too chose David’s Bridal due to the convenience. So far, so good.
I love your dress of choice! I’m going with David’s Bridal dresses for the BMs as well; mainly, for cost savings. I’m purchasing the dresses for them since they are trekkin’ it to Hawaii for me.
i suggest target.com. i just bought 2 little black satin dresses from them online (Isaac Mizrahi clearance sale), one for $10 and one for $20.
I’m super long distance, like from South America. It’s hard because I have to give my MOH suggestions from what I see on the web. So far she hasn’t oohed or aaahhed at anything, but she’s keeping an open mind, which I appreciate. You’re right though, it is hard to shop via internet!!
Great choice! Very classy and totally re-wearable. We checked out DB but didn’t fall in love with any dresses there. But they make it so easy peasy for you…one less thing to worry about!
With me, it was the *lack* of communication from David’s that was annoying.
I got engaged in May of last year, chose the BM outfits about a month later, and we don’t get married until of May of this year. So, I didn’t stress that my long distance BM’s couldn’t go to David’s until November… The separates still available on the website, and there were still samples in my store, so I didn’t worry… until my BM’s called, distressed about the fact that David’s didn’t have their sizes or styles available. Add to that, David’s hadn’t sent me anything saying that the style I registered for was being discontinued.
Little did I know that David’s changes their styles every season, and styles change very quickly. You are lucky. Your wedding is right around the corner.
But for other brides, if you love your David’s BM dresses, have your BM’s go and get them as soon as possible. If they are worried about sizing too arly, have them order up a size and then alter it closer to the wedding. David’s will NOT call you or email you to let you know something is out of stock… haha!
Yikes.
My bridesmaids are all over CA and one is out of state. We haven’t picked dresses yet, but I think it could definitely be a challenge.
@Miss Stiletto: I loved your post about White House Black Market. I actually visited their website and their store after you posted. I found a really sweet dress, but sadly, they were out of the sizes I would need. I’m gonna keep checking though. Thanks for the tips.
@Jessie516: Glad to hear it worked out for you. I love J.Crew!
@Lindsay: Glad to hear you liked the dress!
@MarryingtheNavy: How strange that she had to spend the credit that day. I don’t understand that?!
@Jesso: 8 bridesmaids!! Wow! I’m glad they all picked the same dress. That makes it a bit easier
@Miss Piglet: I didn’t realize you were going the David’s Bridal route, too!
@MightySapphire: That is very long distance! Hopefully if she likes something you can find a store near you and check it out before she purchases it!
@pinkstar: Sorry to hear about your experience. I had a similar issue with dresses and corresponding seasons. I couldn’t find this one dress from last Fall because it had been discontinued. Thanks for the heads up re: David’s!
I was anti David’s for a while too, but ended up getting my dress and the bridesmaid dresses there, and will get the flower girl dresses too. I picked up my dress about a week ago, and it was fine - I also don’t need alterations. My BM dresses are still on order, should be here soon - and its the same dress just in pool blue!! My girls range from 8 to 16 and it looked great on all of them, including the top heavy ones. Your girls are gonna look great, and I’ll let you know how the girls dresses go
I have one bridesmaid in New York, one in LA, and my MOH is traveling the country in a RV! She is currently in Austin. All three are from Detroit, so we have been able to schedule fittings when they have come home for the holidays. whew! I have three bridesmaids here also, which evens things out.
That dress is super cute, by the way!!!
@Miss Stiletto: Wow thats not cool at all! When I picked up my dress I tried it before I left the store to make sure it was the right size. My girls are gonna do the same, since 3 of them need alterations - but we may go with someone other than their seamstress
@Jessie516: Wow I had never thought about the dresses being different colors. I’m glad we all still live at home so we go to the same one, so hopefully there won’t be any issues - we ordered 2 the same time, a week later the 3rd, and a week later the 4th…so we’ll see!
I have the same dilemma! I’m in mississippi…my maid of honor in alabama, and bridesmaids in california, minnesota, and Florida. I solved the problem by letting them get whatever dress they want as long as it is black, formal, and floor length. I’m going with an old hollywood theme so I told them to get something flattering that had an old hollywood starlet feel. I am curious to see what they will find! I just wanted all of the bridesmaids to look unique.
my bridesmaids live a few hours away, so this idea helps a lot. i didn’t really consider david’s bridal, but their system makes me consider them.
I live in Kansas City, and only one of my five BMs is within driving distance. The other four are in DC, NYC, Houston, and Bologna, Italy!
After two failed attempts to shop at David’s Bridal in which I never got access to a dressing room because I wasn’t looking for my dress there I gave up on them. We ended up ordering everything from JCrew, and everyone has been really happy with their dresses!
Hopefully my Italian BM’s fits as well as the other girls, as she won’t get to try hers on for the first time until four days before the wedding. Eeek!
Good to know about David’s Bridal. My best friend is getting married soon and we’re all in diffrent states. She’s not very girlie and the first site she went to was DB. I will let her know about registering with the attached warning about the spamming. Thanks ladies:)
The only thing I would recommend about David’s Bridal is DO NOT GET ALTERATIONS done by them. I have heard too many stories of dresses being ruined and David’s Bridal not correcting their error. If this happens I’ve heard you have to pay more to have it fixed or a new dress ordered. Ordering dresses isn’t usually a problem. Your dress look beautiful and I hope you don’t have a bad experience. Good Luck
[...] couple of weeks ago, I wrote a post about my decision to go with David’s Bridal dresses. But then I decided David’s Bridal was too [...]
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Mrs. Glitter, Los Angeles
Age and Occupation: 27, Research Consultant/Writer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 29, Accounting
Engagement Date: May 6, 2007
Wedding Date: June, 2009
Venue: Millenium Biltmore Hotel
About Me: I was born and raised in West Los Angeles, California. I spent eight years in the Northeast working and completing my education. Having split time between two sides of the country has given me a true appreciation for both coasts. It has also provided an overabundance of cross country drives, flights and long distance relationship fun/misery! I love my family, my doggy Emma, fabulous wine, Anthropologie, politics, reading, being outdoors, exploring new cities, and good movies! My fiance and I are complete opposites, but somehow we have managed to fall completely and hopelessly in love.
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