Finding the Frock: Getting My Feet Wet

Finding the Frock: Getting My Feet Wet

April 26th, 2011 @ 10:08 am by Mrs. Pony
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I was perfectly happy drooling over dresses online. I had no inclination to go out and try dresses on immediately, as I was studying for the bar and could barely muster the energy to shower in those days. (Yeah, it wasn’t pretty.) But, as I started to see the proverbial light at the end of the bar-exam tunnel, I started to think more and more about shopping for a wedding dress.

Then, I saw an ad for Running of the Brides at Filene’s Basement. For those of you who might not know, Running of the Brides (ROTB) is an event where “brides-to-be come to…find their dream dress at a bargain price.” (From Filene’s Basement’s website.) Basically, Filene’s Basement buys gowns that were canceled orders or former samples from manufacturers and bridal salons, and then passes the savings on to brides in the form of a one-day-only free-for-all at stores across the country.

Photo by George Rizer / Boston Globe / Via Boston.com

Photo by Mark Wilson / Getty Images North America / Via Zimbio

Photo by Mark Lennihan / AP / Via Gothamist

The Chicago ROTB was scheduled a mere three days before the bar exam, so there wasn’t a chance in hell I would be able to go to it. Looking at the other dates, though, I noticed that another ROTB was scheduled to be in Cleveland about a month later. The frugal side of me was intrigued by the promise of designer gowns at discount prices. The practical side of me saw this as a logistical nightmare. Cleveland meant an eight-hour drive and a hotel stay.

Frugality won. What can I say? I love the prospect of a good bargain.

But I was a bridal-gown virgin. I was afraid my inexperience would damage my ability to narrow down the 1,400 dresses that were awaiting us in Cleveland. So I visited a local bridal salon to try out different silhouettes, necklines, and fabrics. Unfortunately, this store did not allow pictures (one of its many shortcomings), so I don’t have any proof to show you, but I can tell you I did not find a winner that day. (They also cut off all the tags so I couldn’t even identify which dresses I did try on to show you the dresses on the model. Lame, right?) After 15 dresses at the salon, I thought I knew what to look for during ROTB. I had a clear vision of what to look for, and I was pumped to find my dream dress at a great value with the help of my girls.

We had no idea what was coming.

Would you consider participating in Running of the Brides?

Tags: bloomington, wedding-dress |

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30 Responses to “Finding the Frock: Getting My Feet Wet”

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Member

toshella (message) 642 posts, Busy bee

Ha. ha. ha. ha.

Ha.

No. Never. I can’t do that kind of insanity.

4/26/11 @ 10:11 am (reply)

Bee

Miss Snow Cone (message) 1,026 posts, Bumble bee

OMG, that picture of the woman in the pink shirt has me uncontrollably giggling. I am very eager to read the outcome of your ROTB experience!!

4/26/11 @ 10:15 am (reply)

Bee

Miss Pony (message) 4,171 posts, Honey bee

@toshella: Haha, I love the conviction in your comment.

4/26/11 @ 10:15 am (reply)

Bee

Miss Candy Apple (message) 1,465 posts, Bumble bee

Those pictures are ah-waitforit-mazing.

Please tell me you got pics at your ROTB experience. Please. And please tell me you looked like that crazed pink-shirt woman.

4/26/11 @ 10:19 am (reply)

Member

pookiepie (message) 317 posts, Helper bee

it looks a lot of fun especially when you have a big team to look for that dream dress! good luck!

4/26/11 @ 10:28 am (reply)

Member

FutureMrsB (message) 65 posts, Worker bee

My fiance thought I should go, but the Boston one (we live right outside the city) was about 3 days after we were officially engaged, so even though I’d love a bargain, there were a million reasons why I decided not to go:

-It was on a work day (Friday, I think)
-Like Miss Pony, I hadn’t tried any dresses on yet.
-You need a posse to go with you, and all my girlfriends are spread around the northeast and I didn’t want to ask people to travel so far and take a day off of work.
-I’m a street size 16 (which puts me into plus size bride territory) and I figured if there’s a lot of sample dresses I would have a lot of fit problems.

So overall I figured it would just be too overwhelming. But they are supposed to be incredible deals and we’re way over budget, so maybe if I still don’t have a dress next year I’ll try it out :).

4/26/11 @ 10:30 am (reply)

Member

dddd89 (message) 491 posts, Helper bee

Aww u drove out to where I live Can’t wait to hear how it went!

4/26/11 @ 10:37 am (reply)

Member

haelmai (message) 232 posts, Helper bee

Can’t wait to hear your story, but there is no way in H-E-double hockey sticks I could do that. I am a very frugal bride, but crazy crowds like that scare the poo out of me!

4/26/11 @ 10:41 am (reply)

Bee

Miss Sparkler (message) 423 posts, Helper bee

Those pictures are amazing. Exactly how I imagine ROTB in my mind!

4/26/11 @ 10:47 am (reply)

10.

Member

stephbonthego (message) 687 posts, Busy bee

hahhaha, no. Mr. D banned me from all shopping craziness after a Black Friday incident. hahhaa

4/26/11 @ 10:47 am (reply)

11.

Bee

Miss Pony (message) 4,171 posts, Honey bee

@Miss Snow Cone: I consider myself to be an intense person, but pink shirt girl puts me to shame. She means business.
@Miss Candy Apple: Crazier. Not really, you’ll just have to see….
@pookiepie: Yea, there were some huge groups there! We were small in comparison, but it worked well.
@FutureMrsB: I hope you find a lovely dress, but its always worth a shot! They really had all kinds of dresses at the sale.
@dddd89: Yay Cleveland!
@haelmai: Ha! I don’t blame you! Super sales and weddings always bring out the crazy in people and those two together is asking for disaster.

4/26/11 @ 10:52 am (reply)

12.

Member

Miss 1Cent (message) 168 posts, Blushing bee

Wow you’re brave. I have no patience or ability to handle pyshco brides rushing for dresses. My mom suggested it and i was like HELLLLL no, I’ll trade extra money for my small bit of sanity, very small bit… lol

4/26/11 @ 10:59 am (reply)

13.

Member

crystlrox (message) 326 posts, Helper bee

OK, I have to admit, I had the time of my life at the Boston ROTB in 2008. My friend flew up from Texas and she found two amazing dresses that were like $200, way heavily discounted. In the end, she bought one the that was more my style than hers (my bad!), but there were amazing deals to be had. She should have bought them both, but at least we had a great experience.

You can definitely find a good deal and it is so much fun and I was kinda like the girl in the pink shirt. We did get some great photo-ops tho: http://www.boston.com/lifestyle/weddings/gallery/running_of_brides_2008?pg=13 .

I hear that you can still find a good deal if you go late morning, but you will miss out on all the fun.

GOOD LUCK!!

4/26/11 @ 11:03 am (reply)

14.

Guest

Suz

ROTB is totally what you make of it. I went to the DC version last year, and I didn’t encounter any crazy brides, because I went at 2:00pm in the afternoon. Of the hundreds of people stampeding in at 8:00am, only a handful are brides looking to buy, so there are tons of dresses still left in the afternoon. If you have your heart set on a strapless, lace Vera Wang, then you will have to line up with the crazies, but if the label doesn’t mean much, there will still be plenty left when the crazy brides depart. There were at least a thousand dresses left when I got there. And I found my dress there for $250 (orginally priced at over $1500)–score!

4/26/11 @ 11:33 am (reply)

15.

Member

TinyTina (message) 3,312 posts, Sugar bee

Oh boy, can’t wait to hear about your experience. I deff don’t think I have the guts for ROTB….

4/26/11 @ 11:38 am (reply)

16.

Member

HelloKitty2 (message) 234 posts, Helper bee

How awesome. I think this will be fantastically fun and I am hoping for a great story with tons of pics!

4/26/11 @ 11:53 am (reply)

17.

Member

Misslizzy (message) 282 posts, Helper bee

I went to the running of the brides in NYC… I got my dress and it was NOTHING like what i thought it would be. but i LOVE it! (and the price tag)

4/26/11 @ 11:57 am (reply)

18.

Guest

LongLegAmazon

I got my dress at ROTB in Boston in 2009. It was awesome and crazy and a $249 (for a $2000 dress) price tag. The alterations (due to weight loss) cost as much as the dress. WELL worth the mayhem.

4/26/11 @ 12:06 pm (reply)

19.

Member

MamaMima (message) 89 posts, Worker bee

Awwww this post makes me so excited. Yes, I am going to the ROTB in DC this Friday. I am a waiting bee with a planned wedding date so I am going to take my chances. My mother, a few bridesmaids and I plan to meet AFTER work to browse and hopefully catch a deal. It will be my first time trying on wedding dresses so I am anxious, but we are going for the fun.

4/26/11 @ 12:14 pm (reply)

20.

Bee

Miss Tartlet (message) 3,207 posts, Sugar bee

Dun dun DUN! What a cliff-hanger ending! Looking forward to seeing what your experience was like–I don’t think I have the survival skills to make it through a ROTB.

4/26/11 @ 12:17 pm (reply)

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