Trying on wedding dresses is a lot of what I expected it to be and a lot of other things too. A month after our proposal I went and tried on dresses because there were two dresses that I instantly fell in love with. I went to David’s Bridal knowing exactly what I wanted to try on, I had dresses saved the whole nine; I just knew I was going to say yes to the dresses. That was my first experience and for obvious and not so obvious reasons I didn’t say yes to a dress; I’ll share more about that later.
For my second and most recent experience I went to the Nordstrom Bridal Suite at Westfield Topanga, that same day there was a Hayley Paige Trunk show and that experience was much better than my first.
Experience #1 David’s Bridal
I had my heart set on two Zac Posen dresses that I just had to try on. Once your appointment is set, you’re encouraged to favorite dresses and save them to your account so they can make sure to pull them when you come. Only 3 of the dresses out of the 5 or 6 that were pulled were ones that I wanted. I’m not unreasonable and it wasn’t that big of a deal as long as I got to try on the dresses that I wanted.
TIP #1 DO NOT BOOK YOUR APPOINTMENT DURING 12-2 PM
My bridal consultant was nice, I actually don’t remember her name but she had a cool swag to her, I was happy to have her. I was happy to have her until she was literally taken away from and off to help another group of women who came in after me. At one point I was just standing in my dressing room wondering when I was going to get helped out of the massive Vera Wang ball gown I decided to try on. Fortunately my aunt and grandmother were there and they were able to help. My aunt and I have less than zero tolerance for poor customer service so she went and got someone else; it actually ended up being the same young lady who helped her pick out her dress. She was MUCH sweeter and so helpful and totally took over my appointment for the other young lady. My original consultant did come back later and apologize, I didn’t blame her but it was kind of shitty that it happened like that at all.
TIP #2 DO NOT GO DRESS SHOPPING ALONE
You never know when you’ll need a helping hand, a water or help getting out of your dress.
I’m a mama’s girl and though I thought I was ready to say yes to the Zac Posen dresses I tried on, I couldn’t do it without my mom. She had just had a minor surgery and couldn’t make it but told me to keep my appointment anyway. We face-timed her and it was fun until I thought about saying yes and how she wouldn’t be there with me in that moment. I was basically crying but trying not to be a big baby; I just really love my mommy. Anyway I ended up saying no to the dresses and made an appointment to go back the following weekend with my mom because I thought I was ready to say yes. Due to my experience and not having tried on anything else, it wasn’t the right time and I canceled my appointment.
Experience #2 Nordstrom Bridal Suite
In a world of department stores, Nordstrom is my go to. I’ve been shopping there since I was little girl and don’t really see myself stopping anytime soon. That said it was only natural that I go and try on dresses there and just be fully taken care of. There are only 3 Nordstrom Bridal Suites in the state of California but about 17-19 in the country. The two that are local are Topanga and Brea, the other is in San Francisco. Topanga is a lot closer to me than Brea and that mall is just everything so it only made sense to go there.
I got there early, per usual, but they immediately helped me and made me feel SO special. I was offered still or sparkling water and if you know me you know I chose sparkling. She immediately told me to start picking out dresses, took my shoes that I brought and carried each dress to my fitting room.
TIP #3 YOU DESERVE A GOOD EXPERIENCE
I don’t care who you are, what your budget is, what your background is, you deserve a great experience. An unforgettable experience. I had all of that and more. I opted for less help this time because the dresses I tried on weren’t super big or hard to get into. It was my mom, myself and my bridal consultant as well as two other young ladies who so graciously complimented me on the first gown that I tried on. After that it was just us three and I had plenty of time to just be in the moment.
Not only was my bridal consultant so sweet, she went out of her way to place me in certain areas so my mom could take good picture and video, she even led me out of the dressing room so I could take a full walk. It’s the little things that I love and that made this experience so much better than the first. All of the dresses I tried on were stunning, all were actually not as expensive as I thought they would have been and only one that I tried on was over my budget. It was an Oscar de le Renta dress that I couldn’t pass up on trying and if it goes on sale that’s going to be the dress.
All in all, I most likely will get my dress from Nordstrom and not a boutique, I’m pretty sure I’m set with my style except there was a lace dress by Watters that I tried on that was very unexpected. Lace was pretty much out of the question as it makes me look way older or gives me the rustic vibe which I’m not going for but this particular lace was incredible, my mother in law loved it.
TIP #4 DON’T SETTLE
All in all, as a young millennial bride to be, I enjoyed my experience at Nordstrom much better than at David’s Bridal. Never settle for a poor experience, you deserve to be treated with respect and with love. If your experience is anything less than what you expected it, take your business somewhere else.
Lastly, I recommend just trying on dresses for the experience. I personally don’t have a date but for those who do, just go try dresses on. You need to know what type of experience you want to have, you need to basically weed out the prospects. You may find out that dress shopping isn’t your thing at all and you want to get a custom dress. It doesn’t matter if you just got engaged or are months in, go try on dresses. Seasons change and styles change so it would be silly to wait; go, just not alone. Happy shopping!
