The Bridesmaid Dress Debate

There are endless articles covering the negative side of buying bridesmaid dresses from China and from websites where designer copies are made for a fraction of the price.

So what do you do when you are on a budget and the average bridesmaid dress retails around the £200 mark?

I would like to make clear that I do not agree with people coping designers work and passing it off as a genuine piece and I also think that designer copies are disrespectful to the craftsmanship, skill and attention to detail that goes into each designer gown.

Everyday sites are shut down and brides are left out of pocket with alteration fee's to try and make the best out of what they have purchased or in the worst cases having to buy new dresses meaning they are paying full price plus the cost of the wasted dresses.

So what are the other options?

There are high street shops that sell a fantastic selection of bridesmaids dresses. 

Here is a selection from BHS Their dresses range from £36 for children up to around £120 for adults.

It is also a good idea to keep an eye out for bridal sample sales especially if you only have 1 or 2 bridesmaids.

When I was looking for dresses I kept getting tempted by sights such as 'lightinthebox' but was also scared off by reviews stating escalating postage costs and poorly fitting dresses. I ended up researching dress makers that rather than selling designer copies sold a small selection of there own bridesmaids dresses. I came across a business called 'littlepridebride' on ebay. All of the reviews were positive and I was able to both speak to the lady that fronted the business via telephone and frequent email conversation. 

The amount of communication and help I received put my mind at ease and I felt completely confident processing my order. 

The Order for 6 Bridesmaids dresses took around 5 weeks from start to finish. I was really happy with the quality and how the dresses looked. They had a heavy weight to them and were beautifully lined. There wasn't a wonky seam in sight. I also didn't have to worry about escalating postage costs as they were shipped to the UK office before being sent to me. My dresses averages out at £45 per dress.  

Here are the photo's of my Bridesmaids in their dresses.

Picture taken by Alex Lawrence Photography
http://alexlawrencephotography.com/

Here are some tips for if you're looking to buy your dresses online.

1) Do your research! review, review, review. 

2) Measure three times

3) Match your measurements to the nearest dress size rather than buying custom dresses. This will make them easier to alter. The only thing that I customised was the length for the taller ladies.

4) Factor in alteration costs 

5) If you have any doubts or niggles then DO NOT ORDER!