London (or nearby) wedding dress shops

kmmr

Hi,

I am sure this has been done a 1000 times here, but I was wondering if people can help a very nervous bride!

I am not someone who has been planning a wedding since I was a child, but I do need to have something to wear. I am about a size 18-20, and hate clothes shopping with a passion, so am a bit nervous about the whole wedding dress shopping experience.

So, I was hoping people could give me some guidance. The first thing I would like to do is go somewhere where they have a big range of dresses that I can just try on by myself, to get an idea of style. I am not fussy about designers, just want something that will fit!

Price: no idea. What do they cost? I was thinking £500-1000, but it seems from the internet that I need to spend £2000...
Location: Can look anywhere in London, but happy to travel West, South West, North West, North London to find good shops. East London/Essex is a bit of a pain, but could go for the right place. I work in Canary Wharf, so if there are places near there I could go during an extended lunch.

Date of Wedding: 8 October, so hopefully enough time!

I work 9-5, which seems to make it hard with timing, but will make time if I have to during the week, but I want to have a bit of confidence that it is worth it.

So, any help is greatly appreciated!

clearing_out_my_pockets

Hi, I'm not sure if this will be too far for you, but the shop I got my dress from is Bell'Amore in Bexleyheath (south east London / north west Kent). The staff there were absolutely fantastic. They were completely honest about whether something suited me or not and they didn't try and sell me the most expensive dress / tiara / veil. In fact, they brought out a veil that was half the price of the one I liked. They were fantastic with me and I have serious body issues. The shop came recommended to me by my neighbour, and they didn't disappoint.

My dress was bought in a sample sale for £499 but the full priced dresses that I liked were around the £800 mark. So your initial price range is very do-able.

The other thing with the dress shop is if you get the last appointment of the day, they don't try and rush you even if they're closing.

The best thing to do (in my opinion) is to call any shops you're thinking of gong to and asking what sizes their samples are in. If you outline your concerns, you should be able to tell quite quickly which shops you should avoid if they're rude to you! Better to have them being rude over the phone than face to face when you're standing in nowt but your underwear!

jojo2004

I second the idea of calling in advance. Some of the 'designer' shops only carry samples in a size 10 or 12 (why?!:p) so you wouldn't necessarily be able to try on everything you like. That said, they can often find a way to pour you into much smaller sizes (extra modesty panel at the back, corset/lace up style etc.
I've been to a lot of shops, all over, and by far the best experience has been in smaller shops that carry a range of different designers' dresses.

I'm going to test Morgan Davies in London on Sat (Islington), so can report back after that.

Otherwise, my favourite so far has been Pollyannas in Warwick (more of a trek!) and they do Saturday appointments. The lady who runs it has been a seamstress for 30 years so will adapt stuff for you if you want.

Re body confidence, I hear ya. I was terrified. I'm a size 14 and thought I'd be told some dresses were too small etc. However, I've mentioned this in advance of all appointments (along the lines of 'I'm a size X, and I'm worried you won't have anything to fit me and I'll feel huge') and so far no one has done anything but make me feel awesome, and none of them has even mentioned what sizes I've been trying on! The consensus seems to be that you probably go up a size in bridal dresses (again, WHY? No bride wants that! :mad:) but you can ask them not to tell you sizes, if it helps.

Dresses are really structured, and totally change your shape. One last thing that helped me a lot, look at second hand dresses for sale online (sellmyweddingdress and other sites), and look for pics of the dress on the original owner, rather than the website model pics. When you've seen a dress on a size 22 and thought 'wow, she looks about a size 14, you'll feel so much more confident, promise!

HTH, good luck and enjoy!

kmmr

Thanks all for the help. I have a booking at somewhere called 'Love U Forever' this weekend, who sounds like they may have some options. I am going down on Saturday.

I could go across to Bell-Amore, as it does sound like they have a good range of options. There is another one out that way called 'Tantrums and Tiaras', which also looks nice and big. Has anyone been there? I could go and see if I can do both on one day.

Let me know how it goes at Morgan Davis, and any others you like/dislike jojo.

I actually went into John Lewis last night to see what they have, and to try on a few items. I could fit into some of their 18 (it's the b00bs that are the problem) but most couldn't zip all the way up. Anyone, the ones that fit actually looked lovely, and have given me a bit more confidence that this won't be such a nightmare! I also bought myself some 'shrink yourself a dress size' undies, so now there is less tummy sucking in!

kmmr

Right - so I am on a roll. I have the booking on Saturday, and then another at a bespoke place later in the day. She has said she wouldn't have much to try on, but still more than happy to have me down to talk about things.

I've also sent an email to Heavenly Bodies Bridal in Catford, who specialise in plus-sizes. Will at least give me a chance to try on a few more. And same to bellamore, so lets see who comes back.

Which leads me to the next question - how many places do you normally visit!

RainbowDrops

As many as is right for you!

I found just one shop was more than enough for me.
It's quite overwhelming and mentally tiring.

I did one bridal shop, then went to monsoon, but in the end went for a bespoke dress.

clearing_out_my_pockets

I went to four bridal shops and had different experiences in all four! But I would have kept looking if I hadn't found mine when I did.

kmmr

Hi,

An update, for those who may be interested. I went to LoveUForever which, despite the cheesy name, was really lovely. And there is parking right outside which also helps. They probably had more than 20 dresses that I could have tried on, and also had a basque I could use while there, as I don't have one.

I tried on a few dresses, and they were all lovely! I was amazed how much nicer it was than expected. The girl there (Rachel) took the time to put them on properly with much breathing in, and they really looked great! Exactly as JoJo said - I suddenly looked about 4 sizes smaller. I could have stayed there and tried on more for ages.

Then went to Tantrums and Tiaras in Putney (not the one out east). That is a small bespoke dressmaker, and while she was lovely, I was glad I didn't go there first. There was nothing to even think about trying on, and was more just a conversation. She said to go and get a few more ideas and then come back with a better idea of what I wanted. She gave me some ideas, and emphasised that they would use much better fabrics... but while nice fabrics will feel lovely for me, I don't think they will look much different. End of the day it's a one day dress, so it doesn't have to be the toppest of top quality!

She sent me to Berketex Bride in Richmond, which I went down to to find out that it was closed! But there was a fab deli next door... so I came home with cheese and bread. Not exactly the idea!

But overall a good day, and I am now quite looking forward to the next visit. Thanks for the encouragement, it is appreciated.

Tomorrow going to HeavenlyBodiesBridal, so will update then.

jojo2004

Right, I didn't get to Morgan Davies - they couldn't fit me in at the time I wanted! Also they ask for a deposit, which I understand (they have to pay the rent), but I don't want to pay to try on clothes!

I went to Angelica Bridal in Islington, instead.
Very nice shop, great service (although she wasn't as good at fitting dresses as others I've been to), there was no one else there for the hour, but I thought the dresses were overpriced (around 1500 upwards) and for no discernible improvement in quality over other places I've been. I wouldn't go back (but I'm not saying it was awful, by any means - the dresses were all nice, and well displayed, just not my sort of thing).
HTH xx

flossy_splodge

kmmr wrote: »

Hi,

Current frontrunner is: http://www.ellabridals.com/dress-5243 but it's early days.


This one is lovely! Good choice for a frontrunner.
You do know that most places are happy for you to have a photo taken of YOU in their dress(es) so you can study it at your leisure? And then post it here for us all to see

kmmr

I wish they would let me take photos! I can't remember one from the next...

Anyway - what do people think about a bit of colour? Too controversial??

RedTrimDress