{Can’t Afford it/Get Over it} Alterations Included
In a “Can’t Afford it/Get Over it” email request, reader Karlie made a point to mention that her Get Over it gown picks need to include the alterations in the total cost. I found this to be an excellent point, as alterations in bridal world can lead to big dolla bills, especially when it comes to intricately designed gowns. Karlie needs the gown and alterations to cost no more than $1500 total. It would be impossible to determine how much a particular set of alterations would cost because every gown and every bride’s body will require a unique estimate.
So I decided to keep her actual Get Over it Gown Gallery under $1000, leaving her a hearty (and safe) $500 for alterations, cleaning, and perhaps a veil or a hair flower. It amazes me how much us brides forget that the actual cost of the gown is not the final cost… the entire head-to-toe look – shoes, jewelry, veil – will end up costing the average bride $500+.
This is an obvious estimate. Speaking from experience, here is my after-the-gown-is-got gilding costs: My wedding gown cost me $495 up front for just the gown. I personally went on to spend $100 on alterations, $200 on shoes, $100 on the veil, $60 on hair barrettes, $50 on earrings, & $10 on a flower I attached to the back of my gown. You do the math… My additional adornments cost me more than the actual gown! So brides, please, please, please take all of this into consideration when purchasing your gown.
I see it all the time on “Say Yes to the Dress“; a bride falls in love with a buy-it-or-bust gown. The mom is convinced to buy it even though it’s $2000 more than she wanted to spend. Then months later the bride tries on her gown for the first time and it’s not even close to fitting her right. And Mom is forced to stretch her already-over-budget budget – ’cause let’s face it, the dress needs to fit better than any piece of clothing that has ever touched her body. Then another 2 weeks pass by, and our beautiful bride heads back to the salon for another fitting. Only this time, the dress is too small because she convinced the seamstress to altar it to hug her ass to the point of “can’t-sit-down, taut perfection.” Bride thus freaks out. And Mom has to pay more to let the gown out. They come back two weeks later, but this time the gown is slightly too big because our bride lost some booty from all the crash cardio dieting she’s been doing. Annnnd out comes the ol’wallet again. You see a pattern here, right? I’m not saying every bride is going to have the same alteration nightmare story. But please keep in mind that your body could be going through a lot of changes during the process of planning your wedding. So if your gown budget is $1000, then you should definitely try to put aside at least $200 of that to account for alterations & adornments.
Let’s get to Karlie’s Can’t Afford it gown, shall we? The gown is made by Winnie Couture, and the style is Avant Mariee, Nali, #9116. Karlie said she found this gown in stores for around $2000.
Can’t Afford it:
Get Over it:
1. Lo-Ve-La by Liz Fields. Retails for $938.
2. Mori Lee by Madeline Gardner. Retails for under $600.
3. Wtoo Brides. Retails between $500 and $1000.
4. David’s Bridal. Retails for $499.
5. Etsy seller ieie. Retails for $399.99.
6. Etsy seller Your Fairy Tale Wedding. Retails for $799.
7. Davids’s Bridal. Retails for $950.
8. David’s Bridal. Retails for $549.
9. David’s Bridal. Retails for $299.
10. David’s Bridal Gown + Amy Noel Designs Bridal Sash. Gown: $449. Sash: $64.
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Miss any “Can’t Afford it/Get Over it” Magic? Catch up here:
- What if I can’t afford a budget bridal gown?
- Can’t Afford it? Get Over it, Pt 1
- Short/Tea Length Gowns
- Break up with Oscar, Fall in Love with David
- Now Taking Requests
- Amsale Edition
- Lhuillier Lace Fiesta
- Your Requests Answered
- Pnina, Claire, Melissa, & Amsale
- Can’t Afford the “Carrie”? Get Over It with these Gowns
- Jovani “Get Over it” Wedding Gown Gallery
- A Groom’s Request for his Bride
Thank you SO much, I love all the great ideas
That's a great point, it's something a lot of brides most likely forget to consider. OMG, I am in love with that Mori Lee dress! So stunning!
This is a great idea! It's amazing how you compared the similar look but completely different prize. Thanks for sharing!
I want to share my wedding gown shopping experience with you.
I started looking for gowns in Dec for my May wedding. I was greeted with looks of shock and disbelief and hushed and hurried voices at the bridal gown boutiques. I started too late, they informed me. Brides order gown at least 8-9 months before their wedding. They also let me know that all hope was not lost, and I can get a rush delivery but I had to decide fast. All of this made me very sad, and nervous. The simple reason I started looking for my gowns "late" was I did not know how early to start looking from them. Coming from another country, looking for your gown 5 months before your wedding would be 4 months too early. Imagine my confusion! And the stress!
Anyhow, after trying several gowns in several stores the one I really liked carried a tag of $750+, and a promise of arriving a week before my wedding date in its still-to-be-altered form. I could not pay that much money for a gown that will cause me so much stress. I went to yet more bridal stores and started looking for gowns that looked like my dream gown and looked good on me. Pretty soon I realized that I like gowns with a trumpet shape, asymmetrical ruching.
As soon as I knew what style I was looking for, I started calling bridal stores for "discontinued" gowns with a similar style.
So what I did not get my favorite gown (Mori Lee 2405), I got a pretty similar looking (Maggie Sottero JSM 1095) for $400 off the rack! And good thing, it is in my size, so I only need to get it bustled.
I am gonna pick up the gown this Saturday and hopefully everything goes well. By the end of it, I will have a gown that costs me $520 and a good discount strategy to share with other brides!
babes go to sears and get the knockoff of Karlie.s avant marie for ninety dollars. yes nine zero. gotta say I love your blog and the audience attitude.thought I was alone out there in having principles. here’s my challenge.
babes go to sears and get the knockoff of Karlie.s avant marie for ninety dollars. yes nine zero. gotta say I love your blog and the audience attitude.thought I was alone out there in having principles. here’s my challenge. pronovias aglaya. I Love the lace bodice an nd the dreamy layers of tulle…my budget is three hundred dollars,not thirteen k! I think that’s how much out was. whatever it was you could buy a house for. funny thing is I found this dress while searching for a used dress on ebay bc I didn’t want to spend nine hundred! it was one of those online only copy cats.what do you think? anyone know a get over it for aglaya? or pronovias in general for that matter?