The Rage of a Rookie Bridesmaid

So, I've been working hard being the best bridesmaid I can be. Luckily this weekend my friend found "the dress" and I couldn't be happier for her. Anyone whose gone shopping for wedding dresses knows it's a time consuming process not only to find what you want, but to find a dress that's worthy of it's price point. So what could I be upset about since she got the dress? Well, I have to say there is a lot that can go wrong with choosing where you get your dress. We made the horrible mistake of going to David's Bridal this past weekend. I should have known immediately upon entering that the disorganization and mauve walls were going a bad sign. However, we didn't head the warning signs early enough. I was incredibly upset at how poorly we were treated when Lesley-Anne was trying on dresses as the woman helping us  took chairs away from us and seemed irritated that we were asking for different options. I know some people expect the world on a platter when they get married and complain that someone didn't treat them like the Princess of Wales, but all we were expecting was common courtesy and we didn't even receive that. I guess the mantra there is you should just enjoy the mediocre service and be impressed with their dresses because they spend enough money on advertisement to delude people into thinking 'you'll love David's Bridal!'.

The biggest issue I had was with the prices of the dresses. That may surprise some, as the dresses at David's Bridal are presented as an affordable option to the budget conscious bride. However, this is a total farce. I hope all brides take the time to learn what differentiates a $500 dress from a $1000 one and so on. In all actuality, the prices for David's Bridal gowns are insanely high for the quality you get. Every single dress we looked at had major construction faults that are inexcusable, I've seen discount homecoming dresses that were better constructed. Case in point, we looked at one of the most expensive dresses at David's Bridal and it was made the cheapest way possible. The dress, which was a halter style with an A-line skirt, was a nice shape and had the nice detail of having a lace overlay. However, the dress was a construction nightmare. Instead of the dress's skirt having been made from one piece of fabric, it had been constructed out of three pieces of fabric as if the other two pieces of fabric were attached to the first hem to add length. No $1200 dress should be constructed in such a way, and the lace overlay did a poor job concealing the obvious seams. For $1200 at other stores I've seen absolutely stunning dresses with zippers set in properly, non-puckered seams and no weird add on fabric as well as better crafted lace and stones used on the dress. There is no doubt in my mind that dress cost no more than $300 to make, but was being priced like something of quality. No bride deserves to be ripped off that way!

Luckily, we bailed on that horrible store and went straight to Brides by Demetrios in Atlanta and were able to find a wide array of absolutely stunning dresses at reasonable prices, including "the one"! The customer service there is phenomenal as well. I really hope more women take the time to shop around (internet and in store!) to find their wedding gowns because from what I've seen so far as a rookie bridesmaid is that people have absolutely no problem turning a profit on selling you complete garbage for your wedding day.