buying wedding dress online?

sionnaic

Has anyone ever used this website?
www.glamourousgowns.co.uk

I've just noticed the dress I tried on today in a Dublin shop is half the price on this website!!! half!!!!!

It's very tempting...especially considering all the shop prices are exclusive of alteration charges anyway.

Very tempting! But also quite scary...

The Lovely Muffin

Looks legit, never used them though, so not sure.

http://whois.domaintools.com/glamourousgowns.co.uk

watna

I've ordered mine from China. It's a huge gamble but I've loads of time to order the "real" dress if it doesn't work out. The cost of dress from China isn't a huge amount in the grand scheme of things so it's a risk I've decided to take and see what happens - it's due to arrive in two weeks and I'll be interested to see what has been sent!

That site looks fairly legit. They're the real dress as opposed to a copy - right? Hopefully someone here will have used them and can give you some feedback.

Wedding dresses really are so expensive. I know it's a big thing but I decided to see what happened with a dress from China because it was hard to justify paying so much for the dress I wanted when other parts of the wedding are costing so much.

random10

How did you order from china, did you send them photos of the dress or did you choose from their website? hope it works out

watna

random10 wrote: »

How did you order from china, did you send them photos of the dress or did you choose from their website? hope it works out

I tried the dress on in a shop and got the name of the dress. Then when I googled it lots of sellers on the Chinese site had a picture of the dress and used the name (you know the way all wedding dresses have a ladies name!) said they could make something similar (the seller I chose, based on a high feedback score said it will be 85% - 90% similar - she stressed this as i think people expect it to be exact which is, of course, impossible). I sent through my measurements and also some pictures of me in the dress as a kind of extra support (but she doesn't need these).

It was kind of a Chinese eBay called DHGate. There's lots of bad reviews of the site online but they were mainly from American Ebay sellers who had bought items in bulk and not realised they were copies (which is so stupid, they're cheap for a reason) and then had their eBay sites shut down. I couldn't find much feedback from people who had got dresses from there or were buying things that weren't electronics for personal use but it's like eBay, it's not the site you need to worry about, it's the seller. The one I've been talking to has been really good with communication and things so we'll see. The feedback seemed genuine and quite good. She's also making me a matching jacket from a picture I sent her and a one hoop petticoat.

Anyway, like I said, it's a risk but not a huge one. It didn't cost me very much in the grand scheme of things and I'm not getting married for over a year so I will buy the "real" dress if I have to. Even if I have to get the Chinese one altered it'll still save me a lot of money.

It's due in 2 - 3 weeks so I'll report back and let you know how it went!

janbaby

I bought a wedding dress online on dressingpod.com they come from China. The quality of the dress was fine but the style didn't suit me. It took about 6 weeks to come. The dresses are copies of designer dresses and the quality is not as good. Its a risk I took and only that the style didn't suit I'd be wearing the dress.

ciarak7511

You can get great used designer dresses in Oxfam they have a whole line or from private sellers on ad sites like Buy and Sell, They are usually in perfect condition and some of them havent been used!Personally I would have a problem buying a used dress if its still like new cos i would'nt want to shelve out thousands on a dress for my wedding!

sionnaic

well I went ahead and ordered the dress from that website!
actually I rang and talked to the girl in the shop and ordered over the phone. She was lovely - very helpful. She was saying she gets a lot of Irish brides ringing up saying the same thing I did - that the same dress they saw in an Irish shop was half the price on their website.
Fingers crossed that the dress arrives safely and as expected now...

watna

Best of luck!

bytheglass

watna wrote: »

It was kind of a Chinese eBay called DHGate... ...It's due in 2 - 3 weeks so I'll report back and let you know how it went!

Watna, I can't wait to hear how you get on, I spotted my dress on DHgate too, 96% accuracy apparently, I read feedback elsewhere that said the beading was a let-down as the beads were stuck on & not stitched on...
The dress I have in mind is €1,250 here or €112 from DHgate, definately worth risking it!!

watna

bytheglass wrote: »

Watna, I can't wait to hear how you get on, I spotted my dress on DHgate too, 96% accuracy apparently, I read feedback elsewhere that said the beading was a let-down as the beads were stuck on & not stitched on...
The dress I have in mind is €1,250 here or €112 from DHgate, definately worth risking it!!

I'm planning to get it re-beaded. That's the part I think will let the dress down (and a friend of my mum's who has done something similar told her that she had heard that). I've got a dressmaker here who will do that, if I do and pick the beads I want. It'll add on a few more dollars but will be worth it.

I'll let you know when it arrives anyway!

I think it's worth it too. It's not a huge loss if it's unwearable.

MazG

I ordered my dress from a chinese seller on ebay. It is a copy of a designer dress but it wasn't described as 'designername wedding dress model x', just 'chiffon wedding dress'. But the seller used the picture from the designer to advertise, so I knew it would look the same or similar.

I tried on the designer dress at a wedding dress shop in Ireland and was happy that it suited me so I went ahead and ordered online. The price of the dress in the shop was €1090 and the price of the ebay copy was €109. I knew I was taking a chance, and I thought to myself that if it came and it was a disaster, I'd head for one of the charity shops and find something there. As luck would have it, it came and I love it! The designer dress is undoubtedly better quality, but 10 times better? I don't think so!

Be warned, if you order a copy online, the dress is unlikely to arrive in a lovely presentation box festooned with ribbons and tissue paper. Mine came bundled up in a plastic bag.

Also, be aware that you may have to pay customs and VAT on any purchase from outside the EU. I had to pay €60 when mine arrived, making the total cost of my dress €169.

Still though, I'm delighted with both my dress and the saving made, so for me it was totally worth it.

Best of luck to everyone with their purchases

watna

Ha - that's funny about the way it arrives. One of the feedback on the seller I went to said the dress arrived in a sack!! I thought that was funny - I'm not expecting it to arrive all fancy anyway.

I've bought a dress carrier and left it at work so when the dress arrives I can put it in there and give it to a friend to keep so my fiance doesn't go snooping in the house!

Thanks for the feedback. It's great to see it working out well for people

kittex

I have been reading this forum with interest for a bit as I just got engaged.

I'm from Dublin but we will be getting married in either Glasgow or Dublin. We live in a country town in Oz.
So I am delighted to hear the responses on this thread as ... for 2 reasons (distance and exchange rate) we'll be sourcing a lot on Ebay and online.

I have actually found the exact dress I want for around 300 Oz dollars online from a UK dressmaker, but might look around for the 'Chinese Edition' now!

I found this discussion on Wedding bee interesting - recommends specific sites and people have posted their pics.
http://boards.weddingbee.com/topic/replica-wedding-gowns

watna

Ooh, someone else who lives on this side of the world but is getting married in Europe. Hurray!

A few people, when I told them I was going to try and order the dress online said "but it wouldn't be by the real designer". We have to pay for two weddings, neither of which is in NZ and we have to pay in NZD. If my online dress works I'll ahve saved myself over $2000. I couldn't care less if it's not the dress by the real designer! Everyone's wedding is different and I'm not in a position to be fussy!

I'll have a look at that link later - thanks for posting

kittex

No worries Watna. It's terrible isn't it? I reckon we can't afford to get married in Dublin and might have to go for Glasgow (where the fiance is from and I lived for a few years). Some really beautiful venues there and we can have a blessing or something in Dublin.

It's all so surreal - my ring hasn't even arrived yet (Aus service is so slow). They don't stock my ring size in any Mazzucchelli's in the country and had to order one special fresh from the mine! All good shiny new karma I reckon

I have found a couple of others in my research but haven't researched them fully yet.
All have good reviews on the Money Saving Experts forums.

They are:
http://www.millybridal.com/

and

http://www.landybridal.com/

Apparently Milly Bridal will make anything you want from a picture...so I will research more when I get the chance!

watna

My dress arrived this morning and I LOVE it! It's quite well made, properly lined and the beads are hand sown. It differs from the real dress in a few ways (the lace on the real dress is patterned, my dress is plain lace, the dress has a buckle/brooch thing across the empire line and my one has some hand sown silver beads and most noticeable, the real dress had very strong boning in it that made me look really skinny. My dress is boned in the sense that is has the shape but it doesn't have the same corset affect as the real dress) and the real dress is definitely nicer but not ten times the price nice! They made me a jacket from a picture as well and it's so beautiful. Seriously, i love it.

I've tried it on and it fits really well. It got delivered to work so I tried it on there and had loads of the girls at work gathering around! It'll need slight alteration I think before the wedding, but only because I plan to lose weight. It's slightly too big across the hips (but only a tiny bit) and I think that's because I started losing weight just after I ordered it.

anyway, all in all I'm thrilled with it. I saved myself over $2000 and definitely won't need to order another dress. Dress is ticked off the list! I'm thinking about sending the person a picture of a nice summer dress thing for the next morning and getting them to make that.

I'll post a pic of it soon so you can see the beadwork etc.

bytheglass

Wow Watna, you sound over the moon, Im delighted for you & well done!
Cant wait to see close up pics & if you could post a link to pics of the 'designer' dress so we could compare that would be great.

watna

bytheglass wrote: »

Wow Watna, you sound over the moon, Im delighted for you & well done!
Cant wait to see close up pics & if you could post a link to pics of the 'designer' dress so we could compare that would be great.

Will do - I'll post pics of both of them in the morning. It's 10pm here on Friday I think I'll take more accurate pictures in the morning!

I went to the pub after work so had to take the dress with me in a dress carrier My boss was there and kep pretending to spill drinks on it. Very funny! It's safely put away in my spare room now to be transferred to a friend's house tomorrow

watna

ok - I've taken some photos this morning. My camera is not great though so I don't think the photos really do it justice. It's very dark and gloomy here today so the light is really bad. I still absolutely love the dress - got a bit of a thrill when I took it out to take pictures earlier on! I found it difficult to get pictures of the bottom of the dress.

So - this is the "real" dress



and here is some photos of my dress. I've tried to take photos of the beading and things so you can see the work. I can't take a full length photo or with it on because I have to keep it a secret from my fiance and he's the only other one here!

This is the front top part of the dress



This the lace up the back and you can see the detailed beading. It's not laced up properly. I just did it quickly so the dress hung properly.



I asked them to make me a jacket from a picture. Here's the dress with the little jacket over it. I'm absolutely thrilled with the jacket. I didn't really want a strapless dress but I fell in love with this one in the shop. I wasn't comfortable being in the church with all my shoulders bare so this was a great way to cover up. I sent them this picture which I found using google:



and said can you make me that jacket in matching lace? I didn't give any more information but the jacket is beautifully made. The bottom of it has the same scalloped fringing as the bottom of the dress and the lace has the same emboridery in it as the dress. I'm really impressed.



and here's some of the detailing in the dress so you can see the quality

Fringing at the bottom



The train



Anyway, that ended up being a super long post! I hope that helps anyone else considering it. With dhgate it's like eBay so it's the seller you need to do research on, not on the site itself. I did a good bit of research and picked one with the best (and most realistic) feedback. If anyone wants more info, please feel free to pm me. I'm thinking of getting some more dresses made by the same person for other people's weddings etc.

kittex

Hey Watna - I am so happy for you! The dress looks beautiful and I am sure you will be stunning in it.

Thank you for posting the pictures. Does it feel much more real now you have the dress?

I will definitely PM you to get the name of the dressmaker.

CONGRATULATIONS!

watna

kittex wrote: »

Hey Watna - I am so happy for you! The dress looks beautiful and I am sure you will be stunning in it.

Thank you for posting the pictures. Does it feel much more real now you have the dress?

I will definitely PM you to get the name of the dressmaker.

CONGRATULATIONS!

Aww, thank you! Definitely feels more real now. My fiance really wants to look at it as well - he's so curious but he's been good and has no idea what it's like (and doesn't ever look on boards!)

bytheglass

Well done Watna! Thanks for posting the pics, I think it looks perfect by comparison! I think I should definately go this route... will PM you.

watna

Just an update on this - the dress definitely needs some alterations which I realised after trying it on again. The dress is made of two parts a satin underpart thingy and a lace over party thingy. At the front the satin is a good bit shorter than the lace and also on the train, the lace and satin haven't been sewn together so the two materials move separately which looks really weird.

I have an appointment with a dress maker next week and as far as I can see it should be fine, the satin is doubled over so I think it should be able to be let down. It will add a little bit to the cost but I did expect it would need alterations so we'll see how it goes!

MazG

Well done on getting the dress sorted, Watna. I'm delighted it has worked out well for you.

For all other brides to be, I seriously recommend that you at least consider buying online. There are MASSIVE savings to be made and while the dress is not guaranteed to be perfect, if you do your research there's a good chance it will be close enough

Best of luck

Dan25

Hi,

This thread is just what i was looking for!

I've been looking on www.weddingdressesireland.net, and i've found the perfect bridesmaid dress for at around 50% of the boutique price.

Of course it's not the exact same but they seem really good and their testimonials are glowing (i'm always suspicious of those tho!).

They are China based, don't be fooled by the link!!

Think i'll have my bridesmaid try it on in a boutique and then order it but like you guys i'm a little nervous about it.

Has anyone heard of this company/used it. There's one irish testimonial and loads from the UK.

Any info would be great.

Good luck girls!!

watna

watna wrote: »

Just an update on this - the dress definitely needs some alterations which I realised after trying it on again. The dress is made of two parts a satin underpart thingy and a lace over party thingy. At the front the satin is a good bit shorter than the lace and also on the train, the lace and satin haven't been sewn together so the two materials move separately which looks really weird.

I have an appointment with a dress maker next week and as far as I can see it should be fine, the satin is doubled over so I think it should be able to be let down. It will add a little bit to the cost but I did expect it would need alterations so we'll see how it goes!

Quick update as this thread has been bumped - dress can definitely be altered. Dressmaker was really lovely and said I'd done well for the price I paid. She pointed out some other alterations I could make to make it perfect so I'm really pleased. I'm going to get the alterations done a month or two before my wedding and get everything done together (hopefully I'll have lost some weight too ). I think I'll probably need to pay the same again for alterations as I paid for the dress but that's still $2000 less than the real dress I bought so I'm happy.

neilank

Watna Could you send me the name of the dressmaker. Sounds like you did really well there.

Ishee

Hi all,
I just got engaged and have started the hunt for a dress. i tried one on in a bridal shop and found it half price on weddingdressesireland.net has anyone ever purchaced from them??

Ishee

I'm looking on that site as well as I found the wedding dress I love for half the price but very nervous about ordering it... I saw the testimonials as well and looking at the spelling mistakes can only guess that they wrote then themselves. Hopefully someone can give us some good news about that site

cowhands

Hi girls,

Just wanted to say I also bought my dress online...bought it from www.jaysbridal.net in Florida

Its the REAL designer dress, absolutely the same as the one I tried on in the shop, only difference is the price tag!

Shop wanted €1200 for the dress alone and I got the dress, my shoes, hair comb, bra thing and zippy bag for €751 delivered to my door (was also lucky enough to get away with customes - PHEW!)

Heres a couple of pics for ye :


As you can see Im alot more curvy than the model! But I cant fault the quality and price!

Toto Wolfcastle

It's gorgeous. It really suits you. Jays and also RK Bridal are great if they stock a dress that you have tried on in a shop. Congratulations.

watna

It's beautiful - well done on getting yourself a bargain! You look lovely in it

Condatis

My daughter got married just under three years. She and the fiance where not long out of college – so funds were scarce.

She adored a dress retailing in Dublin for 2,500 euros – but found the same one on-line in a bankruptcy sale for 200. Minor alterations only required.

mugbags

Just wanted to say I bought a beautiful satin and lace wedding dress from a Chinese factory on Ebay, custom made to my measurements and it is absolutely stunning and fits like a glove. Not entirely exactly the same as photo but near enough and superbly made, fully lined and boned. Including postage only cost just over €100, fantastic value for money and one very happy bride

Sunbeam61

Well done Mugbags, sounds like it's the way to go for me too, could you pm me with the name of the seller you used thanks

THEFRIDGE

We just ordered from www.perridress.com yesterday. Will let you guys know how it works out.

mugbags

Sunbeam61 wrote: »

Well done Mugbags, sounds like it's the way to go for me too, could you pm me with the name of the seller you used thanks

PM sent!

Glitter

One of ye mentioned paying customs and VAT on non-EU purchases - can anyone tell me how that works? Do they stop the goods at the airport and ring and ask you to pay over the phone or how does it work?

I'm relatively new to the online shopping thing and have gone a bit mad on eBay buying bridesmaids' jewellery and the like! Some of it is coming from the US and China.

I've also found the perfect dress online for US$179 compared to a similar one I was looking at in a boutique here for over €800 so was thinking of going down that route. It's still 15 months to the wedding so there's plenty of time for alterations / rethinking the whole thing if it's a disaster.

mugbags

Glitter wrote: »

One of ye mentioned paying customs and VAT on non-EU purchases - can anyone tell me how that works? Do they stop the goods at the airport and ring and ask you to pay over the phone or how does it work?

From a website about paying customs tax on imported clothing from non EU countries: On clothing from non-EU based suppliers this is what you will pay extra.
1) Customs Duty. - Customs duty is calculated by Customs on the TOTAL cost of the clothing. They add together the purchase price, + any insurance, + freight costs. On this total figure they charge Customs duties of 12%.
Duty on footwear depends on the material the footwear is made of. It's usually between 9% and 15%
Customs duty does not usually apply to clothes or shoes under €150 total cost.
[/COLOR]2) V.A.T. - After adding the customs duty to the total cost of the clothing, they then add V.A.T.@ 21% on the after Customs duty figure..

When I bought my dress(from China) which cost just over €100, I didn't have to pay any customs duty on it, I've also bought various items from Hong Kong and U.S. without being charged any extra.

Glitter

Thanks for that! I've put in a jewellery order for about €250 - so I guess that might warrant some charges.

Any info on HOW you pay these duties aslo welcome.

Moonbeam

You pay at the post office when you collect the item or the psot man when it is delivered.

Redonblonde

mugbags wrote: »

Customs duty does not usually apply to clothes or shoes under €150 total cost.

I once had to pay €20 customs on a tshirt from USA, it was about $30. I rang customs and disputed it, they basically told me get stuffed. When I pointed out that I had bought lots of similar priced items before, with no charge, they said I had been "lucky" the other times.

detoxkid

mugbags wrote: »

PM sent!

Could you also pm me too please mugbeans? Thanks

mugbags

detoxkid wrote: »

Could you also pm me too please mugbeans? Thanks

PM sent!

Gatica

I have usually got deliveries at work done through our reception, in which case the customs and VAT wasn't charged at delivery time but came as an invoice to my work address. That worked well for me as it gave me the option of how to pay for the customs and opportunity to call the office if I had a query about it.
Every customs charge that's added to your item has a number called a Taric code. If you think the code and desciption for the item are not correct, then look-up what you think it should be, if the %-age they are charging you is higher than it would be if they'd used the right Taric code, then you can call them and get them to re-issue the invoice with the right charges.
That made a 20 euro difference for me when I bought leather boots off a US site and they tried to charge me for textile runners, which came in at a higher %-age of the goods.

SoftCouch

I've ordered my dress from Dhgate last week and cant wait for it to arrive. I used the same seller as another boards member.
The seller was available all the time to answer all the questions i had.
I was so nervous ordering it and am also worried that it wont fit. I don't mind getting it altered but i would just hate if it was way to small. Fingers crossed it will work out.

Peanut6

H SoftCouch, would you mind pm-ing me the name of the seller you're using on DHGate? Thanks a mil!

sineadc1984

Softtouch could you pm me the sellers name also? have emailed a seller but no reply yet!!

watna

SoftCouch wrote: »

I've ordered my dress from Dhgate last week and cant wait for it to arrive. I used the same seller as another boards member.
The seller was available all the time to answer all the questions i had.
I was so nervous ordering it and am also worried that it wont fit. I don't mind getting it altered but i would just hate if it was way to small. Fingers crossed it will work out.

Best of luck - if it helps, I was so nervous as well and mine fits me perfectly. I just need to get some minor alterations on the hem which I'm getting done tonight (hurray!). Let us know how you get on!

I've just ordered some more stuff from the same seller (a veil and petticoat). The seller has also said if I send a picture she can make me what I want :eek: I have a dress I've seen online and can't find one like it anywhere so I'm thinking of maybe giving it a go and seeing what happens!

SoftCouch

Peanut6; would not let me send PM???

SineadC: PM sent