Help: Don't like "bridal" dresses

Unz88

Hey all,

I'm getting married next year and have to say I'm not a fan of the typical bridal dresses that are out there especially anything overly structured. I'm probably going to avoid bridal boutiques altogether, have been to two and they weren't really my thing and didn't have what I'd want. I would still like to go with a cream/ivory dress in full length but am looking for more an evening gown or maybe a beachy laid back style. Wondering if anyone knows where might be good to look? I've been browsing online but it's difficult to find somewhere with good/inexpensive returns policies or somewhere that I could try something on in ireland/UK. I quite like the BHLDN (anthropologie bridal) range but it's based in the U.S. only and returns policy is prohibitive.

anyone have any brown thomas recommendations or good uk/irish websites?
Thanks

jellybear

Monsoon have some beautiful bridal dresses. Quite bohemian looking. Best of luck in your search

Toto Wolfcastle

Debenhams might be worth a look. ASOS would probably have what you're looking for too.

Colser

I'd recommend Monsoon also..I've seen dresses in there that sound like what you're looking for...let us know when you get sorted..

irishgirl19

Chichi london have a bridal range also.
You could look at bridesmaid dresses too and order in white/ivory or whichever colour you wanted

Milly33

Have been there, while i went to the bridal shops at the start to try on dress's and even tried the dress i really did like in photos. It just felt all wrong, between the fact that they cost so much, they also weigh a ton and just seemed very wrong on.. Looked into other options like maybe a funky rock frock but nothing suited. In the end i went to a designer who made my debs dress. He is great made me feel very comfortable and was the first person to say look lets talk about what you want out of the dress. I got it made and it cost have the price if not much less than buying one... Maybe you could look into this.. I can send you on my chaps name if you like he is Cork based...

willow tree

Hi. I didn't want a wedding dress. I liked the monsoon ones, phase eight, asos (great returns policy) and house of Fraser. Enjoy and hope you find the right dress.

TheNibbler

Folkster bridal in Kilkenny maybe? I've heard they have stuff that's less traditional such as bridal separates. Alternatively, they also have bridesmaids dresses that could work.

rsl1976

Another vote for Monsoon. Got mine their for my wedding a few years ago

pooch90

I was going to suggest a BM dress in ivory too. Dessy have a huge range available widely.

fits

Some great designers include sabina motasem, Joanne Fleming, Nicole Miller. You could try shops stocking these designers in Ireland. Bhldn and j.crew both worth checking out. I actually bought one from j.crew and the returns process was hassle free. Don't be afraid to try a few of theirs if they take your fancy as returning is fine. Otherwise, asos, h&m, monsoon, and bridesmaid dresses are options.

Oh and ghost dye to order. They have some lovely styles. http://www.ghost.co.uk/dye-to-order?dtoc=303

Milly33

Oh yes Plus too for Folkster bridal in Kilkenny.. Kilkenny actually had some loverly shops there is another Carisma Fashions i think it is.. Very nice..

hotmatottie10

check out jenny packham, she does a bridal and she does the most fantastic dresses. You can get them in Debenhams

Michellenman

Folkster have a store in temple bar too, a friend got her wedding dress there a couple of years ago and sound like it would suit

GingerLily

hotmatottie10 wrote: »

check out jenny packham, she does a bridal and she does the most fantastic dresses. You can get them in Debenhams

I didn't know you could get bridal Jenny Packham in Debenhams, can't see it online.

hotmatottie10

GingerLily wrote: »

I didn't know you could get bridal Jenny Packham in Debenhams, can't see it online.

appologies you cant, but they do a line of her clothes in there that are rather gorgeous. I first came across jenny packham from this photoshoot and this womans emerald dress is just divine http://www.100layercake.com/blog/2011/05/09/a-glamorous-english-wedding-philippa-james/ maybe the OP is after something along these lines.

GingerLily

hotmatottie10 wrote: »

appologies you cant, but they do a line of her clothes in there that are rather gorgeous. I first came across jenny packham from this photoshoot and this womans emerald dress is just divine http://www.100layercake.com/blog/2011/05/09/a-glamorous-english-wedding-philippa-james/ maybe the OP is after something along these lines.

David's Bridal sell Jenny Packham, in around 1000/1500 mark, it's an American chain but there are some stores in the UK

Unz88

Thanks guys, some really useful suggestions there to keep me occupied! I'm definitely interested in the ivory bridesmaid dress option cos bridesmaid dresses offer the sort of simplicity I'm looking for.
Will also have a look at folkster and monsoon and the other options mentioned there, cheers!

Unz88

Thanks guys, some really useful suggestions there to keep me occupied! I'm definitely interested in the ivory bridesmaid dress option cos bridesmaid dresses offer the sort of simplicity I'm looking for.
Will also have a look at folkster and monsoon and the other options mentioned there, cheers!

Vojera

Michellenman wrote: »

Folkster have a store in temple bar too, a friend got her wedding dress there a couple of years ago and sound like it would suit

My friend got her dress in there too. Absolutely gorgeous and cost half nothing.

breadmonkey

Michellenman wrote: »

Folkster have a store in temple bar too, a friend got her wedding dress there a couple of years ago and sound like it would suit

I believe they have changed their stock so now you can only get wedding dresses in Kilkenny. https://www.folkster.com/faqs-bridal
However, I think they still do the bridesmaid dresses in Temple Bar.

Jellybaby1

Sorry to hijack your thread but I've been following this for my daughter as she often can't find a formal dress to suit her. I Googled 'formal dresses Ireland' and one site we were interested in is Joliedress.com but although the phone number is Irish the address is in very small print, and it looks like its in France. Anyone know of it?

Faith

Jellybaby1 wrote: »

Sorry to hijack your thread but I've been following this for my daughter as she often can't find a formal dress to suit her. I Googled 'formal dresses Ireland' and one site we were interested in is Joliedress.com but although the phone number is Irish the address is in very small print, and it looks like its in France. Anyone know of it?

It's subtle (ignoring the unreasonably cheap prices), but they're a Chinese knock-off site. Easy to be sucked in, for sure, but I read the fine print very carefully and found the following:

15. Governing law
15.1 These terms and conditions shall be governed by and construed in accordance with English/Hong Kong law.

15.2 Any disputes shall be subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the English/Hong Kong courts, to which both parties submit.

We recommend that you insure the return shipment as you are under a duty to take reasonable care of the goods and will be liable for damage to them until we receive them at our factory in china.

Also, their Facebook page is pretty much inactive. I'd say it's pretty likely that you'd end up with a dress that bears very little resemblance to what was ordered.

lasair

I was in the same boat but I found my dress in Blingalicious in Smithfield! I was told by OH i could't wear a cost dress in case someone else rocked one. I got a fab pink dress there for €330. Girls in there are just amazing and alterations are free...

ChewChew

I was also all over the place with my dress - more the justification of those prices - so someone on boards mentioned a few online sites and in the end I went with ASOS. Found exactly what I was looking for, ordered it and it arrived pretty quickly and it is amazing! Excellent quality for an excellent price

mcgiggles

http://www.virgoslounge.com/bridal/

Virgos lounge have a really lovely small selection of bridal dresses, they seem to be more flowy like an ivory evening gown as opposed to a structured wedding gown! and the prices can't be beaten! I found them the other day looking for BM dresses

Jellybaby1

Thanks for the advice, Faith.

oconnoao

I fell in love with Saja dresses when I was dress shopping. They're all very simple flowy dresses that aren't very 'bridal' and could be worth a look! They were being sold in Adorn Bridal in Temple Bar last summer.

http://sajawedding.com/collections/wedding-dresses

mcgiggles

oconnoao wrote: »

I fell in love with Saja dresses when I was dress shopping. They're all very simple flowy dresses that aren't very 'bridal' and could be worth a look! They were being sold in Adorn Bridal in Temple Bar last summer.

http://sajawedding.com/collections/wedding-dresses

Ooh they look lovely loads of choices too!

Conor Bourke

I passed by Jenny Vander on Drury St. in Dublin today and noticed some very nice vintage-style wedding dresses in the window.

secondrowgal

mcgiggles wrote: »

http://www.virgoslounge.com/bridal/

Virgos lounge have a really lovely small selection of bridal dresses, they seem to be more flowy like an ivory evening gown as opposed to a structured wedding gown! and the prices can't be beaten! I found them the other day looking for BM dresses

Wow, they're fab!

Only issue I see with these is that the models are all fabulously tanned, or black/Mediterranean looking. Not sure what some of those colours would look like on a pasty white Irish woman who doesn't do fake tan :eek:

GingerLily

The brand in general is more focused on clothing for ethnic skin tones, but they seem fairly neutral shades, should look nice in most skin colours?

secondrowgal

GingerLily wrote: »

The brand in general is more focused on clothing for ethnic skin tones, but they seem fairly neutral shades, should look nice in most skin colours?

Sorry, I meant the non-bridal wear dresses. Should have clarified that one! Not looking for a wedding dress myself

Went into their general offerings, and these have all the fabulous colours, which look only brilliant on the models, but might make me look like a white bollard in a high-viz jacket :pac::pac:

childsplay

I bought my wedding dress in monsoon and had it altered slightly to dress it up. Total cost €150

Unz88

Thanks for all above suggestions. After looking up all of the options think I'm going to go down the route of bridal separates because it offers the most flexibility for creating your own simple look

rainbow kirby

I had a 50s style circle dress from Vivien of Holloway with a petticoat and short sleeve bolero. Cost me around 200 quid in total plus the alteration when I lost weight before the wedding. Never had any interest in a long dress or something traditionally bridal.

HelgaWard

Unz88 wrote: »

Thanks for all above suggestions. After looking up all of the options think I'm going to go down the route of bridal separates because it offers the most flexibility for creating your own simple look

I had a top & long skirt that looked really like a dress. On the night of the wedding when dancing I really really wished I had thought of buying a shorter skirt for the dancing. Something like this would have looked lovely with the top! https://www.etsy.com/ie/listing/220494083/ivory-tulle-skirt-bridesmaid-flower-girl?ref=market
Just something to consider!!