Has anyone used ''''''''House of Brides'''''''' to order dresses?

[tachi]

I was just surfing around for bridesmaids dresses when i came upon the website www.houseofbrides.com. they seem to sell dresses from all sorts of designers (dessy, aftersix, watters and watters, etc) for cheaper than if you bought it at the store. i''m wondering what the catch is... has anyone used them before? are they reputable/reliable?

 

[lindsal]

Was just Maid of Honor in a wedding with 8 bridesmaids and the Bride ordered all of our dresses online at House of Brides. We had absolutely no problems at all. Dress were on time, in good shape, in the exact sizes ordred and came out to cost us $80 less then at lowest priced salon we had found them at. (Whooo Hooo to the bride for the research on saving us money!!)

We ordered Watters and Watters dresses, there were 8 girls of various heights/weights and sizes and everything turned out for the best. Few other notes, have all dresses shipped to you at one address and then re-ship out after checking the order. Even if you are local to Chicago and can get to a House of Brides, they will not handle alterations for you, so be prepared to have a good tailor on hand if you need one. Overall, I''d say go for it!!!!!!!!!! ( And show us what you are ordering, b/c I love to look at BM dress and think, gosh, did I pick the right ones?)

 

[tachi]

i''m having a casual afternoon ceremony and reception so i''m going with knee length dresses and my color scheme is pink. so i''m thinking of these dresses...

http://a6.dessy.com/index.cfm?go=dresses&style=A6212

i like this one b/c it''s 2 piece so it''s somewhat wearable after the wedding

http://a6.dessy.com/index.cfm?go=dresses&style=A6215

i like this dress too b/c it''s nice and simple without all the frills... my wedding dress is really simple too so... i saw this dress at the shop where i bought my wedding dress, and it cost $229 CDN... a little out of my price range with 3 BM''s to dress. i was thinking about going custom too since it''s such an easy design. i''m sure any good seamstress would be able to whip it up at a much more reasonable price. that''s when i found the houseofbrides.. a lot cheaper than buying locally.

 

[MelissaSue]

Tachi - You are buying your bridesmaids dresses for them?! You are one nice bride! I just checked House of Brides for a bridal gown that I like and their price is actually $50 more than I saw it in the store, and also than on Bridesave.com. I know that bridesave.com is very reputable, I don''t know anything about house of brides.

 

[tachi]

yes, i''m going to buy my BM''s their dresses. i don''t feel right making them buy a dress they didn''t choose and that they''re only going to wear once. plus 2 of my BM''s are still in school and one just had a baby so money is tight for all of them.

i think i''ll check out bridesave.com for dresses too then... thanks!

 

[emskinner22]

I found you note while trying to find the headquarters of House of Brides to handle a complaint I have been dealing with for two months. If your order is shipped correctly, no problem. I had two dresses that I ordered with extra length. They had them for four weeks in the store without noticing the did not receive the dresses with extra lenght. They have been absolutely horrible to deal with to resolve the issue. Two weeks before my wedding I was told I had two choices -- return them for a full refund (they admitted they could not get me bridesmaids dresses in two weeks) or take them as they were. After countless phone calls and emails, I have yet to reach the Customer Service Manager to resolve the issue.

I bought my wedding dress from a small boutique that was less expensive, charming, personalble, and had great customer service. I wish I had bought my bridesmaids dresses there too!

 

[blueroses]

Just to pass this along: I recently used http://www.discountbridalservice.com/ (well, I used a local rep. of theirs) for mine and one of my fellow bridesmaids recently. We paid over $80 less than a girl who ordered hers through a local bridal boutique (it was a dessy dress.) Great experience...they buy direct from the manufacturerer and it can be a great savings.

 

[tachi]

thanks for the heads up emskinner22. i am kinna worried about buying online... it''s harder to complain about things, etc. i''m thinking i should just shop locally... although it''s so much more expensive.

but i will look into discoutbridalservice... thanks blueroses