The inevitable has happened...

[AmberGretchen]

I've fallen in love with a dress that is more than I wanted to spend. Here are pics - its Maggie Sottero's Chantilly:

Also note that I have now lost almost 20 lbs total - see original dress try-on pics here:

AG's Starting Weight

I do think that not feeling so huge in dresses has helped me enjoy trying them on more - this time I went with my FMIL and future grandma-in-law - they were so sweet

Anyway the point is that you have to imagine the dress another 20 lbs lighter, and without the weird posture, but I really love it but can't seem to find a discount. So what do we all think of the dress and does anyone know of a place to get a discount on a Maggie??

 

[Libster]

You look sooooo beautiful

Congrats on the weight loss!

 

[Tybee]

Holy Cow!
You look fantastic!

 

[Rube]

You look WONDERFUL in that dress!

I hope you can find it somewhere affordable.

 

[njc]

YOU LOOK FANTASTIC!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not that you looked bad before, but you can totally see your weight loss!!! I am SO freakin jealous!!!!!! That little itty bitty waist!

I absolutly love the dress! The layers of lace are just stunning and i love the sweetheart neckline... it is very flattering!!! Have you checked all the normal discount websites? There have been a couple threads listing discount online places... here is one i started.

Chantilly at House of Brides:
http://www.houseofbrides.com/cgi-bin/m.pl?u=http://www.maggiesottero.com/catalog/window.php?87

Chantilly at Bridesave:
http://www.bridesave.com/search/index.cfm?action=details&product_id=13168

And a girl i worked and BlueRoses have both used this site:
http://www.discountbridalservice.com/DBSGowns.htm
Instead of just one store, they have representatives all over the country. Im sure you can PM Blueroses and she would be more than happy to help in any way!

 

[kanne]

You are a beautiful bride to be!! I like the dress too. Very romantic.

I know exactly what you mean. I found and bought a great sample gown on Ebay (Romona Keveza) for $250. It was a steal..brand new and gorgeous. But then (just to torture myself) I kept looking and wound up purchasing another gown (Liancarlo) for a LOT more. I feel terrible about this, because the first dress is so lovely...and fits perfectly.

Now I need to get married twice.

 

[msb700]

AmberGretchen: that dress is magnificent! and u look beautiful in it.. congratulations on the weight lost (i just saw ur other thread), keep it up!

 

[MelissaSue]

THAT DRESS IS AWESOME.. And I have good news. There are knockoffs ALLLLLLLL OVER The place!!! I''m so happy for you that you lost all the weight. the dress looks fantastic on you. The difference from your original pics is AMAZING.

Here is one knockoff http://www.bridesave.com/search/index.cfm?action=details&product_id=16369 ($450 from bridesave!)

and I know there is another one floating around.. I can''t find it.. but its a website and they only sell online, and they do all knockoffs of Maggies.. and call them by names.. but obviously not the same names as the maggie dresses.

Ohh Found it!
http://www.bridalmartsuperstore.com/jill.html ($499)

 

[AmberGretchen]

OMG Melissa - you are amazing

That second one looks EXACTLY like it, the only downside is that it only comes in white, not diamond white. But since its returnable, its probably worth a shot even if the quality ends up not being as good or the white looks funny. Thank you SO MUCH for finding that

 

[curlygirl]

AG, you look amazing! The dress is gorgeous and looks wonderful on you. Congratulations on the weight loss too--you are an inspiration to many!!!

 

[Tybee]

I''m going to second what AmberGretchen says about MelissaSue--she is amazing!
MelissaSue, you seem to be able to find just about ANYTHING!
I

 

[gingerBcookie]

AG you look sooo pretty!!! That dress is stunning on you!!!

And I agree -- Melissa Sue is amazing!! She is an inernet goddess! The second knock off is gorgeous, and what a bargain!!! I don''t know how much the original is, but is it worth the trouble of ordering the oter one and seeing if its ok, knowing that you may have to return it?

 

[Rube]

Date: 7/6/2005 10:39:34 AM
Author: AmberGretchen
OMG Melissa - you are amazing

That second one looks EXACTLY like it, the only downside is that it only comes in white, not diamond white. But since its returnable, its probably worth a shot even if the quality ends up not being as good or the white looks funny. Thank you SO MUCH for finding that

Maybe their white is the equivalent to diamond white?

 

[LollyBear]

That is a gorgeous dress

and you look amazing in it!

 

[Blue824]

Just gorgeous!!! That dress looks fabulous on you!!! and congrats on your weightloss!

Isn''t Pearls Place supposed to give good prices on dresses? I called there for a friend''s bridesmaid dress and they gave a lower price than she was quoted at her bridal store. You can call them, they were really quick and helpful on the phone.

 

[MissAva]

You are a stunner! You will look fantastic no matter what dress you get..but that one is pretty spiffy!

 

[Angel7]

The dress is beautiful and you are beautiful in or out of it!

Congrats on the weight loss, you look great!

I agree with everyone else, that second link MelissaSue posted totally looks like the dress.
Good Luck!

 

[MelissaSue]

Hey - thanks everyone.. but I''m not amazing.. I just spend wayyyyyy too much time on theknot and on the internet in general. In college, before the internet got "overcrowded" and search engines became useless, I really COULD find anything.. I''m not so good anymore.

 

[ky6]

AG- I do not normally post in this forum, as I am still officially a LIW, but I just had to tell you how amazing that dress looks on you. Your waist looks so tiny and you have a beautiful hourglass shape. Way to go on your weight loss. What a great job you have done- keep up the good work!

 

[JessesGrl]

You look GREAT!!! I spent wayyyyy more than I wanted to as well. I was telling myself NO more than 700 or 800$ on the way to the salon and I ended up spending double that with the gown and veil...it happens but you know...it is your wedding!!!! No one helped either- they were all coaxing me into buying it

 

[icekid]

AG- i LOVE that dress on you. love it!! you look fabulous

(and i''ll keep my fingers crossed that you can figure out something with the cost!)

 

[AmberGretchen]

You guys are all so sweet - its so funny because I think I look kind of horrible in those pics (weird posture, messed-up hair and makeup because I''d been trying on dresses for like 3 hours, etc...) but reading all your comments made me feel so great

My mom has said she is not a fan of the knockoff idea because she is worried about the quality of the boning/tailoring which were really a key part of what made the dress so amazing (she used to make costumes for my ballet performances so she knows a lot about stuff like this). I may stil give the knockoff a shot because it wouldn''t be that expensive to pay shipping and the 10% restocking fee. We''ll see - I want my mom to see the dress in person and that might be a little while because she is still recuperating from her surgery. But...more time to lose weight

I e-mailed those pics to one of my best friends (definite BM and possible MOH), and she says from the front all she can think is "cake." I know I shouldn''t feel bad, but she knows all about fashion etc... (she works as the executive assistant to the Director of the Fashion Councils of America) and so now I am feeling kind of doubtful about it. She''s very sweet and I know she is just trying to be honest. In any case I''m going to at least look at some other Maggie''s online because there are cheaper ones and I really love the boning/corset back.

 

[DiaDiva]

Date: 7/6/2005 9:26:40 AM
Author:AmberGretchen
I''ve fallen in love with a dress that is more than I wanted to spend. Here are pics - its Maggie Sottero''s Chantilly:

Also note that I have now lost almost 20 lbs total - see original dress try-on pics here:

AG''s Starting Weight

I do think that not feeling so huge in dresses has helped me enjoy trying them on more - this time I went with my FMIL and future grandma-in-law - they were so sweet

Anyway the point is that you have to imagine the dress another 20 lbs lighter, and without the weird posture, but I really love it but can''t seem to find a discount. So what do we all think of the dress and does anyone know of a place to get a discount on a Maggie??

Congratulations on your weight loss! I can really see in the difference (viewed your "before" pictures). You''re looking amazing...

 

[treysar]

First of all, the dress is gorgeous,. secondly, so are you! What major accomplishment - you have changed drastically, and you look SO GREAT!! Congrats!!

 

[funkikitti]

AmberGretchen,
I have the dress you are looking for!!
It is a wonderful copy of the Chantilly for half the price.
Don''t let ANYONE talk you out of this gown, it is SPECTACULAR!!

 

[tracy458]

You look beautiful! The dress is so pretty and no, I don''t see cake.

For anyone who is still looking for a dress, I had an excellent experience at Jessica McClintock. I visited the store in Chicago and the sales people were so gracious, friendly and honest. If you''re not near their store, you can buy her dresses at other stores, visit her website for those locales. They even kept the store open later - against my telling them to go home for the night. It was a fun experience and I am 99% sure I''m going with the dress I found (I feel the need to look a little more just in case). It only takes 2-3 weeks to receive the dress (and they have a size trade policy if you lose or gain weight). Their prices ranged from about $175 to $700, most of them being between $200 and $300. They do have some traditional dresses but most are elegant and just a little unusal. Here is the link to the one I''m likely to get. I''m using another website since it shows the dress from all angles (it''s a great website too). In addition, my friend bought hers off of Ebay for $51 plus shipping. It''s so pretty!
http://www.vintagestyleclothing.com/kaitlyn21136page.html

 

[aosyp613]

Two things I thought when I read this:

1. RK Bridal out of NYC - sometimes the website isn''t up, which is weird, but you can go to their site, rkbridal.com and see if they carry the dress you want. Then you call them and ask them for a quote and they will send you the dress you desire.

2. What diet are you on? South Beach is working wonders for my fiance and me.

Congrats on the weight loss!

 

[moremoremore]

VERY flattering! It''s a beautiful gown. Get it. It''s your wedding day...you need to FEEL GOOD about the way you look more than anything...If you feel like a million bucks, nothing can go wrong! Get the dress!

 

[flopkins]

WOW!!! you look fantastic!!!! the dress flatters your waist SO MUCH.

definitely consider rkbridal.com, bridesave.com, or pearlsplace.com they are actual bridal stores that offer steep discounts through mail order. Also, Discount Bridal Service has real representatives in local areas that help you order the gowns, they''re highly recommended by the Bridal Bargains book. I would give them all a call and see how comfortable you might be ordering my mail order/online.

 

[abradabra]

Date: 7/14/2005 12:54:56 PM
Author: flopkins
WOW!!! you look fantastic!!!! the dress flatters your waist SO MUCH.

definitely consider rkbridal.com, bridesave.com, or pearlsplace.com they are actual bridal stores that offer steep discounts through mail order. Also, Discount Bridal Service has real representatives in local areas that help you order the gowns, they're highly recommended by the Bridal Bargains book. I would give them all a call and see how comfortable you might be ordering my mail order/online.

At least here in the DC area (and I think nationwide) DBS has gone bankrupt. Actually left quite a few girls scrambling to figure out if they still had a dress/what to do if they didn't.

AG, you should get the dress you love. You'll regret it for sure if you don't!