Four Wedding Dresses

During my 13 month engagement I owned four different wedding dresses. I know what you are thinking....You didn't keep them all right?....I returned one. Eeek. It all began with A Sue Wong impulse buy. This dress looked like it came straight out of Daisy Buchanan's closet. It screamed 1920's with a low back, intricate bead work and flowing feathers. After a few months I realized it didn't make me feel like a bride and if it was in any color other than white it would fall under special occasion rather than bridal.

Tip 1: Wedding retailers NEVER return dresses, unless they are Nordstrom. The company has placed bridal boutiques in many of their high producing locations.  Dresses range from $800-5,000 and you only pay half at the time of purchase. This is where my dress came from and where it went back to. Very sad day.

Now onto the dress I actually wore. The University I attend received a donation of 2,500 past season wedding dresses for Kleinfield, New York to be sold off and raise money for their Fashion program. I have no idea of the actual retail of my dress but I paid a pretty $300 for it!! This is when I realized I needed to stay true to all things clearance and red sticker that I've always loved.

Tip 2: If you are looking for a deal try attending trunk shows and samples sales. I have a dear friend who had great luck with these type of events.

Tip 3: If you live in Southern California you must check out the Nordstrom Rack in Costa Mesa that is right next door to the glorious South Coast Plaza. They have a large discount designer section as well as the only discount bridal boutique in the company. Since the company is about big brands and on-trend pieces their last season dresses can be found with at least a 50% markdown.

My reception dress came from this rack. It was originally $1,300 and I paid $160 for after seeing it for full price just 3 months prior. It was made by a fresh new designer who had recently dressed Carrie Underwood and Opra. It was originally long with the slightest train but I chopped it to my knee so it would be perfect for dancing.

Lastly, the third dress that won't be making it's a appearance till after our church wedding is a Valentino. I don't like taking about work but at this point it is pretty apparent where I am employed. I highly benefited from their tradition of returns without expiration dates and was able to take home a  two year old returned $5,600 destination Valentino wedding for $100.

In the end this girl lived happily ever after with her man and three dresses that cost less than one.

Bargain hunter for life!