First bridal gown fitting: David's Bridal

My first stop of my bridal gown search was my local David's Bridal. I know David's Bridal is usually a hit or miss for most brides, but I thought I'd try my luck. Of course I had to check out the $99 sale. I made out a list of gowns I thought were nice and brought them in for my fitting. Lo-and-behold I did find a dress that was $99 and my size! It was a simple white, satin side-draped gown. Nothing too fancy, but nothing that made anyone's jaw drop. My budget-consious instincts gravited toward the dress. I thought it was cute. But here's the thing--the associate helping me asked me what my top 3 favorite dresses. No discussion of the prices, just the top 3 dresses I thought were prettiest. Of course, the top 3 best looking dresses were the most expensive ones. She immediately put the $99 dress back on the rack and made comments about how it didn't look great on me. Here's where the whole Wedding Industrial Complex comes in. People tell you what you need. They start playing on your insecurities and your desire to look absolutely gorgeous that day, so they insist that you MUST not want a dress that's 1) simple and 2) cheap. My sister even convinced me to put the dress away. And, I must admit, I listened to them. None of the dresses the associate put aside for my next scheduled fitting was within my budget.

This was my wedding novice mistake and I can see how brides can easily be pulled into buying that insanely expensive wedding gown. No, I'm not falling for it! I emailed the associate and asked her to put the $99 dress back on my list and I asked her pull any dresses under $250.

Besides, David's bridal is not the only store offering "discount" dresses. Here are a couple things I've learned: A bride must never feel too attached to any dress because there may be a cuter and cheaper dress somewhere else. Also, never pay attention to what the associate helping you tells you. She just wants to sell you the most expensive dress she can.

My friend texted me and said she found "GORGEOUS" dresses for under $250 in LA. Next stop: Fashion District of LA!