Where to find modest bridesmaid gowns?

  • Thread starter Thread starter kevinsgirl
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
Oh, you can also purchase wraps separate online etc. My best friend’s sister had all of her bridesmaids (which were her 4 sisters plus her hubby’s sisters) wear wraps that were fastened in the back so they didn’t have to worry about them falling off.
BTW, maybe you can go with some sort of lace boleros, wraps or sleeves…
 
Best wishes for your marriage!
kevinsgirl said:
Hey everyone! 👋
Incidentally, have you ever walked into David’s Bridal and requested sleeves on a dress? It’s really funny…:rotfl:
Click to expand...
Hah! They became very stupid when my maid of honor asked them to just widen the STRAPS on her dress. (first they said, no problem, and then when she went to pick it up, it was “we don’t do that”) They woke up a bit though, when she told them to keep the dress and refund her money if they weren’t going to alter it the way she requested.

I don’t recommend David’s bridal, personally. :mad: Both me and my maid of Honor had bad experiences w/ them. They’re stubborn and snotty, expecially if you walk in w/o an appointment or ask them to make any unusual alterations, like gasp making a gown more modest! They also aren’t as enthusiastic in their service if they find out you are on a budget (i.e.–can’t afford one of their wildly overpriced $1,000 designer gowns.) :eek: I ended up getting my wedding gown at a smaller, locally owned bridal shop with really friendly service. Their prices were way better than David’s also.
I picked bridesmaids’ dresses from Chadwick’s of Boston. They were inexpensive and quite lovely. I think Chadwick’s recently expanded their Special Occasion line so maybe you’ll have luck there.
Click to expand...
They have some very nice dresses. My mom got her “mother of the bride” dress from them. She wanted something modest, but still fashionable. She’s not ready to look like a grandma yet. 🙂

Also, you could have the dresses made, if you have the budget. If you don’t, but you know someone who is handy w/ a sewing machine and is willing to do it at a discount, or even for free as a wedding gift, that can be pretty nice too.
 
kevinsgirl said:
Consecrated,

I really liked your idea about using a matching blouse with long skirts and a sash–I just might run with that one.
Click to expand...
:bounce:
Glad I can help!
kevinsgirl said:
Oh, and I’ll be having a noon wedding, so the formality I’m aiming for is sort of tea-length and ultra feminine. Kind of lots of lace and girlie-ness with a dash of chic bridesmaid…if that makes sense. :rolleyes:

kevinsgirl
Click to expand...
😃 perfect sense! Sounds LOVELY to me!
 
LittleRose said:
I don’t recommend David’s bridal, personally. :mad: Both me and my maid of Honor had bad experiences w/ them. They’re stubborn and snotty, expecially if you walk in w/o an appointment or ask them to make any unusual alterations, like gasp making a gown more modest! They also aren’t as enthusiastic in their service if they find out you are on a budget (i.e.–can’t afford one of their wildly overpriced $1,000 designer gowns.) :eek: I ended up getting my wedding gown at a smaller, locally owned bridal shop with really friendly service. Their prices were way better than David’s also.
Click to expand...
Hmm, I had the exact opposite experience at David’s. My bridesmaids were able to try on several dresses/colors until we found one that looked great on everyone. The staff was helpful, and we definitely didn’t have an appointment but there was no hassle about it. The prices were reasonable, and although they were spaghetti strap dresses, they came up high enough in the front to cover all cleavage and they came with matching shawls that everyone wore for the wedding service to cover their arms. Plus, I was able to give the dress style number and color to my out-of-town cousin so she could order hers from the franchise in her city.

Daytime weddings are great. DH and I were married at 11 am on a Saturday, with a luncheon reception. It didn’t take up everyone’s entire day, we weren’t so exhausted afterward that we had to come home and pass out, no one got drunk (in fact, the bar tab hardly cost us anything), and it was about half the price of a Saturday evening wedding. Best of luck to you as you plan yours!
 
SeekerJen said:
Hmm, I had the exact opposite experience at David’s.
Click to expand...
Lucky you. We dealth w/ them in two different cities. Both very unsatisfactory.

I second the daytime wedding thing. Ours was a bit later (2 in the afternoon) and our reception site wanted everything to wrap up by 8:30 or 9 pm. Since most of our guests were from out of town, this worked out beautifully—and no embarrassing drunken behavior. Probably also had something to do with the guests paying their own bar tabs (aside from the champagne for the toast, of course!)

BTW–if your weather allows, see about a nice outdoor garden-type setting for your recpetion–really saves on the decorating budget. Also, making your own centerpieces for the tables a day or two before can be a nice way to save money and have girly-time w/ your bridal party and other female friends.
 
JCPenney.com. click on “women’s” and then click on the “online outlet” link. i found my bridesmaid dresses on there for $20, and they’re very modest. i had to adjust my color scheme to match the dresses, but heck, they were only $20 apiece! 🙂 hope this helps.

kristie
 
I got mine as “after 5” dresses from Dillard’s. We paid less than $50 for each as they were on clearance. They even shipped in the needed sizes from other stores. My mom also found an extra one for $13 that we used make one of the dresses two different sizes on top and bottom.

When my LDS best friend said she would “make do” with whatever I chose I told her no way was I going to make her stand out because of her religious beliefs. All of us were over thirty and none of us wanted little tank dresses anyway! All of my bridesmaids have worn their dresses again.

I said the one thing I wanted to avoid was any of my bridesmaids looking like they had lost their entourage. They looked good as individuals when dancing with their husbands and they looked like bridesmaids when they stood together.
 
SeekerJen said:
Hmm, I had the exact opposite experience at David’s. My bridesmaids were able to try on several dresses/colors until we found one that looked great on everyone. The staff was helpful, and we definitely didn’t have an appointment but there was no hassle about it. The prices were reasonable, and although they were spaghetti strap dresses, they came up high enough in the front to cover all cleavage and they came with matching shawls that everyone wore for the wedding service to cover their arms. Plus, I was able to give the dress style number and color to my out-of-town cousin so she could order hers from the franchise in her city.

Daytime weddings are great. DH and I were married at 11 am on a Saturday, with a luncheon reception. It didn’t take up everyone’s entire day, we weren’t so exhausted afterward that we had to come home and pass out, no one got drunk (in fact, the bar tab hardly cost us anything), and it was about half the price of a Saturday evening wedding. Best of luck to you as you plan yours!
Click to expand...
I also had a good experience with David’s. They’re not the best, but I wasn’t disappointed. I walked in once with out an appointment, on a weekend day, and they still accomodated me. I guess it varies store to store.

I am also getting married at 11AM! I think it’s a good idea also, because my fiance and I won’t be exhausted at the end of it. (Well, not AS exhausted if it were a night time reception.) We’re having it at an old Plantation on the Patuxent River. It’s been there since the 1740s, and they reception will be held in the old tobacco barn that they refurbished into a reception site. It’s gonna be sweeeeet!
 
kevinsgirl said:
Hey everyone! 👋

I’m smack in the middle of planning my wedding next summer and was wondering if anyone has any suggestions for where to find modest bridesmaid’s gowns? By modest, I’d like something with little cleavage and sleeves… Incidentally, have you ever walked into David’s Bridal and requested sleeves on a dress? It’s really funny…:rotfl:

So, anyway, any websites or suggestions would be greatly appreciated! 🙂

Thanks and God bless!

kevinsgirl :love:
Click to expand...
First of all i want to say GOD BLESS YOU from the bottom of my heart!

I am so super happy to see another bride who wants some decency and modesty at her wedding!

I got married this summer and I made sure I had a bridal gown WITH SLEEVES. I can’t cope with all these horribly immodest bridal gowns which show everything! How could people go in front of Jesus dressed like that?!!

I also put on my wedding invitations to guests that, as the wedding is taking place in a Catholic Church, modesty of dress is required and this means “no sleevless garments, no cleavage, no garments shorter than the knee, no exposed lower backs, no belly-buttons”.

As for bridesmaid dresses…I don’t live in America and I found it exceptionally hard (/impossible) to find any with sleeves here.

I looked everywhere for months; shops, as you say, are practically out, Ebay (hard to find matching dresses), tailor made was too expensive and each of my bridesmaids lived in a different place…

so in the end I went for a strappy dress which had a big non-see-through shawl to match, which they had on covering their shoulders for the Church & Mass parts, and then took off for the dinner.

But GOD BLESS you for respecting modesty!
and good luck fidning the dresses!
 
someone meantioned the jacket idea. this is what I did for my wedding. I live in FL and got married in the spring (although it ended up being unseasonably cold on my wedding day). I had all my dressed made. my sister in law is a great seemstress! what we did for my brides mades (I was low budget) she made matching summer type dresses. they were like tanktop sleeve type, but not spaghettie straps, they were nice and thick straps. and then she made these cute little jackets that went over them. so my sisters could use the dresses as summer dresses after the wedding. I thought they looked great and plenty dressy for the occation.
 
Thanks for all the suggestions so far!!! :bounce: Right now, the easiest (and least expensive) option for me to pursue is to find nice, regular dresses to wear as bridesmaid dresses, so any other ladies’ clothing websites would be such a fantastic help… 🙂 I just noticed that JCPenny has some really nice ones on their outlet… they must have just put those out…

Oh, and I live in Louisiana…so it’ll be a June wedding in Louisiana with a garden reception…probably the lighter the material the better…😃

I’m also beginning to realize that I may have to choose a different color. 😦 I really wanted pale pink, but maybe if I choose light green or pale yellow I can still have pale pink flowers in the bouquets. 🙂

Thanks again for all the great (name removed by moderator)ut,

kevinsgirl :love:
 
I only had 2 bridesmaids, and we got the dresses at Ross for $20 each. We just went in there, browsed around, and found 2 of the same kind that were the right color. We chose light blue in honor of Our Lady (we were married on the Feast of the Visitation), and our flowers were pink, white, and blue.

If you wait until the spring to search around, you may have better luck finding pink dresses, and also finding ones with lighter weight fabric.
 
My bridesmaid dressed were pricey ($160) b/c they came from a regular designer that I found flipping through a bridal magazine, but I was having a hard time finding something that was modest but not frumpy. The dresses were tea-length and while they were sleeveless, they had a boatneck neckline in the front and back, so everything was covered. They were classy, and fashionable enough that my bridesmaids who generally shy away from modesty liked them and wear them again. I’m going to TRY to post a picture (it’s of my family and my groom, but my sister’s dress is what all the girls wore)Find your inspiration. | Flickr

Modesty and fashionability are unfortunately hard to come by. I remember looking through David’s Bridal, and some of the mix and match stuff has some modest tops…although if you are looking for actual sleeves, that’s going to be a harder find.
 
I agree, David’s was very unsatisfactory and had a poor selection as well.

I am going to buy all matching dresses for the younger girls (flower girls, guest book helpers, junior bridesmaids) on eBay. Just search for pageant dresses. Awesome selection and most of the dresses are very formal and modest.

Then I am going with a basic color for all my bridesmaids. Such as black, red or brown.

Nothing has been committed to, but I emailed a seller on eBay and he is willing to make boleros or sell the fabric all from the same dye lot of the little girl’s dresses. So all the jackets for the bridesmaids will match the little girls.

This is also a simple idea if you decide to go with primary or basic colors. Just mix and match for coordinated style.

The one thing I would advise doing if you are using ebay: decide and purchase as early as possible!! Lots of unhappy customers on eBay suffered at the hands of slow shipping or postal confusion. Better to have it all sorted out ahead of time!
 
P.s. I have to add that it was much simpler to find tasteful dresses for all my girls than it is to find a dress for me.

I want something very stylish and beautiful, yet completely modest. Ha! :rolleyes:

Seems all the wedding dresses are for movie stars…and I’m not talking about mainstream movies.
 
kevinsgirl said:
I’m also beginning to realize that I may have to choose a different color. 😦 I really wanted pale pink, but maybe if I choose light green or pale yellow I can still have pale pink flowers in the bouquets. 🙂
Click to expand...
My original plan was to have the bridesmaids in pale yellow, with pale pink/pale green bouquets. They nixed the yellow in favor of periwinkle blue, which was fine- the color looked nice on all of them, and they were all happy with it. I borrowed one of the matching shawls and took it to the florist, who ended up putting together really gorgeous bouquets of flowers in varying shades of pink, with a bit of blue, lavender and white for accent (we opted for the cute ones with the exposed stems tied together with a long ribbon). They really accented the dresses well. We went with that color scheme for all of the flowers- cake decor, tables, church, corsages, etc.

Light green would also work with pink flowers. In fact, that color combo would have been my mom’s first choice. Really, you could put pink flowers with any pastel dress.
 
I’ve seen a number of recent wedding parties where the color/fabric matched and the dresses were different styles to suit the ladies. This is easier if the dresses are made for them by a seamstress which is my preference.

A good seamstress won’t even need an out-of-town person initially. They can use measurements taken by a tailor or at a bridal shop and then do a final fitting. If you find someone who is reasonable to do the sewing, it can allow you to afford much nicer quality fabric and a better fit for each person.You can look at sewing patterns online at www.voguepatterns.com

If you click on their “related sites” link it has lots of websites listed for bridal sewing supplies, other pattern companies and resources.

Since you are planning a hot climate wedding I want to share another cute idea. A friend who was married in July in TX made her wedding programs into “church fans” by using stiff paper, a color printer, satin ribbon, glue and tongue depressers spray painted into her wedding colors. (You can get all of this at craft stores and/or office supply.)

They scanned in two of their engagement photos and used those as a faint watermark type of background on ivory paper. The writing was overlaid in a nice black script. The 8 1/2 x 11 paper was folded in half to make rectangle with the stick glued partially inside at one end. A bow was tied on the stick. The paper of course was glued flat also.

Best wishes on your marriage!
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top