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Abigail
Savvy February 2020

How much did you spend on your dress??

Abigail, on May 20, 2019 at 10:43 PM

Posted in Wedding Attire 321

Hi girls! So I am in the process of selecting my dress and I know exactly what I want when I see it. This wasn’t the exception, I saw the beautiful dress by Berta and I completely fell in love. What wasn’t so lovely about it? The price, it is about $6900 in most stores. I gave up on it but whenever...
Hi girls!
So I am in the process of selecting my dress and I know exactly what I want when I see it. This wasn’t the exception, I saw the beautiful dress by Berta and I completely fell in love. What wasn’t so lovely about it? The price, it is about $6900 in most stores. I gave up on it but whenever I went to try dresses I kept looking for something that looked like that and, not surprisingly, they just didn’t compare. A few months passed and today I found a great deal which is still pretty out if my budget ($3000) but was priced about 35% less than the original price. It is from a trustworthy boutique and they assured me it has all the tags, it even it’s my size! Anyways, the point is that I am not sure if I could justify spending so much on a dress I am only wearing for a few hours. Any advice? How much did you spend on yours?
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321 Comments

  • C
    Super July 2019
    Crystal ·
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    With alterations I spent 550
    • Reply
  • A
    Beginner March 2021
    Alexis ·
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    It depends where you live, since dresses tend to be more expensive in certain places. In the area I live, dresses average $1200 to $3000. A reasonable dress budget in my mind was $2000. I figured that would give me plenty of beautiful options, and I couldn't see spending more than that on a dress. I was extremely lucky with my purchase, and found one for $300. But, that doesn't always happen. You have to decide for yourself the max you're willing to spend based on the average range in your area. If you want to set a lot budget that's fine, but be aware the styles you're loving on Pinterest may be out of the price range. It's about give and take. Your perfect dress is where your price point and style expectations meet!

    • Reply
  • Alyssa
    Savvy November 2019
    Alyssa ·
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    My budget is $700. I’ll be going with a dress from CocoMelody. With custom sizing & design customizations, I should still be able to stay within budget.
    • Reply
  • J
    Just Said Yes August 2019
    Jay ·
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    I spent $806.00 for a dress that was originally $1008.00 it was on sale. It was the dress I wanted and fit perfectly.
    • Reply
  • Jessie
    Savvy October 2021
    Jessie ·
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    I spent $670 on my dress. It was $850 but she gave me a deal. Alterations were $450 at the boutique but I looked around at other places. $250 for alterations instead!
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  • Kayla
    Just Said Yes September 2019
    Kayla ·
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    I'm pretty sure with the veil it's about 1400. My dress alone fit under my 1K budget .
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  • ASMini914
    Super September 2019
    ASMini914 ·
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    I originally set an arbitrary budget for myself of $2000, knowing that I could potentially go over, or spend more on alterations. I ended up falling in love with a discontinued dress that I purchased off the rack, and managed to negotiate the price on. I spent a total of $1062 on the actual dress itself, and alterations (taking it down about 2 sizes, and bustle) are between $700 and $850 depending on how complex the bustle ends up being. The original price of the dress was about $1700, so I still feel like I got a good deal. I purchased a simple veil off of Etsy for $30, I didn't feel like I could justify spending more on a hair piece that I will wear for photos and the ceremony.

    I splurged on my shoes since I was still within what I had felt comfortable with spending on my attire for the day... Louboutins and Kate Spade Keds...

    When I was shopping for dresses, I made a point of NOT trying on anything that was over $2000 (unless it was like $2100), so that I wouldn't fall in love with something that I couldn't have!

    • Reply
  • T'keyah
    Savvy June 2019
    T'keyah ·
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    I only spent $441 & some change on my dress($300), veil(50), & belt(can’t remember the price) plus tax at a family owned bridal boutique. I had a budget under $500 & my mom was the one buying my dress. She has a tiara for me for my something borrowed. I instantly fell in love with it the minute I put it on. The pictures do the dress no justice at all. It has beads & lace & a small train & the dress fit perfectly & it didn’t need to be altered.
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  • L
    Just Said Yes December 2019
    Leslie ·
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    I also say, if you can afford it, buy it! This is your day. You're always going to have that image of your dream dress in your head. I say over 5k is a lot. The 3k dress is reasonable. I paid $2500 for mine. I tried in over 20. I knew what I did and didn't like. As soon as I put it on, it was perfect. Best wishes!
    • Reply
  • Nikki
    Expert March 2021
    Nikki ·
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    I didn’t not want to spend over $800. My dress was originally $1200 it was on sale to about $600 (being discontinued) then on top of that they were having a sale and the dress come down to about $450. For vail and head piece it was about $190 and will not need to alter my dress as it was perfect and busseling will not cost me anything as I have a family friend that works closely with altering wedding dress. So grand total was about $675 after taxes.
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  • S
    Dedicated January 2023
    Schyler ·
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    I have a strict $2000 budget. I refuse to even look at dress above that. But it’s all about how much you feel you are ok with spending. Good Luck!!!
    • Reply
  • Kiara
    VIP August 2021
    Kiara ·
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    With my dress they were having a sale so i lucked up my dress was $1000 and something but i ended up getting$250 off and i added my veil which now is $829 so i did pretty well for waiting for a sale.. To say yess to the dress
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  • Kiara
    VIP August 2021
    Kiara ·
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    Nice price
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  • Kiara
    VIP August 2021
    Kiara ·
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    I love the prices here yesss
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  • Jessica
    Savvy June 2019
    Jessica ·
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    I spent $300, but, got it on Poshmark after my original dress got backordered after it should have been here *angry face*. Haha, $200 for alterations and I'm perdy happy!!

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  • Sarah Eliza
    Dedicated May 2022
    Sarah Eliza ·
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    My wonderful hubby bought mine for me. We are informally married and will have our wedding next May. It’s a Martina Liana and was $3000. With the veil and rhinestone bling belt everything was $4000. I’m not sure how much alterations will cost yet. I didn’t even try on anything outside of the budget since I knew I would be disappointed if I fell in love with a Berta or something that I just couldn’t get. You can get a beautiful dress for less. I forgot if you posted your budget but it’s possible!
    • Reply
  • marjifarah
    Dedicated September 2020
    marjifarah ·
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    I wanted a dress for under $1,000.. So I made sure I would only try on dresses that are over the rack. I fell in love with the first dress I tried which was in the lower 900. I still don't like that I spent so much but It felt like it was made for me.

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  • Freddie
    Just Said Yes August 2019
    Freddie ·
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    I don’t want to spend more than $300 or I will make it myself.
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  • Marquita
    Beginner August 2020
    Marquita ·
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    I spent $600on my dress. The store I purchased it from was going out of business and discounted all gowns. The price the gown currently sells for is $1250. I didn’t meant to go over $1500 for my dress and ended up wayyyy under... well if I decide to keep it.
    • Reply
  • K
    Savvy May 2019
    Kim ·
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    I spent $400 on mine, but alterations were $600. So all told, $1000 on my dress. I’m not happy that my alterations were more than the dress but it turned out nice so whatever.

    Bur it keep in mind that if you’ll need alterations, that’ll add on to the price.
    • Reply

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