When I first got engaged, I went out to lunch with my mom to celebrate. After lunch, we were driving by A Touch of Class Bridal and thought it would be fun to take a peak inside. The staff were friendly and we were allowed to look through the... gowns. One particular attendant helped us look and even helped me try one of the gowns on. My mom and I instantly fell in love. As it was fitted on me, it resembled an A-line/sheath dress with a natural waist. And the gown was made of a solid panel of lace. It was slightly outside of my budget, but I decided that my mom and I agreeing on a dress was a sign to buy it. That is when things started to go downhill.
When the attendant first tried to fit me, she kept having problems and had to retake my measurements multiple times. As I am within the range of average size, this was surprising. Then, when filling out the paperwork, it was suggested to me that I should purchase a “Hollow-to-Hem” measurement. I was told this is a measurement of the hollow of the throat to the hem of the gown and would allow the manufacturers to build the gown to my height. Since I am 5’ 3”, and bridal gowns are normally constructed for 5’ 10” models, this seemed like a great idea. The measurement was an additional $150 charge. When the attendant went to measure my hollow to hem, she couldn’t seem to get the math to add up. The owner of the store even had to help her. They spent 15 minutes measuring me until they finally felt comfortable with the numbers. The last detail was accounting for the height of the heels I wanted to wear on the day of. Since I wanted to wear 3” heels, they added 3” to the measurement. (The first measurement was taken with me barefoot). After that, they told me the dress would be in in 3 months and would call.
Three months later, I got the call the dress was in. I let them know that when I picked up the dress, I was bringing in my parents, my future in laws and extended family of the groom. On the phone, they were more than happy to accommodate us. At the time of the phone call, I paid the balance of the dress. When I went in to pick up the dress with my family and future family, the tone was completely different. The original attendant who helped me acted tired, disinterested, bored, and annoyed. When I was fitted with the dress, I noticed it was much longer than I had anticipated. With 3” heels on it was 6” too long. And, at the end of the appointment, the original attendant asked me, in front of my entire family, “So, we have one last deal of business. You need to pay.” I was completely insulted. As she was the one who processed my credit card on the phone, I was confused why she would confront me in this manner. I immediately explained that I had paid by phone and pulled out my receipt. Without reading the receipt, she just said “Oh, yeah.” Fast forward until 2 and a half months before my wedding.
The bridal gown did not fit. It was not only 6 inches too long, but it did not fit the way the attendant had fitted me in the sample dress. It was actually a ball gown with an empire waist, not an A-line with a natural waist. Due to the construction of the dress (a solid panel of lace), numerous seamstresses refused to work on the dress due to the sheer amount of work it would take to shorten the hem. The one seamstress who was willing to do it, quoted me a price of $1000+.