The Sentimentalist

I had a beautiful experience shopping and buying here!  Sarah W assisted me and I can tell she’s the kind of person who matches your vibe and could make anyone feel comfortable. She got a feel for what I wanted, then we walked around the store and she pointed out fabrics, shapes, and dress details to get an even better understanding of what I should try on.  The store is spacious and open. I liked that I had my own space for me and my guests, but it was open enough to not feel claustrophobic.  I ended up coming back after my first appointment to buy one of the dresses I first tried, and the buying experience was professional and smooth. The selection was great - a wide variety from eccentric to classic. It was also the best experience I had as a mid size bride. I am a standard size 12/14 and many of the dresses I tried on actually zipped, which did not happen at other stores, which makes it harder to tell if the style and fit is really right for you. I highly recommend for any bride!! 

As a plus size bride, I stepped into the journey of finding my dress with a lot of hesitation. In an industry where it seems that at every single turn someone is asking if you plan on losing weight and sizing is very different from the every day, I knew it was going to be potentially a long and, at times, heartbreaking road before I found the one. However, even before I had gotten engaged, I had my eye on The Sentimentalist for their commitment to size inclusivity and smaller designers who often take a slow fashion approach to the craft. I had actually found a dress on their page from another bride that I loved (and spoiler alert, that's the designer I went with ;)) So I had scheduled an appointment and driven from Charlotte to have my Kleinfeld-esque Say Yes to the Dress moment. I was lucky enough to be paired with the illustrious Hannah who pulled a few gowns for me, in addition to the one I had found online. She was so patient and kind, I cannot thank her enough for the time and effort she took so that I felt comfortable enough to finally see myself in my dream dress and as a bride for the very first time ever (and yes, corny happy tears were shed). The Alla Prima Dress by Carol Hannah was the perfect gown for my vision (a run away fairy princess who flees to a castle in Scotland to marry the love of her life). I even added some swag sleeves which added the perfect amount of romance to my dress and got to meet the designer Carol Hannah when I picked my dress up! I am so thankful to The Sentimentalist for making the dress process so easy and would highly recommend this shop to anyone but especially plus sized honorees. The experience here is truly what sold me on my dress (even though it was stunning enough on its own).