I purchased my wedding gown before moving to Virginia and needed it altered and bustled before my wedding. I’m so glad I found The Valley Bride, because they were the perfect place. The owner, Morgan, is friendly and helpful, and has two seamstresses who work out of her shop on alternating Saturdays. It’s usually a struggle to find a bridal shop that will even alter a wedding gown that was not purchased from their store, but The Valley Bride is happy to for a small fee (which is definitely worth it!). I had a convertible wedding dress that was essentially a cocktail dress with a massive ball gown skirt that fastened around the waist. I needed the smaller dress altered at the top and the skirt bustled. I knew going in that bustling the skirt was going to be no easy task because the skirt was so large and the layers of the skirt were different lengths but the seamstress I worked with, Joy, made it seem simple. She was even able to place the bustle underneath several of the top layers of the gown so that you couldn’t even see where the bustle was, which was exactly what I’d hoped for but wasn’t sure anyone would be able to do. Both Morgan and Joy are awesome to work with and are reasonably priced. They also flexible - I wasn't expecting my gown to be finished for several weeks when my fiance accepted a job opportunity in Michigan and we needed to move within just a few weeks. I expected to have to have the finished gown mailed to me, but after speaking with Joy she had it finished for me the very next week. I absolutely recommend them for bridal gown or other formal event shopping as well as alterations.

I went to David's Bridal for my first appointment and it was exactly how I expected. There was not really an individual approach. It just really did not meet my expectations. I needed a more personalized approach. When I found out our The Valley Bride I was really excited because I also live in Winchester. So it was a short drive, versus an hour plus to the closest David's Bridal. Morgan was great to work with and was just so accommodating. I highly recommend The Valley Bride.

There are so many good things to say!!! We had the entire place to ourselves and I was able to take my time picking out dresses. Morgan helped me in and out of my dresses, picked out more for me to try on as I decided what I did/didn’t like. Morgan even stayed past her last appointment to allow me to come back and try on the dress I loved again. Would definitely recommend this place to anyone.

The owner of this shop? Something else...

I hadn't picked out my dress yet and this shop is across the street from my wedding reception site so I figured stopping by was sensible as I'd already be in the area for venue/hair makeup-related business.

Two phone calls to this shop that went to voicemail, which I left on both occasions, and one online contact request which allowed me to enter my email and my cell phone # with preference of contact designated as a call to my cell phone. After waiting two weeks, still no reply from this shop.

Before the venue visit and after my hair and makeup trial, my mother and I stopped by and I politely informed the owner that I had requested contact two weeks prior. She said she emailed me with available time slots. 1.) Not my specified preference of contact as requested. 2.) I'm still waiting on that email.

She rebounded by telling me how nice my trial wedding hair and makeup looked. She then asked me for my wedding dress budget; I quoted it at $1k. She chuckles and then goes quiet. I ask her if that's low and she chuckles again and in a very rude way responds..."Umm...yes". My mom and I exchange a look. We understand that she's a snob right out the gate; got it. Wasn't expecting THAT in Winchester.

She doesn't really have the style I'm looking for, and I can gather she's already finished with my mother and I as we're apparently peasant-looking, but when she says she has something close to my desired style, she retrieves the dress and brings me into a "fitting room". (There's only one room out of the three that make up the "shop"). She says, "Ok, undress". Mind you, I just met this woman a few minutes ago and I also don't have one of those huge purses so I can't very well steal a wedding dress or anything like that. I'm immediately uncomfortable by the request so I politely respond, "Can I please have some privacy while I try this on?" She shoots me a high-school girl smirk and responds too quickly and loudly with "No". She's in her 40's at least so how she pulled off that smirk? Beyond me.

Done. I walked out of the "fitting room" and told my mom we were leaving and we did just that. I was embarrassed that my mother had to leave in that manner and that the way she raised me (to be sensible and not over-indulgent) was a rejected notion by this owner. We had a good laugh about it walking to the venue though.

Here are some tips you might want to abide by as an extremely small business owner Ma'am:

1. Treat all customers with the same respect, no matter their budget, because it is unprofessional to do otherwise.
2. Consider stocking a wider variety of dresses, even when clearly overpriced.
3. Your wedding day is just that...a day. Intelligent brides are selling their dresses nowadays as I plan on doing with mine which I bought online for $196 and fits like a glove. If I don't decide to sell it, cool. At least I'm not broke either way.