Dress budget

My budget is $2000

My goal was to stay below $2000. I finally found a dress at a shop that only sells sample dresses, and it was $800. For alterations I will only have to top portion fitted to my body, the bottom fits perfectly, even in length. Can't wait to get this process started, but it is way too early for that...

My initial budget was $1500, but then I got to thinking about that cost and decided it's not really what I want to spend my money on. I found an absolutely beautiful dress in a shop, it met that budget, but after my visit, I went online and purchased an almost identical dress for less than 1/4 of the price. I figure with alterations and customization I'll still be less than 1/3 of the original dress before alterations. That leaves $1000 to spend on something we really want for the wedding.

I'm known to be a bargain shopper and rarely do I ever pay full price for anything. I know my way is not for everyone, but for us, this is his 2nd wedding and my first, I'd rather spend that extra money on our wedding or his son and doing something we all want.

I went in expecting to have one made for $500. To get ideas on shapes I liked I went to a boutique, which was a horrible idea (sort of) because I naturally fell in love with one. For 3k! Which I was vehemently against, so I went searching for it used. Found it with tags, in my size, on a gown selling site, for 1k! My grandmother graciously paid the difference.

View Quoted Comment I been finding some cheap dresses

View Quoted Comment Are you searching second hand? I was blown away by some of the prices on those sites (like stillwhite, etc.)

View Quoted Comment Not David’s Bridal’s. There dresses are priced nicely but I see there dresses everywhere. I tried on a dress/gown and a few weeks later it was on their advertising.

Mine is around $450, and I'm making the dress myself! The pattern was $40, the fabric I want is around $60/yard (it's 100% silk duchesse satin), and I plan to have the test muslin professionally fitted/altered instead of doing my usual awkward DIY thing where I fit the muslin on myself while wearing it! LOL