how much would you pay for something you
knew you would only wear once the dress
for some what a bride wears on her
wedding day is almost as important as
the wedding itself but for many Brides
finding that perfect dress comes at a
price
literally so what makes these gowns so
much more expensive than any other dress
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bridal designer Lila Rose says it's the
custom nature of a wedding gown that
makes it so valuable I think it's really
about the quality of fabrications the
type of embroidery the way that it's
done and you can really tell that it was
done individually instead of being
mass-produced and there really is a
difference oftentimes we're using Indian
embroideries where all of that is hand
done there's a lot of different handwork
in our gowns so there really is this
artisanal quality that does make each
piece special and unique to its own self
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it's a it's a very labor intensive
process and I think that that's also
what goes into the pricing of wedding
gowns it's not just that designers are
saying oh you need it for your wedding
and I know you're willing to pay more we
know how important these pieces are and
it's it's your one time to have this
really amazing special gown and we treat
it that way
handcrafted details custom fabrics and
excessive skilled labor all add to the
garments final cost but Mark Ingram
owner of Manhattan based bridal boutique
Mark Ingram Atelier says it's just as
much about the experience of dress
shopping as it is about the dress itself
the trick to understanding pricing and
value of a wedding dress really is about
the make and the fit at say $49 retail
if you're getting a dress online
somebody's got to give but it's also
about the experience you know you know
you're paying for the dress you're
paying for being in a retail environment
a brick-and-mortar store that has to
staff has to pay read has fixed
overheads as well these things are all
factored into the price that a dress
you're arresting for service you're
getting service in this day and age
there's so many other ways to purchase a
wedding dress I think that shopping for
a wedding dress in a retail store with
the true wedding professionals ordering
a Couture dress and having a Couture
experience and being sized and fitted in
alterations it's nothing like that
process the once-in-a-lifetime process
and I think should never miss it
it wasn't always this way up until the
mid 1800s most women wore something from
their closet often leaning towards
colorful garments that were easier to
clean
but in 1840 Queen Victoria broke the
status quo by opting for a satin ivory
colored dress magazines help spread the
story and thus the iconic white wedding
dress was born and it's an image that's
still promoted in pop culture today when
I get married I'm wearing something like
that oh love it of course not every
wedding dress on the market costs an arm
and a leg today more and more brides are
looking at secondhand gowns as a way to
cut costs and sites like wish calm are
gaining an infamous reputation for their
bargain bin priced gowns don't I look
like a beautiful bride
well remember if it seems too good to be
true it usually is ultimately it comes
down to basic economics if something is
only worth as much as someone else is
willing to pay then the question remains
what is the dream dress worth to you
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