I've been to every bridal store in Seattle and Portland, and Lovely was BY FAR the worst experience I've had. The other stores listened to me, and made me feel beautiful. I left Lovely feeling ugly, poor and rushed.
I'm a COVID bride who had to reschedule my big indoor wedding for a small summer garden venue, which meant I needed a new dress that I wouldn't get heatstroke in. I lost a significant amount of money and had immediate family sick with COVID. The last few months have been extremely difficult. I was looking forward to something positive, so I started planning the new wedding. Lovely was my first stop with the new wedding in mind, and the only dress store in Seattle or Portland I hadn't been to. Needless to say this wasn't my first rodeo - I've tried on hundreds of dresses and already had my old dress altered before the wedding was cancelled (was supposed to be one week after the state ban).
I used to work in commissioned sales when my company wasn't doing well financially. I know Carly is probably under a lot of pressure. I get that.
But...I paid $25 for an appointment to try on 5 pre-saved dresses (this is the ONLY place that charges a fee in all of Seattle or PDX). They make you fill out a dress wishlist online, which I confirmed over the phone. I liked that transparency. The ONLY reason I came in was because two of the wishlist dresses I fell in love with online, but she outright refused to let me try on because they were outside of my budget. I had to make a case for trying them on. Once I mentioned an acquaintance had worn one of the dresses she said "you would REALLY wear a dress that your friend wore to her wedding?". "Well, you can't afford this, so let's just try on these other ones." Uh, yes? I barely know her. Can I just try on the dress now?? Even if it is outside my budget, I would have made an exception if it was "the one"! Take my money??
I made it very clear which styles I didn't like, e.g. strapless or dark colors, and then she kept picking ones with those qualities to try on. When I explained the whole scenario about how COVID impacted my wedding, she just said "OK. Well let's try on this dress." No acknowledgement of the situation, never asked where I'm getting married, what the venue looks like, anything.
I was almost in tears just trying to try on the dresses I came in for, which was truly bizarre. I thought, am I going to have to secretly grab these dresses off the rack just to try them?? Once she finally gave in because I said "this dress is the only reason I came here", she made a snarky comment about how "'I guess you like illusion styles after all." Yeah, well, this dress was on my wishlist, I pointed it out on the rack, and it was on the pinterest board I showed you... If I didn't want to try on those dresses so badly, I would have walked out.
As soon as I put it on, I kept getting pressure about purchasing immediately. She didn't offer to put a veil on or tell me whether it looked good or not, and tried to get me to try on even more styles.
We left with her saying she would call to follow-up even though I said I was trying on at another place later in the day to compare styles and I want to make the right decision. But to be honest, even if this dress is "the one," I can't justify purchasing here after this experience. :( Ladies, go to La Belle Elaine's or I Do Bridal, both "lovely" options that treat you right. read more