Help! I need a size 2P wedding gown

[cutesa]

Do all wedding gowns only come in sizes 4-42? I'm sure there are other brides out there who are petite...is there anyone who can help me find my dream gown? Where can I go to try on different gowns to figure out which style looks best on me? HELP!

[Dyonia]

Wow, that's a challenge. Have you thought about going to Davids (or someplace with a large selection) to try lots of styles on?

If you can do that, after you decide what looks best, you may want to consider having it custom-made. Depending on how complicated the style you choose is, and how fast you need it, a seamstress may actually be a very reasonable alternative. If you're around Rochester, NY, I can reccommend a great seamstress -- she did an incredible job of altering my gown in 10 days :-)

The Loralie website lists their dresses as starting at size 2 -- there are some GORGEOUS prom dresses that look exactly like wedding gowns! http://www.loralie.com/prom.php3


Best wishes!
--Donna

[judibean]

I'm a size 2 and I got my gown at David's. They don't stock petites but they do carry true size 2's. The only thing I needed to do was have my tailor hem the bottom of the gown and bring up the shoulders a bit--it cost about $50.

[jda312]

You probably already know this, but many bridal gowns are made very small. I wore a 0P or 2P regular dress, but ordered a size 6 Lazaro wedding gown, which fit me perfectly. Depending on the style, you still might have issues with the waist length or strap or sleeve length.

[opus1]

Certain designers do make petite sizes (being 4'11" myself, trust me, I know!). Maybe just call around to a few bridal salons and ask which ones do make petite sizes?

I know that Maggie Sottero does not (as this was the first designer I was interested in) but Anjolique, who I think I'm going to get now, does.

[cacdrc1957]

I went to bridesave.com and clicked on gown size 3P to see what would come up. They have a few designers on their website that carry petite sizes - Pallas Athena, Victoria's, & Venus. But I wouldn't restrict yourself to only those lines that carry petite sizes. Most wedding gowns can be altered to fit a petite silhouette. And since your dress size is not your wedding gown size, usually, just about any line can be made to fit. The best thing when you're petite is to try to avoid lace, pearls, designs, etc. along the hemline unless the dress has a waistline where it can be pulled up & shortened (otherwise you lose all the pretty stuff when you hem the dress). And make sure it doesn't have a lot of heavy lace, beadwork, etc. at the shoulder area, waist area, etc. (those places where alterations are needed).

My oldest daughter who is less than 5 feet tall & barely weighs 95 lbs, is a street size 0 but wore a size 4 in a Private Label by G wedding gown. Of course it had to be alterered to fit her, but the seamstress had no problems with it and she looked beautiful in it on her wedding day.

[jcbix]

Try vintage stores. Average women (and thus, dresses) were a lot smaller even twenty years ago than they are now. In New York City, stores like Jana Starr Antiques specialize in vintage wedding dresses, which are very tiny. I'm a 0P or 2P and she had lots of (beautiful--many with handmade lace) dresses that fit me-- some were even too small! See www.janastarr.com.

[LisaAndrea]

I bought a size 2 Alfred Angelo dress that fit perfectly! I'm 5'5 and the only thing I will need is a hem on the dress. The ballgowns tended to overwhelm me and make me look shorter so I bought an A-line dress which fit well with my stature. Good luck with the dress hunting!!