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Wedding dress shopping from home? These bridal boutiques are offering virtual appointments for brides who want to practice social distancing and also say ‘yes’ to the dress.
Lovely Bride DC
How to set it up: 1. Visit their website and create a wishlist of dresses. 2. Email them at dc@lovelybride.com or click the appointment icon on lovelybride.com to book an appointment.
At the appointment: “In your video appointment, we’ll go over the designers and the styles that fit your wedding vision, and we’ll also give you more details on your favorites,” they say on their “Virtual Appointments” Instagram highlight tutorial. They’ll show you videos and photos, and discuss sizing of your favorites to help you narrow it down to a top favorite. Appointments are slated for 45 minutes.
From there: Lovely Bride will ship your favorite to you for a try-on. If you love it, you’ll have a follow-up video consultation during which your consultant will measure you, and place your order. If you’d like, you can even set up a ‘celebration’ appointment for this summer to share the try-on experience with your crew.
Designers they carry include (but are not limited to): Jenny Yoo, Marchesa Notte, Sarah Seven, Suzanne Neville, Theia Couture, Watters, Willowby. See their website for a full list.
The Bridal Room
How to set it up: Online or by phone at 571-620-7743. “Once the bride makes the appointment, she will be contacted by the stylist to go over a questionnaire to get an idea of her style, budget, and timeline.”
At the appointment: The appointment itself will last 75 minutes, “or longer if the bride needs more time,” and be conducted via Zoom or Facetime video calling (brides are encouraged to have two to three friends or family members join the call.) During the appointment, the stylist will show the bride gowns on mannequins to discuss fit, fabric, colors, etc.
From there: “Once a bride narrows down her top choices, she can request in-home try-on. The stylist will get those favorite dresses ready for curbside pickup or shipping.” Each box will include measuring tape, clips, and instructions of how to try-on and clip gowns. Each at-home try-on will include another virtual appointment so the stylist can walk them through the try-on at home. There will be a per-gown fee for the in-home try-one, but it will be credited back if they order a dress; if they choose not to purchase any of the gowns, they’ll forfeit the deposit for one gown and the rest will be refunded.
Designers they carry include (but are not limited to): Kelly Faetanini, Blush by Haley Paige, Essence of Australia. See their website for a full list.
Zoya’s Atelier
How to set it up: Visit the contact section their website.
Soliloquy Bridal Couture
How to set it up: Visit their website to request a virtual appointment.
At the appointment: Appointments will be schedule for 30 to 45 minutes. “During a virtual appointment, we will discuss dress styles, fabrics, silhouettes, and other styling considerations. In preparation, a bride should spend some time viewing our website, Pinterest, and other sites to get an idea of what they think they want.”
From there: At this time, Soliloquy does not offer at-home try-ons, so brides and their consultants will discuss timelines and decide whether orders should be placed without a try-on. For brides that would like to place their orders, Soliloquy will assist with virtual measuring, including an instructional video. Otherwise, clients can return at a later date for measurements and ordering.
Designers they carry include: Soliloquy is a Barbara Kavchok flagship
Amy leads Washingtonian Weddings and writes Style Setters for Washingtonian. Prior to joining Washingtonian in March 2016, she was the editor of Capitol File magazine in DC and before that, editor of What’s Up? Weddings in Annapolis.
