Style vs. Budget: Sometimes Something Has to Give

11/13/2009

 

Director of Sales Nicole opens the show by reminding the consultants to follow the brides’ style selection and budget. “Some brides’ taste level exceeds their budget, but it is ultimately up to the consultant to decipher which one is going to take precedence. Is it going to be the budget? Or style?”

 

Audrey’s first appointment, Jessica, brought her fiancé, Danny, with her since she doesn’t have any superstitions regarding him seeing her in the gown beforehand -- he probably won’t remember anyway. They met nine months ago at a club. According to Jessica, it hasn’t been an easy road that she’s taken in deciding to marry Danny, primarily because he’s 24 and she’s 29. On top of the age difference, which I personally don’t think is that big, he has a daughter and she has three kids. In spite of the circumstances, things seemed to fall into place for them at the right time.

 

Jessica is looking for something form-fitting with tulle and lots of glittering details. In her first wedding, her gown only cost $100, so she wants this to be her dream wedding. Audrey asks Danny what he’d like to see Jessica in, but she interrupts him. “He wants something our daughter can wear one day. I want something that she’ll say, ‘Mom, what were you thinking?’”

 

Knockout wedding gowns can present a challenge at a $5,000 budget, according to Audrey. The first dress Jessica tries on is beautiful AND over-the-top with roses on the skirt, but she thinks it’s too monochromatic with her hair and complexion. “I look like a butterscotch sundae,” she says. Danny doesn’t like anything about it.

 

On the main floor, Dianne and Randy meet Courtnee, who’s been searching for a gown for a long time. She likes A-line dresses with sweetheart necklines and lace details. Her budget is $4,500 and she would ideally like to spend less, since her godmother will be paying for half.

 

The first dress Courtnee tries on is a no-go. I’m on the floor laughing at her aunt’s description of it. “The lace was too busy. It looked like someone got a fan, put some feathers in front of it and then splattered it all over her body,” says Aunt Staci. Courtnee rejects the second gown for being too plain.

 

Dianne pulls a dress that is almost double Courtnee’s budget, but according to fashion director Randy, Dianne realizes that Courtnee’s taste level far exceeds her budget. Dianne wants to show her that dress last, as Courtnee may find something she likes more for less.  

 

The second dress Jessica tries on is a hit with Danny, but he knows his bride-to-be is not happy. Audrey enlists Nicole’s help, since she’s shown Jessica the most elaborate gown she has at her budget. Nicole asks Jessica if she’d be willing to buy the third dress without so much beading, as it would help drop the price from $8,800 to closer to $5,000. But Nicole says no; the beading is what she loves about the gown.

 

Dress No. 3 is a hit with Courtnee, thanks to the lace and $3,300 price tag. Her family also loves the way it looks on her. Although Courtnee likes the dress, she doesn’t love it and thinks it’s “too safe.”

 

Fiancé Danny knows which dress Jessica really wants and shows it to Nicole and Audrey. According to Nicole, gowns by Kleinfeld’s exclusive designer, Pnina Tornai, start at $5,900 and go up to $40,000. However, this is the gown Jessica has been dreaming about. She admits to not asking for the dress initially because it is twice her budget, but also realizes she’s not going to be happy with anything else. I personally can’t believe that gown costs $10,400.

 

Her fiancé tells her they should push the wedding back a year since the dress is so over budget, which does not sit well with Jessica. The lowest price Nicole can offer is $8,800, which is still too high. Audrey suggests that Danny and Jessica take a moment to talk. Jessica decides to wait six months and then come back for the dress. She doesn’t want to feel like she compromised on her wedding day.

 

According to Audrey, Jessica wanted everything without sacrificing anything, and it’s not a happy ending when you put yourself in that position.

 

Downstairs in alterations, it’s not about the design but the color. Bride Jasleen is Indian, so a white wedding gown is out of the question due to cultural mores. In Indian culture, the color white is associated with funerals, according to the bride. Traditionally, wedding gowns are a deep, red color and the veil has heavy embroidery.

 

Jasleen was on “Say Yes to the Dress” previously, looking for gowns that could be dyed. She’d found a gown but wanted to make sure the shade of red used would be appropriate. While consultant Carmel was looking for red swatches to show her, she ran into designer Pnina, who was less than pleased that the dress Jasleen was about to buy was such a close approximation of one of her designs. She was so outraged that she had found a $6,700 copycat gown for Jasleen and dropped the price to $5,000 to fit her budget.

 

Now Jasleen is back to see her dress in red for the first time. OMG, it is even more beautiful in the deep, jeweled red.

 

The fourth dress is a hit with Courtnee and her family, although it’s over her budget by a considerable amount. Even with Dianne discounting it to $6,600, Courtnee is hesitant to spend so much money, even though she loves the gown. Her family offers to make up the difference, and she decides to get it.

 

Jasleen looks absolutely stunning on her evening wedding ceremony, and the beautiful diamond jewelry around her neck isn’t bad either.

 

Comments

[Joy]

1st Dianne--- I honestly belive she knew what she was doing bringing that Pnina Tornai dress into the dressing room. Dianne wanted that commission.
I wonder could Diane find a dress simliar to that Pnina Tornai dress, to stay in Courtnee budget.

[Nini]

Please does anyone know the designer of the dress that Courtnee Lundy eventually picked? Is it also a Pnina dress or is it something else?

[carly tenney]

Once more Diane brings in a dress that is way over the budget! She has done this more times than I can count. A good consultant will search until she finds something in the bride's price range...Keisha is a master at this! And this is exactly why Keisha is the most requested consultant. When I look at Diane I can practically see those $ in her eyes. All about that commission.

[KathyP]

In addition to waiting 6 months so she can afford that really tacky looking dress she wants I suggest Jessica put aside some money to raise "the girls" up. Sorry Jessica but after three kids they aren't so perky anymore and were definitely droopy in that dress.

[ML]

I absolutely love this show, I am so addicted I DVR'd so many of them when nothing else is on. I Love Randy he is so sweet and very kind to the brides makes them feel beautiful in the dress. The dresses are phenomenal, I have never seen that many brides dresses in one location ever!! If I decide to get married again, I am going there to have Randy and Audrey help me pick one out and have Nicole come in and give her opinion!! Keep the shows coming, fantastic, For a for a change something great to watch with all the beautiful wedding gowns. Thanks

[SYTTD fan]

Yes, Courtnee's dress is also a Pnina Tornai - all the dresses featured on that episode are by Pnina.

[ebdt]

Does anyone know the designer of the 2nd gown that Jessica tried on? Thanks in advance!

[minty68]

I'm sorry, but the dress Jessica tried on had to be the tackiest, most vulgar idea of a wedding dress I've ever seen. Why anyone would spend $10K on that is beyond me. I'm all for sleek, modern, and sexy, but that was just over the top.

[AK]

Ooh! I loved the first dress that Jessica tried on. Does anyone know the designer or have a link to that dress? So pretty!

[maryrose]

Does anyone know what happened to Elise who WAS director of sales? Now Nicole, who was director of fitting, is director of sales and Elise has disappeared. I liked her so much. She was so professional.

Could she have gotten into trouble for speaking against owner Ronny Rothstein for pulling regular merchandise for a customer on sale day? I miss her!