Weddingbee boards

Hello, all!

I have been meaning to start a thread on my Jasmine's Bridal Shop experience for a while now, because similar posts on Weddingbee have been so helpful to me in my dress-buying process. I'll try to keep it simultaneously informative, helpful, and brief. Here goes!

I spent the first 3-4 months of my engagement looking at dresses online (most of them within my budget), and ultimately coming out disappointed. I am a very picky person, and none of the gowns I saw (although many were gorgeous!) fulfilled my vision for what I would wear on my wedding day.

Two dresses, VW351124 (the David's Bridal Vera Wang line) and Pronovias Dogma were high in the running, although neither were perfect. I tried on the White by Vera Wang dress twice, and attempted to find the Pronovias sample in my area (and two counties over!) in order to try on. The White by Vera Wang confirmed the silhouette and style design that I was going for, but it was extremely hard to find the Pronovias since it was a very new line.

VW351124 (I didn't like the satin loop thing, I wanted to make it a modified sweetheart, I wanted a v-shaped back, the sash around the waist was too thick and made my torso look too short, and the flowers on the train weren't placed very well, IMO).

Pronovias Dogma--GORGEOUS dress, but I wasn't sure how I felt about the tulle, the train wasn't long enough, the neckline would have to be modified to a curved sweetheart, and there wasn't enough detail for me).

It was about then that I started reading posts on WeddingBee about Jasmine's Bridal Shop and other Chinese dressmakers (Jasmine's received the best reviews, and gave me the most confidence in Chinese makers). After many questions,  many hours researching and poring over pictures on their blog, and Rachel631's AWESOME thread on her trip to their workshop and her custom dress, I decided that I could save money by ordering a dress from them, and be able to execute my dress vision exactly to my liking.

I sent Jasmine's a brief inquiry via the contact form on their website, and my consultant James and I proceeded to deliberate over my dream dress over about 30 emails before I finally was happy and sent a deposit. I included in a few of my emails some Word documents containing pictures and instructions very meticulously indicated. In some other emails, I just attached images and told James what I was referring to in the body of the email. Most of the instructions for the dress were on the Word documents though.

This is ONE of the sketches/pictures I included in a 6-page Word document detailing how my dress should be made.

While James and I were corresponding, the bees on this site were SO helpful and encouraging, and they really reassured me, despite how OCD I can get. During the time of the emails, I decided it was worth the 24-ish dollars to order fabric swatches of satin and organza, the two main fabrics of my dress. I received them in a perfectly timely manner, with a monitored tracking code. It was well packaged, each fabric in its own labelled plastic bag, all put into a foldable garment bag.

I spent about a week agonizing over the fabrics with my mom, my future MIL, neighbors, anyone that would listen/look. Many who have gone with Jasmine's in the past have agreed that the Premium grade and the Designer grade organza differ the most. The different grades in satin/tulle/etc. are much more similar. Anyway, I was sent Premium Satin, Premium Thin Organza, Premium Thick Organza, Designer Satin, Designer Thin Organza, and Designer Thick Organza. The thin organzas were ruled out quickly because of a weird Moire effect (google it) in bright light. The Thick organzas were harder to decide between, but I eventually chose the Designer grade because it had less of a Moire effect, it was slightly less "shiny" (for lack of a better word), and it felt less like plastic. I will say that I did a burn test on all the fabrics I was sent, and they all had a high amount of synthetic material in them.

After I decided on Designer Grade fabric, I sent in my order form, my measurements (taken by a seamstress), and I transferred the deposit by Bank of America. I felt safe doing so, and I got a discount. I had also been discussing a custom veil with James which was also included in the order. James clarified some things like the color of the beading, and what went on each layer of the dress, etc. I also sent in maybe three clarifications/revisions after the production began. James told me that further revisions may cost extra, if they conflicted with what had already been made.

For example, I changed the color from white on the order form to off-white. He told me that they had already cut the white fabric, and that to re-cut and start over would cost around 85 (can't remember exact price). I decided to have the inside layers white and the outside layers off-white. Then I second-guessed myself within 24 hours and emailed him again just to keep the entire dress white. He told me that he wanted to give me at least 24 hours to think about it, and that he didn't tell the seamstresses to cut the off-white fabric just yet. Sure enough he was right! I was so grateful that he anticipated my fickle-ness :)

It has now been about 36 days since I sent in the deposit, and I have received my mid-production picture by email!! [Continued in next post]

This is the Mid-Production picture I received from James!

He informed me that the lace on the second layer of organza couldn't be seen, since the organza was too opaque. The lace that is pinned on the skirt there is just to show me what lace would look like on the outermost layer of organza, underneath the 3D floral applique. The floral applique circled is to show me what the flowers will look like, for my review.

James told me to let him know where to put the lace applique on the skirt--top layer, or second layer or organza--and to draw on the image to indicate my instructions.

Could I ask for your help to critique my mid-production pix? My main concern is the type of lace used. I asked for lace similar to that on the Pronovias Alcanar (pictured below).

Is the lace pinned to my dress to thick-looking? I would like it to be thinner and more delicate, especially if I decide to place it on the first layer of organza. My original goal in placing it underneath the first layer of organza was to get a really subtle-lace effect underneath the 3D floral applique.

Also I am not sure how well the lace "blends" with the organza fabric. the transition from lace to organza seems abrupt and sudden to me. If it were thinner like the Pronovias Alcanar lace, it might look better.

They have been really awesome in customer service, asking me to please raise any iissues immediately so they can ensure my satisfaction with the product... At the same time, I know they worked so hard on it, and I hate to tell them I might not like the lace they chose!! I will definitely ask to see pix of other lace options, but I will feel terribly if they have to un-pin all that gorgeous work. It's just something I have to do, I guess...

So, what do y'all think? Any other issues/concerns with the dress? Of course the lace isn't pinned completely yet, nor are the appliques made/pinned, so the dress looks quite unfinished. Other than that, though, any comments?

The dress looks great. I'm not an expert but by the looks of the mid production it'll be pretty. I'm thinking of letting them create a second dress for me!!!

@adenosine3phosphate:  Oh wow, it looks great! 

I am so impressed with your level of detail and communication with all the sketches! No wonder your dress looks so good!

I think the lace looks great - I think any thinner, and you won't get the cool 3-D effect of the original. I also think it should go on the 1st layer of organza, or it will get lost.

What a beautiful dress this is going to be! I can't wait to see the finished product!

Aww, thanks y'all! Like the OCD person I am, I am scouring their blog for similar looking lace, to envision what it might look like without pins. LOL. I will definitely update you guys with the next steps. :)

@hiheel:  hahah :) yes it was a 6-page Word document that contained a lot of large images, so hopefully I wasn't too verbose!

I just spent the evening looking at examples of dresses they've made on their blog that have the same type of lace I'm looking for. Hopefully that means that they have this lace readily available, and they've worked with placing and sewing it before. :)

Jasmine's previous work: Pronovias Alcanar replica. Love the lace. Doesn't look too heavy.

The placement of the lace on the skirt is wonderful on this one. I like how it gradually fades down. I would definitely get rid of the small "patches" of lace near the very bottom, though.

Jasmine's San Patrick Rhin replica--Eyelash lace on the neckline

What do y'all think?

When I originally asked to be shown different types of lace to choose from, they told me that they couldn't do that and instead, I could reject the lace on the mid-production pictures, and they would try to match the lace better. I thought that might waste time and effort, so instead of choosing from their laces, I sent them a picture of the Pronovias Alcanar lace. Although the lace that the used in the mid-production pictures is beautiful, and they did a great job of considering the photo I sent them, it's still not great. I think I should stop feeling bad about changing the lace, b/c obviously, they initially told me I could reject if if it wasn't to my liking.

@hiheel:  Ahh, Hiheel, you understand perfectly!! Thank you so much :)

@adenosine3phosphate:  Beautiful dress, tagging it so I can keep up with the progress.

I am composing a Word document of pictures and instructions for the revisions currently!

As I mentioned in the general Jasmine's Bridal Shop / China Dresses thread, I found that James included a zip file in the mid-production email! I actually have 8 mid-production photos instead of only 1!

Here is one of them, the back-view. Does it look like that seam down the middle of the train has slight puckering? Should I ask them to re-do the seam, or am I being too crazy here?

Here's a side/back view as well--Let me know if you think it looks like it's puckering and needs to be fixed!

@adenosine3phosphate:  No you are not being picky.  I point these things out all the time.  I truly believe that it is something that can be sorted when the dress is steamed, but you never know, so it is best to point it out and get them to steam the dress or whatever it needs.  Remember this is your opportunity to get it right.

Beautiful dress, I just love the back neckline.  Well done.

@Aussiemum:  :) Thanks so much; you have been so helpful to so many Jasmine's customers! So grateful!

@hiheel:  James emailed me a couple hours ago, and did say the problem was that it needed steaming. I hope it solves the problem, and that it's not actually how they sewed that seam!

More updates: After I sent the email of revisions to James following the mid-production pictures, he suggested that I upgrade to Designer Craftsmanship. The cut floral appliques are too complicated for the scope of Premium Crafsmanship. Those flowers were my favorite part of the dress, so if they can ensure that Designer Craftsmanship will acheive the look I am going for, I'm going to do it!

James also said that they do not carry the same lace as was on their previous replicas of the Alcanar and the Rhin. :(They are going to take pictures of Alencon lace for me to choose from. I suggested this in the beginning so as to not waste time and effort, but they didn't want to. Now they're doing it anyway! LOL.If I am not happy with any of the Alencon lace pictures, I can pay an additional alterations cost, and they'll use Chantilly.

Hello again! Here are the updates on my dress so far! It took several emails, but this is the summary of what has happened to my little (or should I say BIG?) dress project since my last post:

I told James about the shape and sizes of the flowers, and was very detailed, drawing schematic pictures of heart-shaped petals and scalloped petals. I also made a list of each type of flower. There are like 8 different kinds to match the VW351124 dress! James said that this level of craftsmanship is too detailed for Premium grade, so he had the seamstresses make a few flowers just as I asked, and then asked me if I wanted to upgrade to Designer. I definitely loved the flowers, so I upgraded to Designer Craftsmanship. You can see that they are rounded petals, scalloped petals, heart-shaped petals, and there are different sizes, and some flowers that are layered. There are also the pleated/folded flowers that were originally included in the mid-production photos. Note: I did ask James to make those pleated flowers half as big, so as not to overpower the lighter flowers.

The second concern was about the thickness of the lace. After much deliberation, and several emails, and seeing Pinkmoon's mid-production pics with her beautiful Chantilly lace bodice, I decided to go with a finer lace. Hiheel, you were right! It took me about a week, but I did finally make the decision to go with finer lace! I think it will look much more beautiful and delicate, especially since the lace is now on the outside of the dress, and since the flowers look so light and airy.

Pinkmoon's gorgeous customized/spliced dress [hope you don't mind me reposting your pic?]:

That's it for now! I just sent the email for the lace change, and I know they're getting a large volume of emails currently. So I will be patient!!

Is it crazy that I am supposed to receive my order in 18 days and I am still making all these adjustments?! I mean, I haven't even seen my veil yet! And all the flowers need to be sewn on and beaded lightly!!

@Pinkmoon:  

@sparkle621:  

Thanks to both of you! :)

No, James didn't mention a delay! I still hope it will come in on time, because I was hoping to have the veil at least by the 29th for my hair trial on the 30th, but it wouldn't be the end of the world if there was a delay. :)

Just for reference, I hope the flowers will turn out like these pictures that I took in the fitting room at David's Bridal. They are close-ups of the VW351124.

@justjade:  You definitely can request Chantilly lace from the beginning :) Since I upgraded to Designer Craftsmanship, there was no extra charge. But normally, James said that there would be an extra charge. hope that helps!

I am seriously lusting over your dress. I can't wait to see it finished!

Hello! Another dress update! After I asked Jasmine's to change the lace to Chantilly, they got back to me really quickly with the second mid-production pictures! I am so glad that I changed the lace! I like it a lot better now!

I did ask them two questions--if they were going to place the same lace below the zipper, as I indicated in the photo, and also if they were going to add the eyelash lace neckline later. I am sure they will, because I mentioned it like a bazillion times in emails :)

Next come all the floral appliques and the veil!! 12 days until I receive the dress, supposedly!

@justjade:  thank you! I am ery excited for it to come in the mail :) My veil will be a cathedral-length drop veil, with a 30-inch blusher. The edging will look similar to the Melissa Sweet Saffron veil, but with the tiny pieces of lace a little bit more spaced out. :) I am super excited for that, too!

Melissa Sweet Saffron veil:

@adenosine3phosphate:  Wow, you are so close to finishing.  The dress looks beautiful and I can't wait to see it finished.