La Belle Elaine's Bridal

04/08/2008 Posted by seattlebride2009

I went to La Belle Elaines to try on dresses for my May 2009 wedding. The dresses were organized by price and my salesperson, Sherri, allowed me to browse the dresses as I pleased. I was then ushered into a beautiful fitting room with lots of space for my mom and bridesmaids. I tried on TONS of gowns and Sherri was very patient and she gave good advice without being too overbearing. The runway was a great way to view all of the dresses in different lights and even my dad was able to watch from the webcam. Sherri knew I had found another dress at a different store that I loved and she encouraged me to make sure each dress I liked could be "better" than the one I had seen and loved at another store. I did not end up buying my dress that first day but came back the next day with more bridesmaids and Sherri was kind enough to let me try on my favorites again. When I decided on a beautiful dress from there the staff was very meticulous about taking my measurements. Overall, the dresses were beautiful, the staff was more than helpful, the environment is very glamorous. I have yet to receive my dress but I anticipate it will prove to be a good experience based on what has gone on thus far.

Pros: glamorous environment, helpful and attentive staff, variety of dresses

Cons: on the higher end of the price spectrum

09/28/2007 Posted by seattle_bride

La Belle Elaine's was by far my favorite place to shop for my wedding gown. The store is amazing, it has a runway and huge dressing rooms, the sales staff was so helpful, they let me look through the dresses on my own and then once my consultant saw what I liked and knew my budget was $1500 she did a fabulous job of selecting dresses in similar styles within my budget. I ended up with a beautiful ball gown (which she actually recommended for me). My consultant was very fashionable, polite and never pushy. I go in to show my friends and family and get to put on the sample of my dress and walk the runway, I also have friends in California that logged on to their website and could see me over the webcam, how great is that? I would highly recommend La Belle Elaine's to anyone who wants to feel like a queen every time she walks through the front doors!

Pros: selection, customer service, runway

Cons: parking can be hard to find on the weekend

08/09/2007 Posted by beachlady

My daughter and I went to this Bridal store looking for a dress. As soon as we gave the saleslady a limit on what we would spend, she turned to ice. It was down hill after that. It was so very obvious she didn't want to help us because she knew her comission check wouldn't be much. If you have several thousands to spend, great, but we put a $1500 limit on ours and they didn't want our business. Most of the gals that work there are 20 somethings who are all quite upity. Was not a pleasant experience. Don't waste your time.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful

08/02/2007 Posted by katesgold

My daughter-in-law bought her wedding dress here. Our saleslady was very helpful & pleasant. She ordered the dress in a larger size, given the obvious fact my daughter in law would loose weight, which she did. She had two fittings (which you have to pay extra for & we knew that) and at the second fitting 3 weeks before the wedding she told the lady (Stacy) the dress was too tight and she couldn't breathe. Stacy said not to worry, the material would "stretch." I didn't know satan "stretched." We pick the dress up and she tried it on at home, and we couldn't even get it zipped. Then the buttons started to pop off. In a panic, we called, took the dress down the next morning and the gals were very nice. Interesting side note, my daughter in law had been very sick since her last fitting, so the dress should have been TOO big. NOT. A different seamstress came in, said they would fix it and didn't charge. Stacy, calls my son the day before the wedding and told him that it wasn't their fault my daughter in law gained weight and got "fat." Yes, she said fat!! My son took issues with her tone and she said we were "lucky they were even fixing it since it was all our fault." Very rude lady, and she is the manager. When my daughter in law put the dress on for the wedding it was too big in the top, but fit everywhere else. The seamstress the day before didn't adjust the top, only the waist. Was this intentionally done by Stacy??? Makes us wonder. Bottom line, if you buy a dress for $3100, it best fit correctly. This one didn't. We had to use two sided tape to make certain the top stayed up. Nice sales ladies, but the manager Stacy was awful. Stacy needs to find a new line of work.

Pros: Sales lady was very nice and so were the receptionists.

Cons: The manager was rude & made us feel like awful.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful

02/04/2007 Posted by surfsup77

Don't get me wrong, the dresses from La Belle Elaine really are spectacular! Unfortunately, the service stinks. La Belle Elaine was the first place that I began trying wedding dresses on and I specifically had a price limit of less than $1800, yet the woman helping me, kept pushing dresses on me that were $3000 and up. I guess when it comes to commission, you can't blame a girl for trying! After I fell in love with a dress that I tried on ($1850), she was pushing me to by the dress right then and there! Now, let me ask you...is it wise to purchase anything over $500 at the first place you go? A girl has to think about these things! I love the dress and honestly haven't found anything like it yet, but I will NOT buy my dress from La Belle Elaine because of the service. Beautiful dresses, creepy and pushy service! I would go there for ideas only.

Pros: Gorgeous dresses and fun ambience!

Cons: Stinky service. Pushy and creepy. No personality. Felt rushed.

0 out of 1 people found this review helpful

01/27/2007 Posted by guccigirl888

This place is awesome! They have a runway to try on your dress and a webcam so my mother in LA could see me in my dress. I've been to 5 stores in the area and La Belle Elaine's has by far the biggest selection. And the bridal consultants are very friendly and helpful. Me and my sister had so much fun there, we are going to tell everyone to shop there.

Pros: selection, cool store, freindly, helfpul staff

Cons: none

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful

10/17/2006 Posted by mentezari916

I think you get what you pay for. I went to several boutiques, and after 2 trips to "La Belle Elaine's" I found, "the dress". It was more than I preferred to pay (the dress was $1800), but my salesgirl (Lindsay) only showed me dresses in my price range - she was really good about mainly bringing me dresses that would stay in my $1200 or less budget. The fun part about the store is the runway and webcam - all my aunts got to watch me go down the runway in different dress options, so they were all able to share the experience even though they are all living in LA and I'm here shopping in Seattle. They had a wide selection of dresses $1500 and under, but as some other reviewers pointed out, very few under $1000. Nice designs, rich fabrics, lots of detail, definitely worth checking out!

Pros: Beautiful dresses, great ambience, fun buying experience

Cons: Very limited options below $1000 but reasonable selection below $1500

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful

08/14/2006 Posted by seattleite406

Although La Belle Elaine's presents itself as a high class place for brides and their maids to shop for dresses, their service is low-brow at best. My friend did not buy her wedding gown at this store, but we made an appointment and went to La Belle Elaine's in search of bridesmaid's dresses. After arriving for our appointment on time, we had to wait quite a while before a sales woman took us back to the bridesmaid's dress sample room. Not sure what the wait was for, as she immediately disappeared after that. Once we had settled on a dress, another person came to take measurements of each bridesmaid. Based on those measurements and the dress manufacturer's size chart, they recommended certain sizes for each of us. Since our measurements had been taken by an "expert" we went with their recommendations. This proved to be a terrible mistake. When the dresses finally arrived (on time, as quoted, I'll give them that), they were all absolutely huge, on each bridesmaid. The sales woman helping us was far less than accommodating in regards to how to rectify the situation. With plenty of time before the wedding to send the dresses back in exchange for more appropriate sizes, she basically refused that as a solution and just told us to get them altered, as "an alteration of half an inch would cost the same as an alteration of two inches." The dress cost me $190. The alterations cost me $94. I'm sure part of the problem lies in the manufacturer's size chart, and the apparent racket in the wedding-related dress and alterations industries. But the alterations cost on top of the incredibly rude service at La Belle Elaine's is more than unbearable. I would absolutely not recommend shopping here. Have your dress made, it will be a much more affordable and pleasant experience!

Pros: Wide selection

Cons: Terrible service, highly unprofessional

06/15/2006 Posted by kmn

I have gone with two friends dress shopping there. The first time, the woman helping us (Stacy) was great. She was very helpful and it did not feel like she was being pushy, but rather offered great suggestion. My friend ended up getting her dress that day. The second time I went was a completely different story. The sales woman was horrible. She did not listen at all to what the bride wanted and was looking for. Instead she would pull out expensive dresses (one was $6,000) and tried very hard to sell her on that dress. The sales woman was also flipping between us and another bride. My friend was so turned off that she bought her dress elsewhere.

Pros: Large Selection, beautiful layout, large fitting rooms

Cons: Parking, hard to get good service at busy times

06/02/2006 Posted by jules8120

I purchased my wedding dress at La Bella Elaines and I had a wonderful experience and my dress was amazing. The atmosphere of the store is enchanting. There is a runaway in the middle of the store so you can view all angles of the dress youre trying on and can even see yourself walking in the dress. There is a huge selection of beautiful dresses! The staff is VERY knowledgeable and helpful when looking for that perfect dress. The only con for some is that the dresses are pretty pricey but the experience definitely makes it worth it. I highly recommend looking for wedding dresses at La Bella Elaines.

Pros: Huge Selection, Great Atmosphere, Knowledgeable StStaff

Cons: Pricey

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful