Should you buy a gown online?

You're ready to choose your bridal gown - the question is, where to buy it? If you're tempted to buy online, read on because there are pitfalls you need to be aware of. The biggest one is that the beautiful designer gown you see on a website may not be the one that arrives in the mail.

One N.H. bride tells the story of buying what she thought was an Alfred Angelo gown from an online wholesale store only to find the dress was not only not a Alfred Angelo gown, it was a complete mess. The dress was too big and too short, the zipper had a gap, the beading was wrong and the lace was puckered. She wanted to return it, but the fine print said that returns had to be completed within three days and she wasn't able to get a response from the company.

"It happens all the time - more often than people will admit," says Barbara Antonacci, owner of Marry & Tux Bridal in Nashua (marryandtuxbridal.com). She says she's seen dresses bought online that looked like they were made by a first-year sewing student. "If you read deep into the fine print, they say they
provide a 'similar product.' They take the money and run."

She urges brides to think about how often they return things they've bought online and ask themselves if it's worth taking a chance on the online store's return policy. Her suggestion: Get the dress from a reputable shop that backs up its product. And, she adds, if the cost is more than your budget allows, consider trimming the guest list a bit.