Astraea Bridal- By Appointment Only For All Visits — Attraction in Mount Vernon

long review incoming

I could not recommend shopping for a wedding dress at Astraea Bridal enough. I wish I could do the whole experience again just to spend more time there. The experience I had here is something I will remember for the rest of my life and will always be such a special wedding memory.

I booked an appointment to casually look at dresses as I was newly engaged and not planning to get married for 2 more years. I did not actually think I would find a dress. I had a Pinterest board for inspiration but I didn't feel like I had a very clear idea of what I wanted in my head.

My initial appointment was with Laura (CFO) (who I solely met with during my 3 appointments). I did meet her business partner and co owner/CEO during one of my appointments, who was also very lovely. Prior to the appointment I sent over my Pinterest board inspiration for Laura to look at and filled out a quick questionnaire.

Laura chose 3 different dresses for me to initially try on and she honestly nailed it. She took feedback from the first three dresses and the fourth dress I tried on ended up being THE dress. She showed me different alterations options and talked through how the dress could change with me if I wanted something slightly different by the time the wedding came. I think it's really telling of Laura's skill and professional experience that she could nail my style and pick a dress on the fourth try. For reference, I am a very picky shopper.

I couldn't believe we had already found the dress and it was very happily overwhelming for me because it was so unexpected to find it this early. There was a very generous option to hold the dress for 7 days so I could think about it (because I'm a girl who needs to sleep on it). It costs $100 and can go towards the dress if it is chosen in the end. This gave me so much peace of mind.

I ended up going back a few days later for another appointment to try on the dress by myself. Laura was so amazing during this appointment. We talked all things wedding, sustainability, and her advice and guidance was so on point and useful. This felt like so much more than just a bridal appointment. I couldn't have asked for anyone more experienced and thoughtful to help me on this journey. I felt so known and understood, and we had only met just one other time. I know that Laura must work with so many brides, but she has a way of making you feel like you're so special and the only one.

At my final third appt I brought my friends and my mom and we tried on THE dress, took pictures and looked at so many different bustle and alterations options. I live in the UK and Laura was even able to recommend a seamstress near me in London.

Although I am very early in wedding planning and I'm still formulating ideas, this has completely set the tone and I feel so much more relaxed and confident with how I want things to go. I feel this is all down to Laura and her team at Astraea Bridal.

As for the dress itself. It surpasses my wildest dreams and I felt it was a very reasonable price at $1600. I will update this comment after my wedding with a picture (can't chance it before!). Laura explained they work with many brides and bridal shops and suppliers to obtain gowns. Every gown in the store was stunning and I saw several that were trending online. There was such a a variety and an inclusive size range. I felt so lucky that mine came in a shipment from LA ten minutes before my initial appointment and Laura thought of me!

If you're thinking of booking an appointment here, do it. Don't hesitate. It's an amazing experience at an extremely reasonable price with amazing staff. AND how amazing would it be if you were to find a consigned hand picked dress from a local women owned business? I can tell you from experience... it has been...

Kristen’s qualifications DID NOT meet my expectations. I would NOT recommend going to her for alterations. I went in for a bustle and an opinion on a hem. After putting my dress on she recommended we do a hem. Yes, she worked with my budget. However, after telling me the sides needed to be taken it and I would need to spend $120 to get that done because we would have to cut fabric out I didn’t want to spend the $200 on the hem. Trusting that she knew what she was doing I went with her opinion. She also offered a sweetheart neckline for $40. I agreed to that. Going in for my second fitting she had where she recommended my to waist being taken in and showed me where she can take the neckline down. I showed her a picture of what I wanted and she said she’d do it. We both looked and the length on the bottom and AGREED it was too short. She made a note on my invoice to add AMAP back. When I went to pick up my dress is was still short and extremely tight. My zipper actually popped open. She said it was suppose to fit like that. I had a $1359 beautiful Oleg Cassini ball gown with a drop waist and it ended up sitting on top of my hips so it was no longer flattering. My “sweetheart” neckline was a V. It looked nothing like my original dress. She saw my look of disappointment and sighed and told me I couldn’t have everything I wanted with that dress. She charged me before the alterations. I later asked that she fix the length and she said she would for an additional charge. I spent a few weeks getting opinions for other alterations and found everything that was done would need to be reversed also, I needed to add 7 inches on the bottom. I went in asking for a refund so I could buy another dress or try to save it and she said no. She was extremely rude and was rolling her eyes and huffing and puffing. I asked for my fabric back and she gave me the bottom of my dress. I asked for the part she had to take out of the top and she said she didn’t cut anything out and it was all there. Which is funny because the reason I had to pay the $120 was cause she said she had to cut it... After talking to the owner she said she couldn’t help me and Kristen’s first offer was $150. I told her no and she again had her owner call me and tell me my final offer is $227. She had no remorse, she told my MIL I gained weight and that is why my dress didn’t fit! She cared more about her paycheck then what should be one of the best days of my life. My dress is ruined and I had to buy another one. She is not in this for the bridal experience and should not be at a costumer service job. All I wanted was my money back and I would leave it alone. And now I am out $1700 and a dress. My wedding...

Updating my former 3 star review to a 5 star.

Immediately after reading my review, Laura reached out to me via email, text and by responding here. Her response was so kind and understanding and I felt like she truly did want to know how to make me feel better about my experience. She invited me to return to the shop with my dress so we could talk alterations and accessories. I had no idea how much that was needed, but her knowledge was so helpful and I am forever grateful for her. My mom tried on some dresses during our visit and Laura extended a very kind and generous offer to her, should she choose to purchase one. I even got a chance to connect with my original stylist which made me feel so much better about the whole thing. After getting an experience that seems more typical for this shop, I would absolutely recommend Astraea Bridal! Beautiful store with very sweet and kind employees!

I had an appointment for the Bridal Blowout Sale and I found a dress that I love (I hope) the shop is so cute and all the employees were really sweet. They had some vendors there and the event seemed great. I’m giving three stars because even though I did end up buying my dress, I don’t feel like I had the same 5 star experience that many other people had. My stylist was helping other people (I assume that’s normal for a sale event like this) but she spent almost all of her time with another bride. She brought me a few dresses back to try on but then would be gone talking up the bride next to me for extended periods of time. My sister ended up going out and grabbing more dresses for me to try on. Maybe that’s normal for the sale event. It just didn’t seem like it was the experience of other brides there were having. Once I was dressed and had decided I wanted to buy a dress, my stylist was once again with that other bride. My sister went to ask her what the next steps were to purchase the dress and said the stylist seemed inconvenienced by her question. Overall, just a little disappointed by the experience. I know it’s a sale event so it’s might not be the normal experience someone might get, but I would suggest being a little more attentive to everyone...