FAQ

This is your life moment!  We are beyond thrilled you have entrusted Carrie’s with this special time.  Our affordable, Off-the-Rack, brand-new, gowns have been our specialty for over a decade.

Our brides love the peace of mind that comes with finding their gown at Carrie’s.   Taking their gown home same-day means that our brides have peace of mind knowing they have their gown in hand, they know the fit of their gown, and they don’t have to worry if the wedding date ever changes.

Our gowns are not found at any other stores in Georgia.  Designed specifically for our stores, there are over 500 gowns in stock at each location, in bridal sizes 0-28.

Our Atlanta store carries bridal gowns and bride’s accessories/jewelry/veils.  Our Macon location has both bridal gowns and ready-to-wear for MOB, MOG, and Bridesmaids.

Our gown selection varies by location and changes daily.

We truly have something for every budget! Gowns start at $599, with most under $1500.  We encourage our brides to do a little pricing and style research before shopping, those gorgeous gowns we find on Pinterest can easily cost thousands of dollars. We offer so many different styles and stay far below the price point of other boutiques.

We are excited to show you why our brides have made Carrie’s Bridal Collection is the #1 bride-referred store in Georgia!

Appointments required on weekends, and highly recommended during the week.  Walk-ins accepted during the week, based on staff & dressing room availability.  You can book an appointment for either location here: https://carries-bridal-collection.square.site/  Please call for walk-in availability – Atlanta: 770-451-8577, Macon: 478-718-0880.  We’re excited to see you!

Your gown and the experience you receive at Carrie’s is a big deal!  Leading up to your appointment, we will connect with you to make sure all of your questions are answered.  You will receive a call from one of our Master Stylists to go over all of the important details of your upcoming day, gown styles, and guests.  Your Master Stylist dive in to learning about you, your style, your venue.  We want to know it all!  We are here to help you and your party with any questions, and select gowns for you to try on.   Feel free to bring pictures or your Pinterest board. Please don’t worry – our staff is highly trained Bridal Masters at listening to your wants and Styling you!

We do recommend trying on gown silhouettes at one store (like David’s) prior to coming in to Carrie’s, to help narrow down silhouettes that you like!  For our Gown Guide, click here.  As we are off the rack stores, our gown inventory changes quickly.  Our brides that have tried on different silhouettes prior to coming in are more easily able to fine-tune details like lace and beading or plain.

What to bring:  Please wear undies!  This helps keep everything sanitary for all brides.  You are welcome to bring a bra, but most of the time, we don’t use it.  Our gowns have excellent construction and strapless bras actually create thickness and flatten.  We want you to be as comfortable as possible, so wear to your appointment what you would wear on your day.

Our boutiques are a down-to-earth, no pressure place where you can relax.  Our staff will greet you and you will have your own Master Stylist to help you through the entire process!  You’ll have your own changing area and private viewing area for you and your guests for a magical hour and a half experience.  We also have mirrors in the front of our store to view your gown in different lighting.  We encourage you to ask all the questions and take all the pictures.  This is your moment!

We understand that this is an exciting time and some of your guests may want to gown shop all day!  Please keep in mind, however, the more stores you visit, the more confused you can become.  We call this “white out,” as they all start blending together.  We have had many brides come back to us alone, without any other guests, to buy the gown they *really* wanted, because, after purchasing a gown at the end of their shopping day, they are tired and overwhelmed and settle just to be “done.”  We don’t want that for you!  We never know when that gown magic will happen, and it is important that you recognize that moment for yourself.  It is YOUR moment.  Not your mom’s, not your mother in law’s, not your best friend’s, not anyone else’s, but your moment.  When you have that moment, acknowledge it, bask in it, and celebrate it!!  Don’t let anyone take that away from you!

Most brides leave our stores saying, “That was so easy!” and it truly SHOULD be.  We’re here to help!

We love our brides and their guests!  We have a 4 guest limit, minimum age is 13.

Please be sure to bring the most important people with you!  Do keep in mind that the more people you bring, the more opinions you will have, and this moment is about YOU!  While we love the little ones, our small staging areas simply aren’t safe for infants and toddlers, and can be distracting for brides and other brides, so our minimum age is 13. We want this day to be all about the Bride, as well as other brides in the store.

We love this question!  Our boutiques have their own unique styles, just like our brides!  Each store is charming and boutique-y, but relaxed and fun.  Our inventory in each store changes daily, so you never know what diamond you will find!  You are more than welcome to book an appointment or walk in to either or both locations.  Book here:  https://carries-bridal-collection.square.site/

We don’t categorize gowns or brides as “plus size!”  We get that question a lot, but please know that our brides are brides, not a number or a category.  We have all size gowns.  We have over 100 dresses in sizes 14-30, and our inventory changes daily! We also have gowns with extra length and options to add materials to the bottom, as well as easy ways to shorten a gown!  Our seamstress referrals are rockstars!

We want to make this process as easy as possible for you!  We proudly accept cash (3% discount!), Visa, Mastercard, Amex and Discover cards.

Gowns that are paid in full are available to take home same day!

We can also send an invoice if you decide on your gown after you leave your appointment!

Need a payment plan?  No problem!  We can work with you on your deposit and payments.  We can automatically send you invoices so you don’t have to come in until you are ready to pick up your gown.

If you need additional help with payments, let us know and we can work with you.

Absolutely!  We LOVE love!  We welcome ALL brides, and look forward to celebrating YOU and YOUR story!

We wish we could!  We have gorgeous gowns that move quickly, so we’re unable to hold.  When you find your gown, remember how you feel at that moment! Come prepared, bring your people.   Leaving a dress behind is taking a risk that another bride will purchase it and there may not be another, and we want your life moment to be filled with JOY!

Your Gown Shopping Experience is an EXPERIENCE!  We offer an intimate boutique salon, as opposed to the big name stores. We promise that from the moment you walk in the door, you’ll feel at ease! We truly have your best interest at heart. We understand what an important day this is! We focus on helping you throughout the entire process! By the time you leave, we will feel like old friends!

No problem! Click the link in your appointment email or text message to change or cancel, or feel free to call or text us – Atlanta 770-451-8577 or Macon 478-718-0880.  We require 24 hours notice for cancellations and changes.

We typically have a waiting list on the weekends, so we always have brides who would be happy to take the opening!  Please keep in mind that cancellations or changes with less than 24 hours notice will result in the $50 cancellation/no show fee charged to your card.

Great question! Our dresses are not consigned. We do not buy back gowns.  Our brides love that each dress is a brand new gown that you can only find with us!  You will find similar styles in other stores, we just cut out the “middle man” because Carrie designs in-house! Our stores are Carrie’s showrooms. We don’t pay outside designers for their dresses so ours cost less! When you try on our gowns, you will be able to feel the superb quality and construction of our dresses!

Of course! You are more than welcome to take all the pictures you want. Please do keep in mind that camera phone pictures can be drastically different form professional photography. We also have free wifi for you to Skype or Facetime with you friends and loved ones after finding The One!

You can! However, it can be a little difficult to prescreen since our inventory changes so often. Mom can find a beautiful dress for you that could be gone the next day. We encourage you to take the time to come in and look for yourself- and be ready to try on! Once you see our beautiful dresses, you’ll be so excited to see how they look on you!  And tell us the truth – do you want your mom to pick out your gown, or do YOU want to have that experience?

We give you a breathable garment back to store your dress in, where other salons can charge upwards of $25 for this! We always recommend storing your gown in a closet, away from pets and any elements.

Our recommended alterations seamstresses typically will ask for a first fitting about 12 weeks from your wedding date. We certainly have seamstresses that can accommodate a shorter timeline, we just urge our brides to start rather sooner than later so there is no pressure to rush!

Keep in mind, if special ordering, you will need to factor in alterations to your timeline.

Upon checkout we give you our seamstress list and an alterations “cheat sheet” telling you what to expect.

A seamstress can give a general quote over the phone, but an accurate quote can only be made after seeing a dress on a bride in person. Please be mindful that most seamstresses do book up quickly, so we urge you to call you seamstress as soon as possible to make you appointment! If you need to order extra materials, we will need at least 3 months for the order to come in. Your Stylist will go over all these options with you during your appointment, and we encourage you to purchase during your gown purchase.

You are welcome to use any seamstress of your choice, whether we recommend them or not.  It’s up to you!  We do recommend using a bridal experienced seamstress.

We sure do! This makes a great gift for the bride!  Please click here to purchase:

Gown Cleaning & Preservation

Absolutely! Gown steaming is $75 and veil steaming is $25.  We are only able to steam gowns and veils purchased at Carrie’s Bridal locations. Please give us a call to schedule!  We need 48 hours before your wedding to make them perfect!

All sales are final.  This is standard in the Bridal industry and we thank you for understanding.