At our store (both our physical location in Mesa, Arizona and online), we only offer dresses that have sleeves, more conservative necklines, and higher backs. Perhaps not as "revealing" as the mainline bridal industry.
photo by @carlymdemke
Helping You Find That Modest Alternative!
Tired of searching all the local malls and boutiques? Ever wonder if you'll be able to find an elegant and beautiful wedding, prom or even just a church dress that you can feel comfortable in? Or even if they exist at all without doing lots of alterations or wearing a sweater over your dress? That's the challenge - there are far fewer places you can go to where you can find dresses with sleeves, or without plunging necklines or backs. Our goal is to offer another choice where you can get gorgeous dresses that are already made "modest".
Should you try and alter a wedding dress and make it "modest"?
Many times a bride finds a beautiful gown that may be strapless or have a plunging neck or backline, and then recruit an alterations person to make modifications to add sleeves or change the bodice. This is referred to as the "buildup". The first problem is to find matching fabric. Sometimes it would be hard to find the right color or texture, especially lace or English netting, etc. Ordering could be long and expensive. And then the seamstress must "cut-up" an expensive gown - very scary! If the right alterations person can be found, things usually worked out to the bride's satisfaction, but we've had customers come into our store in tears that their dream wedding dress was built-up, does not meet their expectations and do we possibly have an alternative? (By the way, we do have alteration services, read about them here).
Some bridal gown designers are now recognizing this and providing an alternative
This need has been recognized by mainstream wedding dress designers such as Allure Bridals, Modest by Mon Cheri, Venus Bridal, Bonny Bridal and others who have designed some very elegant and beautiful gowns that meet the modesty requirements that require very little alteration (maybe hemming for exact height or adjusting the shoulders for a perfect fit), which is relatively less expensive and way less time and risk to your dream wedding dress.
photo by @marianneovertonphoto
Our Modest Bridal Customers Have Short Engagements. Solution? Big Inventory!
Many brides looking for modest wedding gowns just don't have enough time to order a new dress which can take 16-18 weeks. Our challenge is to provide enough styles, colors and price points that are available at our in-store or online inventory to allow brides to buy off-the-rack. This means we have a large in-store inventory to allow those brides to find a dress and take it home that day. We like to say that we have the largest modest wedding dress inventory in Arizona!
Modest Bridal Customers Are Conscious of Cost
Whatever the reason, many of the brides we help are trying to keep costs down. This has been recognized by our modest wedding dress designers. They have created gowns with a strong emphasis on value per dollar, trying to choose high quality and beautiful materials, but also trying to keep the costs at a lower level. We've been pleasantly surprised to see some very elegant and stunning dresses at relatively low prices.
The "Modesty" Niche - It's In Our DNA!
We were born and raised in Utah, and are proud of our LDS culture, background, and heritage (see our AboutUs page). Having been taught principles of modesty and conservative lifestyle, we understand that many Young Women and Mothers of Youth not only from our church but also from other faith-based groups prefer beautiful but more modest bridal gowns. We've had members of Catholic, Baptist, Jewish, and other congregations who've found modest wedding dresses at our store and say "it's so nice you are providing such a great alternative for us" - which really makes us feel good!
After years of helping brides find beautiful yet more conservative gowns, we've also noticed some subtle differences about our customer base. Many of our brides tend to like simpler styles, that "Boho" look or even elegant traditional gowns. We still get a good number of brides who want the bling - we still need to have those styles available! But maybe skew our inventory a little towards the more simple traditional trends.
We Put it All Together!
If you or your daughter have been searching for that perfect but modest dress, come on in and check our selection! If you can't easily make it to our physical storefront, please call us at 480-868-8906 or email at closetfullofdresses@gmail.com and we can help you with sizing and selecting a dress online.
Check out our modest wedding dress designer's lines at our website - simply click on the images below and you'll find the dress of your dreams!
Allure Bridals Modest Collection
Modest by Mon Cheri Bridal Collection
Venus Bridal Modest Collection
About me:
Like thousands of other women, I spent many years teaching and leading church young women's groups - building their self worth and helping them set goals. Much of that teaching was around modest dress and how to choose clothing to meet those goals. In addition, I had four daughters of my own who had to search for all the fashion choices. For me and my daughters, it turned out to be a challenge going to the mall or department stores to try and find modest dresses especially for Homecoming, Prom and eventually weddings. Many other Daughters and Moms have confided to us they have the same challenge. I started selling bridal and prom dresses from our home 15 years ago. In the last 5 years, we opened a storefront in Mesa, AZ and have now put our store online for girls and moms to find us anywhere in the country!
Looking forward to helping you find that perfect dress! Jerolyn
As always, follow us on Instagram and Pinterest to see the latest styles and promotions from A Closet Full of Dresses!
Or come visit us at:
A Closet Full of Dresses
1249 N Greenfield Rd #103
Mesa, Arizona 85205
480-868-8906