Divine Designs Bridal Boutique

GO SEE MONICA!!! I had been searching and searching all over for a dress that made me get that WOW factor. I literally went to every boutique in Portland to no avail. Had started to think about heading up to Seattle when my friend told me about Divine Designs. To be honest I hadn’t thought about them because of the idea of what a «designer gown» would cost. The minute I walked in, I felt like I was the only bride in the universe. Monica tended to me with a private appointment, a glass of delightful champagne, and then the dresses started coming. I knew the moment I began trying on the gowns that I would leave with my dream dress. The fabrics, the attention to detail, the FABRICS. So divine, which makes the name of this boutique so fitting. Here’s the deal, if you are looking for a dress in the $ 1000 range, this is not the place. However, if your budget is between 2.5k and above, you have found the place. They don’t carry crazy expensive gowns. You get what you pay for, and with Monica and Divine, you will feel like a celebrity. I cannot WAIT to wear my Monique Lhuillier gown on my wedding day!

We looked forward to a wonderful experience and making this a special day for our bride to be, only to be treated with disrespect and obvious judgement. This shop is not classy in the least as our bride was made to feel inferior and second class to other customers who extended their stay, were trying on «the most expensive dress in the shop» and far more important than the she. She quickly became frustrated, sad for how her family was being treated and we left after 30 minutes as we had seen enough. We had been warned and now you have been too.

How do I convey into words the absolute best experience any bride could ask for when it comes to looking for a wedding dress? You know how people say Monique Lhuillier is the goddess of wedding gowns? Well, «they’re» absolutely correct.
There are a few important take aways from a Monique Lhuillier experience. Her dresses are absolutely stunning. She creates gowns that feel and look so luxurious! Everything about them is wonderful.
The salon itself is completely fabulous. Very modern and upscale, with private sitting areas for your girlfriends/​mom/​family to sit and watch you twirl around in the world’s most gorgeous dress ever. I was swooned.
Monica was incredible, she is just this adorable, tiny, bubbly and incredibly talented women. She is someone who was born for this job as you can tell she takes pride in her work and projects that excitement throughout her appointments. Monica has an eye for fashion and knows what will look good on your body type and fit your personality better than you could have ever imagined. No pushing, no nagging, no trying to get the sale in today or anything like that — wonderful, relaxing time! I actually came back, tried the dress on two more time to confirm I was in love, and then filled out the payment info and BAM, done-​zo! I already had a dress Vera Wang Gemma, and was considering buying a Monique
The absolutely stunning Monique Lhuillier ‘Candy’ gown from the 2012 Spring collection. The dress has a magnificent beaded embroidered tulle bodice with the most stunning and unique detailing which swirls around the bodice and cascades down the skirt. The dress has a very flattering corset and modified a-​line skirt. The dress flatters the waist and includes a grosgrain waist ribbon.
If you have the means, I suggest you check out Divine Design for your wedding gown. The prices are high, but so is the level of service and selection of gowns.
Thank You Monica!

Was very interested in their designer selection I found online. When I called to make an apt the first thing they asked was my budget (which was well in their offering of dresses) — and stated that they didn’t carry «tacky dresses». I found them so rude that I ended up canceling my apt.
Glad I took my business somewhere else!

Best experience EVER! I had an appointment as I knew this was required. I am pretty sure that most bridal shops recommend appointments for the best quality service — so I made one everywhere I went. I brought 6 people with me and Monica was so kind about it (unlike the other places I went). She pulled chairs from all over the shop to accommodate everyone. She politely met everyone and shook their hands. The shop was gorgeously lit and the music playing was perfect! I felt like I was in NYC, not Portland! I loved her showroom and the quantity of dresses was perfect and not too overwhelming. I found at other shops there were hundreds of dresses crammed together so it was impossible to actually see the quality of them. I didn’t have to say anything before Monica was pulling gowns for me. She really knew what I was looking for. She complimented every dress I put on and kept saying how gorgeous the gowns looked on me. She made me feel SO comfortable and beautiful in every dress. I found the perfect dress within minutes and she even discounted the price! This has to be the best bridal boutique in Portland. Monica was incredible to work with and I highly recommend this boutique for those who care about fashion, style and looking like a million bucks on their big day.

I had a horrible experience here. The salesperson, Monica, was incredibly rude to my friends and mother who had come with me to shop. When we arrived, she seemed completely disinterested in us despite the fact that we had an appointment. We had to seat ourselves and when we asked for water she seemed put out by it. On top of that, she snapped at my friends multiple times when they suggested alternatives to the dresses she was putting me in. Like to the point where were all sitting in awkward silence, afraid to say anything for fear that this woman would yell at us. The entire experience was incredibly awkward. Simply put, you cannot and should not treat customers like this. Take your business elsewhere and support another store that will treat you respectfully.

As a bride that was far from wedding #1 I really wanted to find a special gown that was right for our destination wedding and didn’t look like I was attempting to be something other than who I wanted to be. Monica helped me find the perfect dress in a no nonsense sort of way, and Nahid worked magic with my fitting and necessary alterations. It was a completely positive experience.

Monica compared her store to Neiman Marcus of wedding dresses, prices start at $ 2500 therefore I expect I grand showroom and a wow experience. The showroom was ok… small and experience was so so. I would compare her service with that of Ania, Charlotte and Bridal Exclusives but with much more pricey dresses.

Took a friend here for her wedding dress selection. Everything looks perfect on her. Tough decision, which means the Divine team did it again. Great selection, stunning looks. Fantastic team.

I’ve been to several other bridal shops and this one was by far my least favorite. I have no doubt that they have beautiful dresses but I couldn’t tell you because you aren’t able to choose yourself. You ask for a description and they bring them out for you one by one.
I had told them that I previously tried on dresses and described what I had liked, and they seemed to bring me out all of the wrong dresses.
I had also told them my budget, which I believe is a very generous budget for most brides (5k), they kept bringing me out dresses above and beyond that budget.
The girls seemed nice enough to me, but compared to all of the other experiences I had, they were OK.
If you want a specific dress they have, this is the place to go. The seamstress seemed to know her stuff, but if you want a great experience, look elsewhere!

I bought my wedding dress here (ekk!) and was so pleased with the level of service, attention to detail and selection of dresses offered here. Monica was so sweet and pulled great selections without our budget. The salon is elegant and good-​sized and the dressing rooms are clean and big. The salon also offers in-​house alterations with Nahid — who is a total professional and easy to work with. My mom also bought her MOB dress here and has had an equally shining experience.

I am thrilled to write a review of my experience with Divine Designs.
I tried on many wedding dresses in the Portland area, and I even had one picked out to be made for me at one of the bridal ateliers in NW. I scheduled an appointment at Divine Designs on a whim, while my mother was visiting from out of town. Although I didn’t plan on buying anything that day, my mother and I were giddy to share in that «mother-​daughter» wedding dress shopping experience.
My time at Divine Designs far exceeded my expectations. Nahid, the store’s über-​talented seamstress, served as my consultant that day. She was friendly and attentive. I described for her the dress that I had pictured for myself, and I gave her my budget. She brought out several sample gowns that were true to what I had in mind, and all within my budget. When I tried them on, however, none of them were «the one.» Nahid asked careful questions about what wasn’t working for me, and then she went back to the sample room.
She returned with an exquisite Monique Lhuillier lace sheath, far from anything that I had originally described. I had never thought of a lace dress before, but this lace was stunning! When I slipped on the dress and came out to the mirror to show my mother, both of our jaws dropped. Nahid had found «the one» for me! Monique Lhuillier perfection coupled with sharing this experience with my mother made this a done deal. After purchasing the gown, my mother and I left the store with butterflies.
Divine Designs was accommodating several months later when I requested to return to try on the sample dress while my maid-​of-​honor was in town.
Once my dress arrived, my fitting also went very smoothly at the shop. Nahid was a true master at alterations. It only took one fitting to get the perfect, hour-​glass silhouette I was looking for.
I cannot recommend Divine Designs enough. Try to go on a Friday or Saturday, when Nahid is there. She knew what would suit me better than I did! Keep an open mind when trying on gowns, and hopefully your experience will be as positive as mine. I cannot wait to wear my gown this summer. Such a shame it’s only once! Thank-​you, Divine Designs.

Divine Designs has one of the best set ups in terms dressing rooms and mirrors. It is an elegant, spacious environment that really lets you imagine yourself on your wedding day with plenty of room for moms and sisters. Their gowns are not available for customers to browse through. They bring you gowns based on your likes and their experience and expertise in dressing brides, much like the popular TV show, Say Yes to the Dress.
The best part of Divine Designs is Nahid, the alterations tailor. She is AMAZING. She has been doing wedding dress alterations for, I think she said 20 + years and it shows. She is the best. When I went for my fitting, she asked me detailed questions that really made me confident the dress would fit me perfectly. Some of the questions were, «are you on your period and if so, do you normally retain water, what part of your cycle will you be in on your wedding day, when you gain and/​or lose weight, where does it come from, do you gain or lose when under stress». She also advised me not to drink alcohol before the wedding as she has seen customers increase up to 4 inches from having a few beers the night before, making them unable to zip the dress all the way up. All great advice! She also created an unconventional way to bustle my dress that kept the integrity of it and made it perfect for the dance floor. She is absolutely FANTASTIC.
At the dress appointment, my dress consultant, Jessica brought me a number of dresses that fit the description of what I wanted. At the end of the fitting, she brought me one that upon first look, I absolutely did NOT like but decided to try it on based on her recommendation. It turned out to be «the one». I would never have picked it on my own and once she put it on me, that was it. I LOVE the dress and it fit my body type to a T.
My only criticism is that the shop has a policy of only letting you try the dress on a total of three times, when you buy it, when you do the fitting, and one more time. For me, it worked out because I tried it when I bought it, I went back and tried it on to pick out accessories, and for the fitting but it made me nervous to discover that I was limited in trying the dress on, especially after making such an investment. Monica is very firm on her policies and will not give you any wiggle room. Make sure you read the contract and love the dress because this is not one of the shops that will negotiate with you on details after you sign.

After I initially purchased my dress from Divine Designs I had every intention of writing a glowing five star review, but my experience since then has tempered my enthusiasm somewhat.
The Good — Adorable, cozy space that felt SO much less sterile than the dozen other shops I had been in prior to my visit. My friend and her baby sat in comfort while I tried on dress after gorgeous dress. The selection was fantastic and I think I would have been thrilled with any one of the many dresses that I tried on. Monica has excellent taste and the selection was truly spectacular. I settled on my dream dress, which I got a great price on (great for a Vera Wang that is, it was still very expensive), and felt like a princess on my wedding day. I got many compliments on how unique and special my dress was, and I’m thankful to Monica for helping me fine it.
The Not-​As-​Good. Two specific things made me slightly less enthused about my experience with Divine Designs. First, when I tried on the dress I expressed some concern that because of the design I might not be able to shorten it as much as I’d need to in order to wear a lower heel. The question was kind of dismissed as being not a problem, but when the dress arrived I was disappointed to find out that indeed, the dress could not be shortened as much as I would have liked, which required me to wear a much higher heel than I was really comfortable in. In addition, since the wedding and consulting with several local dry cleaners I learned that the dress required some very special cleaning process that they were not able or willing to do. Having no idea how to proceed with getting the dress cleaned, I called Monica, who promised she’d consult with her Vera rep and get back to me. I never heard back from her, and the dress is still sitting uncleaned 6 months later.
So in summary, excellent shopping experience, not as great post-​purchase customer service as I would have expected.

I lived near the NW 23^rd location of Divine Design back in 2004. I would walk by often and drool over their display windows and dream about the day when I would get to go inside as a bride to be. When I got engaged my best friend set up an appointment for us to go and try dresses on. I was so excited that I would actually be going in as a bride!
The show room is really pretty and the pedestal is grand and makes you feel like a princess. Also I was the only bride in the boutique which also made me feel pretty important… However that’s where the good feelings stopped.
I was shown only dresses that the lady thought I would look good in. She showed me 5 dresses in total and none were in the sillouhette that I had asked to see. She rushed me through the entire appointment in 20 minutes. She didn’t respect what I was asking for and didn’t make me feel special at all.
Even if you have the money to spend on these dresses take your business to a boutique that will give you the whole experience!
Treating clients terribly doesn’t make people want to spend thousands of dollars at your business!

I hate to give one-​star reviews — everyone has some redeeming characteristics, right? But aside from their pretty display windows, I can’t tell you anything good about this place. Why? Because I never got to go inside.
Wait wait wait! Before you call me hasty — I did my best to go. I went to their location. «By appointment» was posted. Fine. So I called them during their posted hours. I got an answering machine, and left a message with my contact info saying I’d like to talk about setting up an appointment. Didn’t hear back. This happened three more times.
Were they away for a week? If so, their answering machine should have said so or they should’ve left a note on their door or website.
It’s been two weeks since I started calling & I’m giving up. From what I’ve seen this isn’t the kind of business that I’d trust that kind of money with.

i didn’t find divine designs to be rude or snobby WHATSOEVER. monica was gracious and attentive and picked out *the most* beautiful dresses i tried on in my entire gown search.
that said, the prices are STEEP! everything i tried on was between 3500 and 7000.
if money is no object, you can’t find a more beautiful, well-​kept, and well-​run bridal operation in town. but if money is an object, you’ll have to politely take your leave after about 45 minutes and remind yourself that using a student loan to pay off a wedding dress charge is a bad look.
which makes me wonder exactly what kind of a market portland has for such $$$$ dresses.