Ultimate Bride

My mom and I looked everywhere until we finally found my wedding gown at Ultimate Bride. Our bridal consultant, Rachel, was wonderful to work with (she is the one that pulled the dress I chose from the back and made me try it on!). Sometimes the professionals really do know best!

We are so pleased with our experience at Ultimate Bride! The dress selections are exquisite. Kate worked with both my daughter for her bridal gown and for my "mother of the bride" gown. Kate was very attentive and helpful. The alterations staff altered my daughter's gown and her gown fit her with perfection. Thank you Kate and to the lovely ladies in the alterations department.

I went to Ultimate Bride thinking I was going to find my dress because I thought I was going to pick a Kenneth Pool or Oscar de la Renta dress. They did not have the dresses I wanted to try on from the Kenneth Pool collection but the consultant, who was very friendly at the time, told me they had new ones coming in and that she would take all of my information and email me as soon as she knew the exact dates of the new arrivals but that it should be within a month. That was the last I ever heard from them. I emailed the consultant and the store and called and noone answered or got back to me. Luckily I found a beautiful St Pucchi gown down the street at Belle Vie. I don't really know what happened but I have been told that they size you up and if they don't think you look like you have the money for a couture gown they will completely ignore you. Guess I didn't look like a couture bride, too bad they didn't know my parents were paying for the wedding.

My experience here was wonderful! Kate was an absolute dear and really helped me find (and DECIDE ON) the dress I wanted. When I waivered, in favor of a dress twice the price, she talked me down and assured me my orig dress was the dress for me. She was sweet and patient and helpful and endlessly pleasant. All the girls I brought with me agreed that even thought I could get the dress closer to home (in MKE) that I should buy it from Kate because she was so fantastic.

My budget was $3000 to $5000 and I came in under $3000!

The woman I tried on with listened to what I was saying while I tried on, and eventually brought me the Monique Lhullier that made my mom cry. It was more than I wanted to spend, but I was able to catch them on a trunk show weekend and make it doable. The altering was perfect and beautiful and the women were so adorable, helpful, and complementary. They made me feel perfect. I would definitely recommend Ultimate.

The best dress shop in the Chicagoland area by far! My consultant was the sweetest woman ever. Since I live an hour away from the shop, we spoke mostly on the phone and she put so much effort into finding the perfect dress for me. I had already bought one dress from another store and was unhappy with it, so I was on a limited budget for a second dress. She found me a sample that was brand new and before I even saw it, she predicted that it was the one I was going to love. She was right!

I had a great experience at the Ultimate Bride. Stephanie was my consultant. She was wonderful! She helped me find the dress of my dreams. The first dress she showed me was the one I picked. She is an asset to Ultimate Bride. Make your appointment with Stephanie! You will not be disappointed.
Even after I chose my dress, Ultimate Bride was very professional. They called me the moment my dress came in. Then they let me know to save on tax, I can ship my dress out of state. Fortunately, I was able to do so and saved a ton of money. It was truly worth it!
Once I brought my dress to be altered, Maria was in charge of the alterations. She was very professional and did a great job on altering my dress. I had a strapless dress, I never had to worry about anything coming out or shifting down. It fit perfectly. I was able to enjoy my day with no worries.
Overall, I had a great experience at the Ultimate Bride. Even after I purchased my dress, they still gave me great service until the day I took my dress home. Everyone I encountered there was wonderful to work with from the person who made my veil to the person who made the last adjustments to my wedding dress. I was very pleased with the Ultimate Bride experience.

I was a little nervous at first when I made my appointment at Ultimate Bride, because I knew they carried very expensive gowns and I had heard that occasionally they could be a bit snotty. This was not the case at all. The salesgirl who sold me my dress was totally polite and helpful and I really appreciated the effort she put forth in helping me find my dress. (I can be a bit shy and reserved, so the many questions she asked about what I was looking for really helped us narrow things down).

The gown which I ultimately chose was perfect. We had managed to find a gown which was a wonderful reflection of me (not just another white dress...) I received many compliments on my gown and I cannot recommend the salon more highly. Yes, their gowns are more pricey than others, but just make sure to ask when you make your appointment so it fits with your budget.

Lastly I really must mention that their alterations department was excellent. They fitted my gown to me perfectly and I did not have to worry at any point during my wedding whether my gown would stay up, whether the bustle would hold up or whether anything looked funny.

I had a WONDERFUL experience at Ultimate Bride. From the moment I walked in they were warm and friendly and expecting me. I wanted something really architectural and had fallen in love with Ulla-maijie ,UB is the only place in the city to carry them. I had emailed them in advance about the gowns I wanted to see and my price point. So when I got there all the dresses I liked plus some they thought I might like were waiting for me. Kate was my sales person and she was a saint. I had narrowed it down to 2 different Ulla dresses that had very different vibes. I couldn't decide and she let me go way over my time slot trying them on over and over again. I went with my mom and my FMIL and she was so nice to them and really made sure to include them in the process. I actually left with out a dress because I needed to think about it and they were as nice to me leaving as when I came in. I emailed Kate the next day with my choice which is on my bio if you wish to see it :) I can't tell you how wonderful they made buying my dress after purchasing 2 at sample sales and not being in love with either. They made that fairy tale moment come true for me. My dress is truly custom made for me and only me. they measured me in about a hundred different ways so it shouldn't have to be altered a bit. They also will be packaging it specially for me to make the 5 hour plane ride to Mexico with out a wrinkle for free.I also received a sketch of my dress and a swatch of fabric from my actual dress from the designer a couple weeks ago. I just think its the coolest thing in the world. Its the first thing in my scrap book. I cant wait for my dress to arrive It still makes me excited every time I see it!! You just can't get this stuff anywhere else.


In response to the other review. I feel the questions about my wedding and the size helped them to find me a more appropriate gown for my wedding and to build a good repor. UB is expensive. But you get what you pay for. You cant go in with a max budget of 3000.00 and expect to find the dress of your dream. You would be much better off going to a store with lower price point dresses. With that said if you have to have that Oscar, or Carolina, ML, Kennith pool or ULLA!! gown this is the place you want to go. They only carry certain brands and cater to that niche much like davids bridal dose for its brides.

My mom and I flew to the Ultimate Bride for the day to purchase my wedding gown. Ultimate Bride was the only bridal store that was willing to find and bring in the wedding dress of my dreams. Driving to my appointment they had "my" dress placed in their storefront window, which was exciting to see. Although the store was very busy during our appointment that service and attentiveness of our consultant. It was a wonderful experience to go along with our wonderful wedding day. My dress looked AMAZING!

I shopped and shopped for my perfect dress. I was in the suburbs, downtown, and all over. Finally i stopped at the ultimate bride, and though a smaller shop, I found 2 dresses I loved. it was a very hard decision for me. My sales girl was faboulous, one dress higher than i budgeted, the other more in my budget, but still over.
I probably tried the dresses on 5 times each, and then left without making a decision. I slept on it a few nights, then went back with my mil and mom. The place was very nice, and I absolutely loved my dress. I actually chose the one more within my budget, not for price but because it was so me.
Overall a good place to go, service was very good, and selection was good also.

Customer service is outstanding here. My dress was ready AS promised. Very professional. Didn't do bridesmaid's dresses here but loved my gown!

Dress was amazing... I lost a lot of weight between ordering the dress and getting alterations (the dress fell off me) and the alterations were amazing... couldn't even tell they had to take it in so much.

Ultimate Bride made me feel like the most beautiful bride in the world. From the moment I stepped foot in the cute, unique boutique, I knew I would not have any trouble finding a dress. The best part about my experience with Ultimate Bride was that I found a dress online by Monique Lhuillier and Ultimate Bride was able to locate it for me and fly it in so I could try it on! I ended up buying that dress for my wedding.

Possibly the best alterations in Chicago. My dress was gorgeous and fit like a dream. I went to try on dresses with my mom, and the sales lady was a little sappy for my taste, but my mom liked it so it was fine. Overall, just loved my dress, it fit perfectly, and even though it was ridiculously expensive (as were the alterations) I couldn't be happier with it. You get what you pay for here.

They were helpful picking my dress, more importantly they altered my dress so precisely and it fit me PERFECT... I found it in the end that my dress was very hard to fix as the material is so thin and fitting, that they must fix all the details and made it happen! so impressed. And fun to work with!

There are three components that should come together in order for me to appreciate any store. Bridal store is no exception. The three components are selection, customer service, and price.

Ultimate Bride, in my personal opinion, is not succeeding in any one of those categories. Ultimate Bride is located on Oak street and clearly caters to a typical Oak street clientele. Thus, the selection of their gowns tend to be more about the richness of materials than about the uniqueness of design. In other words, you get your typical variety of classical wedding gowns from the top bridal designers. There are almost no architectural, deconstructed, funky, etc. designs that can suit somebody with a modern and eclectic taste.

The only exception would be gowns from Suzanne Ermann who is a smaller French designer and whose gowns are very fairy tale influenced and have a distinctive European vibe.

The store also stocks Carolina Herrera, who is probably the most unique of the American bridal designers. However, Ultimate Bride's selection of Carolina Herrera is fairly mediocre.

With respect to the prices, they start at $ 2800 and go all the way to $ 20000. Moreover, their sales people try to "size" you the moment you enter the store by asking you completely unrelated to the gown shopping questions about the size and location of your wedding. They also bring you gowns they preselected for you. You can's go and pick you own gowns. Interestingly enough, they try to show you the most expensive gowns first so that, maybe, you can fall in love with the dress at the top of your budget before you saw a less expensive choice.

Customer service is also less than desired especially if you had an opportunity to compare this shop to similar bridal boutiques like Belle Vie. Unlike Belle Vie, this shop is nothing but pretentiousness, ignorance, and attitude. They treat you as if you owe them money, especially if you are not in the $10000 plus gown category. This store is only worth the trip if you are 1) into Monique Lullier gowns because their selection of Monique is probably the best in town, 2) unable to find anything good in other bridal stores, and 3) want to spend at least $ 3000 for a gown.

I was a little hesitant at first to go to Ultimate Bride, thinking they would be a snotty, stuffy Oak Street salon. I couldn't have been more wrong. Stephanie was the greatest salesperson-sweet and personable, I looked forward to seeing her each time I went there. I ended up with a version of the 3rd dress I tried on. I got a custom made Monique Lhuillier gown and vail. There were some glitches with the 1st version of the dress, which had nothing to do with the bridal studio. They did everything to fix the problem and expediate the process. I found them to be so accommodating, and Maria is the most talented seamstress I have ever encountered. After 7 fittings, and many changes, I ended up with a spectacular one of a kind gown. It was breathtaking. Each time I arrived, I was treated with respect and made to feel like a queen. I would definitely recommend Ultimate Bride to anyone.

Brandy helped make my wedding dress shopping experience easy and memorable! My wedding dress and entire look was everthing I envisioned thanks to Brandy and Ultimate Brides!

This store is only about the first impression. The first time we went to Ultimate Bride it was great. The service was great, and the dresses were beautiful. However, once I began going there for the fittings, my opinion quickly changed. They no longer cared about me and the personal touch was gone. The seamstress was great, but after the wedding, we received a bill for several hundred dollars for items that only take minutes to do. The service is phony, the dresses more expensive than at other stores, and the atmosphere stiff. I would not recommend this salon.

Amazing service and beautiful dresses. It is a bit pricey, but they were so helpful and did an awesome job.

I heard about an upcoming sample sale at Ultimate Bride and ended up falling in love with the first dress I saw and tried on. I can't believe I got such a one-of-a-kind dress at a somewhat affordable price!

We used The Ultimate Bride (Brandi) for both my gown and my bridesmaids' dresses. Everything came out perfectly, on time, with no problems. The ladies there are very professional, and extremely helpful. They had the best selection of designer gowns in the city.

I would recommend this vendor highly............. I especially liked their professionalism!