u/BumblebeeLow8818

Has anyone done a custom or semi-custom couture gown with Miss Sohee, Wiederhoeft, or a similar designer? I'd love to hear your experience and whether it felt worth it in the end.

My original budget was $20K, but I haven't found anything that I truly love, so I'm open to raising it for something semi-custom. Budget is flexible, but Schiaparelli ($50-100K+) is unfortunately out of reach (one can dream though)

Would especially love to hear about cost, timelines, fitting process, and how the final result compared to expectations!

Hi BBB community! This is half rant half "I need advice."

Just got back initial quotes on hair and makeup and feeling genuinely shocked by these costs.

I'm ok with splurging if I can justify it. For example, with photographers, I felt like I could kind of see the difference between $10K work, $30K work, and $60K work. I ended up booking at the higher end and felt good about it because I could see what I was paying for.

But I'm having trouble understanding the HMUA costs. Some of the additional hourly add-on rates I got quoted are the same as my prenup lawyer, who has a JD and decades of experience...

What is the HMUA skillset that I'm missing? I don't want to undervalue any vendor, I'm just struggling to understand the cost here. And fully realize I might just be ignorant to this industry

Separately, is there a skill ceiling with these HMUA where past a certain price point you're just paying for the name?