I have searched the forum for any information/reviews but the only post that came up was from 2011 so wondering if anyone has any more recent experiences of ordering through this website.

I've been umm-ing and ahh-ing about ordering from China for a good while now. I'm not worried about the quality really as have seen some beautiful dresses made, but obviously I want to be pretty sure the quality is going to be worth it if I do get slapped with a customs charge. I've seen a perfect dress on there for my bridesmaids and they have all 4 pastel colours that I am looking for (something I'm struggling to find in the UK). 4 dresses would be £262.17 (£306.99 with the shipping charge and insurance).

Does anyone have any idea how much customs tax I would be likely to pay on this order? I think dresses are charged at 12% of the final price but don't know if this includes the postage charge or just the dresses themselves - if just the dresses, I would be looking at £31.46. Does this sound right?!

Another option I have is s3xyh3r which is a UK based company but they order their stock in from China, so as a customer, you avoid the customs charge. They have a showroom in Croydon so I could take the girls for a day out and they can try loads of dresses on. They also have swatches of every colour so could see them with my own eyes rather than relying on pictures on the internet. The only thing with them is they don't have the 'perfect' dress, but do you think it might be worth compromising??

Look forward to hearing your opinions!! xx

I bought my wedding dress from them, absolutely cannot fault it, much better than I tried on in the shops for a fraction of the price. My dress was £82 and I paid an extra £20 when delivered.

Yeah it's a bit hit and miss.. some get stopped at customs, some don't! I think you only avoid the customs charge on gifts under £35 in value.

Another thing is custom sizing. I was originally thinking to get them custom sized to fit the girls perfectly but then you are unable to return them. So if I do go for it I think I would be better off just ordering standard sizes (will measure against the girls first to work out which size would most suit them) so if there was a problem at all I can at least return them.

Why does it have to be so complicated!! x

There are some I like on their website, but I don't LOVE them. The girls would look amazing in quite a few of them but they're not the ideal dresses I have had in my head for the last however many months. I guess it would make sense to visit the showroom just in case I happen to fall in love with some from there which make me forget all about the LITB ones, but it's still a good 2 hours to get there and trying to find a date when all the girls is free is always extremely painful lol.

I have a few months to think about it yet anyway. Not looking to spend much on the wedding over the next few months due to other bills to pay and need to pay off the final balance of OH's ring late Feb as well. x

I got my bridesmaids dresses from there and loved them so much. They are made so lovely, I got standard sizes so could send back if need be. Cannot fault them at all

We bought all of our wedding favours from them. They were great, but we did pay a customs charge though

I've not ordered from litb I keep looking at it though. Have ordered from se/y her though a few years ago for an evening do, dress was lovely and as described on the site, needed steaming though as was in a little ball when it arrived!

I thought I wanted chiffon strapless bridesmaids dresses and had it all in my head when we were shopping, but seeing them on just looked boring! I let it all go and just picked what looked ok on the rack. Found my gorgeous dresses, they have a diagonal strap across the back and are perfect!

You might only 'like' a few but you could love them when you see them on from the showroom. It might be difficult to areange with the girls, but i think give it a go :)

Do LITB not have a way to email them directly to query customs or do they see it as its not something they can help with? Xx

They do state that they are not able to estimate customs charges etc. It seems to vary so much.. from what I've read online on the directgov website, dresses from China should have a customs charge of 12%, but speaking to people about the customs charges they have had, this doesn't seem to add up at all!! x

Does 12% per item and 12% per total order not work out to the same figure?

See 12% of £200 is £24 so I just don't get how it works out. I'm pretty sure it works out to the same figure.. it's been a long time since I last did maths haha

Bump for CoralLeigh2016

I think I've found my bridesmaid dresses on the website :3 the 4/6 girls love it (I haven't asked two of them yet) and we're planning to get one sample to try on everyone!

What favours are they Kayleigh? :) x

I think just after the summer, so September/October time. I have my eye on certain ones at the moment but I'm keen to see what the spring/summer will bring dress wise, so don't want to commit just yet :) x

I'm definitely wanting to get them this year as soon as possible.. At the moment I'm guessing with the budget but it's going to be quite a significant part of the budget anyway, so keen to get the money spent as soon as I can then I can focus on the "big" things that still need to be paid without being distracted by dresses!! Taking into account their shoes, make up, hair etc. as well xx

I might actually be changing my plans and getting them now.... Lol. I've found some lovely ones, although 2 of them are from china so would be a small gamble on them, but they are a great price.

I don't think it's too early. My girls are tiny and are not likely to put on any weight, and because they are tiny they don't need to lose any either lol. Only thing is if one of them gets pregnant, which could happen any time... x

I think they do work together Flossie. I love all of them-styles and colours x

Yes they def work together. I like the peach, it goes well with the others xx

lol, yeah can't see me waiting that long either tbh haha xx