Episode 35 "Is that dress even real? How AI images are shaping bridal expectations"

Description

🎙In this episode of Every Body is a Bridal Body, Natasha and Kassidy tackle the growing trend of AI-generated wedding dress images flooding platforms like Pinterest and TikTok—and the major impact they’re having on bridal expectations. From viral gowns that don’t actually exist to unrealistic price tags generated by apps, we’re pulling back the curtain on how artificial intelligence is shaping (and sometimes distorting) the bridal shopping experience. If you’ve ever wondered why that “perfect” dress can’t be found in stores, or why recreating an AI-generated look isn’t as simple as it seems, this episode is for you. 

🎧 What You'll Learn:
What AI-generated bridal images are 

• Why these gowns often can’t be matched or custom-made at the listed price
• How AI is influencing modern brides’ expectations around style and cost
• The challenges bridal consultants face when Pinterest gowns don’t exist IRL
• How to use AI-generated images as inspiration while staying grounded in reality
• Real tips from Tash & Kass on finding a dress that’s beautiful and attainable
• 📌 Resources & References:
  Artificial Intelligence and Why It Will Change the Wedding Industry
• Saying “I Do” to AI: How Technology is Revolutionizing the Bridal Industry
• Say 'Yes' To The (AI) Dress: Navigating Artificial Intelligence in Bridal Gown Selection

💍 Don’t Get Fooled by Fake Gowns:
The best dresses are the ones made to fit you, not a prompt. Visit va-bridal.com to book your bridal appointment and see exclusive designer gowns you can actually wear down the aisle.

📱 Follow Us on Instagram: @va_bridal
Stay inspired with real gowns, real brides, and expert tips for making your dress dreams a reality.

Have questions or episode ideas? Email us at everybodypod@va-bridal.com

Episode 35 "Is that dress even real? How AI images are shaping bridal expectations"

This automatic transcript is brought to you by  AI technology.

Test test. Can you hear my microphone test? I think it's working, is it? Yeah? I can see it. Sweet, So instead of pausing, we're just gonna we're going right into it. We sure are.

Sorry, guys, we're a little chaotic, trying to We're trying to cross our legs, get things situated. This isn't working for me, and then our cords are tangled. We got a hot damn mess. Always what's hoss express? Chug at you? All right, that's where you're stopping.

Check at you. I don't know. There you go. I haven't had my afternoon coffee.

But it's also four oh seven pm yep on a Wednesday. Yep. And I won't. I shouldn't do that to myself.

I feel that it's hard. It is hard. Just tastes so good, you know. Well, hey guys, look we're filming another episode.

Sorry guys, we're doing our best. We're figuring all of the logistics. I think now that we've sprung forward and having more sunlight is helping me mentally do more. That's nice.

Me in the mornings, that's the worst. I'm not saying mornings good. I'm just saying this springing forward makes me feel like just sluggish all day because of that change. My body takes forever to adapt to it.

So I'm like, can we just leave it at this time? It's true, Police, you really struggle. Yeah, yeah, I'm sorry. Yeah, which is weird because when we go to New York, I don't struggle. I think it's just because you're in a different environment and you're there doing something super effing cool that you just.

Get so excited. My adrenaline is like, that's all I am on vacation though, I don't care how tired I am. Oh yeah, no, same, That's all it is. I love it.

Okay, Well, I'm gonna follow my script, I wrote after about two and a half minute intro. Hey everyone, sorry, let me try that more serious. This is gonna be a long episode. We're doing great.

Hey hey everyone, welcome back to Everybody is a bridal body. I'm Natasha and I'm Cassidy, and today we are diving into something we've both seen a lot lately, AI generated images and how they're totally shifting what brides expect when they walk through our doors. Pinterest and TikTok are overflowing with these dreamy, too good to be true wedding gowns, and a lot of the time they are too good to be true because they were never real to begin with. Bom bom bomb.

They're really good at sound effects. Now I know what we can do on the side to make. Sash cash exactly. So all right, well, welcome to AI generated images and how they're affecting the industry.

They're affecting a lot of industries, not just ours. Yeah, our nail girl has complaining to time or two about her clients come up with AI generated nail art and she's like, bitch, I can't do that. I've seen a couple. But today I was on Pinterest just trying to see what AI generated wedding dresses I come across, and as I clicked on one, then I saw AI generated wedding cakes and designs, and I was like, this is insane.

It's affecting everybody now, which is. Wild because we've tried using AI to generate pictures for us and we've gotten things that look like human centipedes. Oh absolutely, I'm like, what is your guys's AI generated tool you're using? But yeah, there are some little things here and there that kind of helped uspot it, like there was one where this girl's eye was a little wonky, and I was like, that's not real. And then there was one where a mannequin on one side was missing fingers.

I was gonna say, fingers usually is a big one where like there's either too many not enough, shapes are odd. Yeah, And then I saw one where on like a mannequin bodice, the neck and chest were like pasty white, and then the arms were like nude tone, and I was like, huh, that's bizarre. Yeah, I don't know. Well, let's talk about what it actually means when we say AI generated.

These are images created by artificial intelligent tools apps or software that generate hyper realistic photos of gowns that don't actually exist. Right, And some of some wow, I can't you know. I have a script to make sure I stay on topic, and then I. All over myself.

That's how we are, So let me. Try this again. So some of these look so legit even we've had to do a double take. But they're not from designers, they're not available to order, and a lot of the time they're just digital art.

Yeah, it's it's really interesting to see. Well, and the amount of times that like I'm just mindlessly scrolling Pinterest. And even like food, Oh yeah, AI. Generated, and like I look at it and I'm like, what the hell food is that? Right? You know, the weirdest things right now are AI generated.

It's wild, it's interesting. So I'm curious to see how good it gets as the years go on. Yeah, and it's a challenging that it poses for bridle shops because here's the tricky part. Brides will bring in these images and say this is my dream dress and then ask if we can match it down to the silhouette, the fabric, the beadwork, and even the price tag listed on the pin, which is usually way below market value.

I mean, we've already complained how Pinterest puts us in a tough spot. Yeah, and we really want to make your dress dreams come true, but it's hard when the starting point is an image that's. Not rooted in reality. So then you're asking us to create something for you with unrealistic expectations, not just on price, but in the production timelines and design feasibility.

Yeah. Also keep in mind, on that thread, a lot of those pins you find on Pinterest, of these AI generated addresses that do have a price tag and have a website is some sort of Chinese manufacturing facility. And yeah, Cash showed me what she found down a rabbit hole of one the way I audibly gasped and I told her that in our Marco Polo early this morning. Yeah, I literally went like it, oh caught me off by guard.

I was like, oh, Ai generated image and then it was like it had an eBay you are out and like. Maybe it's kind of legit because it's ebaby. I was like, maybe I'm just seeing it wrong and it's not Ai. We found it on ebaye, tell me why? Sorry weird? I will always be so good.

But when I had clicked on it and then I went through, like the first three photos were this AI generated image and then the next two were of what you're actually going to get and it looked nothing like the photo. Guys, it is a train wreck and a half. It was okay, And I mean the picture is very cutesy, very fairy like, very much the fantasy themesical that so many brides want. Right now.

I don't know if this is outside of like our little bubble, but like we just get fantasy girlies and listen, I'm here for it. It's a lot of fun. But this image was all sorts of colorful floral applicats. The dress was on like a dress and like, I don't know, some type of mystical looking clearing that was clearly not real, right, And the dress had all of those ruffles that are like cascading masker, and it had all the lace placement, and it looked very very much like something one of my brides who wants Elvish fantasy dd the rings yep, type of wedding yep.

And then you go to eBay and you scroll the images and it goes from a front AI to a back AI and then a dress on an actual dress form in a manufacturing facility. That is the ugliest thing I have ever witnessed. Yep. And I was like, that's where the one hundred and forty nine dollars and ninety nine cents.

Yep, that makes sense. Now. The lace looked like if you were if somebody was describing this lace to a person and they were recreating it, so it looked cheap and awful and off. And then there were no ruffles.

It was awful. I mean, I think they attempted a ruffle, but they just didn't know how to secut it. Yeah, and the dress, the real dress looked so itchy. I was just like, yeah, my my skin was crawling.

I was like. Nope, yeah, I And it's not even with only AI images. Yeah, it's fair. A lot of the times when you're saving dresses and you see a price tag, it's not the actual designer.

It's not real. So because all high end designers won't put their price on Pinterest, No, they. Don't know because there's when we've already explained there's a million factors as to why, and you've just seen to call your local store and find out what the pricing is and they will give it to you, maybe not over the phone. So now we do just because.

We're up front. We're not gonna screw you over. We're not gonna lie to you. Like but if you come in telling me I found my dream dress on Pinterest for one hundred and forty nine dollars and ninety nine cents, but I'm willing to give you eight hundred dollars.

We'll probably laugh in your face. We're not gonna lack kidding. I'm kidding, I'm kidding, I mean your face. That was like yeah, but no, I love you.

Well, we'll break it down to you saying your expectations are going to be more in this. Price point, yes, and we'll always give you that. We're always up front. But because of these gowns, why is this gown being can't be matched and what brides can do instead? So let's explain why we can't just recreate an AI gown.

First, These images aren't based on any actual pattern, construction method or textile. They're visual ideas, not finish garments exactly. And even if you could custom make something similar, the price point wouldn't match that four one hundred dollars price tag or one hundred and fifty dollars price tag that you saw on Pinterest. Most custom gowns start at several thousand, and by several, I mean probably like four to six thousand, yeah, at a low end, yeah, and then they definitely go up from there.

But it's because you're paying for not only the craftsmanship, but all the materials, the you know, custom patterning we're gonna be doing, and the designer's time because the amount of hours it takes to one think of the dress in your head. Two we're then gonna sketch. Said dress at sketching takes. A sload of time, guys, a shload.

Third, you're then gonna take a million measurements. Fourth, you're gonna make patterns, and you're probably gonna draft more than one variation of said pattern because there's a lot of pattern adjustments and they still haven't even physically cut the fabric, sown it, nothing up to that point. So that's why things cost several thousand dollars. And we all know from you pattern making is a rough job.

I will gladly give every pattern maker what they deserve and then some same with every seamstress what they deserve, and then some because the work they do is God's work and it is not work that the average person can do. Yeah, it's wild. Yeah, So if you come in with those images, let's say this is what we can do and use them as inspiration. Yep, we will ask what you love about the photo? Is it the sleeve detail, the shape of the dress, the vibe.

Then we can pull real gowns that match that feeling from designers who actually make them. Yes, And that is honestly something we do in our appointment process with you. Yeah, what we call and we are confirming details for the appointment requests you've submitted. Heads up, we are by appointment requests now, and you don't just self serve and directly book your appointment.

Just to make sure we. Can take care of you in that process, we will ask you to text us images, send us your Pinterest board so we can get a vibe. Obviously, there are rare occasions that brides actually pin something by a designer that we have in story and then it's like, hey, that's pretty cool. Yeah.

For the most part, we look at it for inspiration. We're not actually going to pull those dresses. We're getting an overall view of what's internally locked in that little brain of yours yep, and saying you know what, here's the dresses that we have in store that match the vibe version that we can pull. Yeah, so we'll try to find those aesthetics you've liked and then show you what we have.

Absolutely, and this is going to lead us into the role of education and bridal experts. So why booking an appointment in a store is important. So at the end of the day, this is where bridal consultants and boutique odors like myself, where we come in it's our job to help educate rides in a kind and respectful way because most of them have no idea that these images are even AI generated. Yeah, they're just excited they get to put on dresses.

It's meant for their big day, and we totally get that. But shopping for your dress is about more than chasing an image. It's about the experience, the fit in, how you feel when you're in the gown. And keep in mind when a lot of those AI generated pins do lead back to an eBay or, like I said, some type of Chinese manufacturing website, the images they show, if they're kind enough, like the eBay, want to actually show us the real gown versus what they created with an AI system.

I feel like most of the times you don't get to see what it's really going to look like. So thank god that they do that at least so then you're not blindsided when this shipment shows up at your house and you're like, what the hell is this? So we always caution that online shopping like window shopping quote unquote and dress research is great, but please do not get fixated on an image of something, being. Like I have to have this. We've even had brides come in.

Before, for like Elizabeth Lee Stuff, who have AI generated gowns and want something super specific that I don't even know where to begin to help them find that fabric. Let alone, if we pay a textile company to make that textile for us, the amount of mone you were spending is just astronomical. Yeah, And I feel like if they're so set on an image a gown but then maybe not the price point or just not open, it's like, how can we help you? Yeah, So come and open minded. Don't put yourself in this little box of being obsessed with something to the point that nothing else will compare, because if it is an AI image, literally nothing will compare.

So you've got to just come and open minded, and as Cass mentioned, explain to us what parts of it you are drawn to so we can draw the inspiration from that and help you find a realistic gown. Yeah. So, if you are a bride scrolling like I said, through Pinterest TikTok, and you do fall in love with a gown. Pause and ask yourself is this real? Is it actually available? For the most part, I will say if it's a real or TikTok, I know there's AI generated stuff, because like there's those weird AI videos on TikTok of like Atlantis or The Day POMPEII, and it is creepy.

Yeah as hell, it's Yeah. I have not yet seen it in the dresses world, but maybe for some reason it hasn't shown up. No. I thought I had found one that was a video, but it was just like a video but of a photo, and I was like, oh, I was hoping to see what an AI video address looked like.

So I haven't seen any of those yet. So at this point, I think the main place you are going to see AI generated images for your viewing pleasure in regards to wedding gowns is Pinterest. So for the most. Part, I would say, if you are still a pinterest curly, absolutely use it.

But for more modern research, I would swap to Instagram or TikTok, whichever platform you prefer, just because you'll get more realistic gowns, ones that are like real, actually made, and you can see them on real bodies, you can see their movements, get glimpses of them up close the way they're stylized. So I think it's a little bit better for the modern bride rather than Pinterest. Right, and if you're on Pinterest and you love Pinterest, get used to reverse Google search. Yes, a thousand percent, because you could throw that picture in the little Google icon you click the little camera, you can upload the photo from your phone.

Yep. Literally, it's gonna pull up anything that matches it. If there isn't a direct hit, it's just gonna show you similar things. Yep.

So for me, if there's not a direct hit, like if you take a designer stock photo and you do a Google reverse image search, it's going to pull up with that designer's page, and any retailers maybe that carry it, like anyone who has mentioned that dress name or style number in their platform of like a website or social media. It's gonna pull absolutely so, but just take it with a grain of salt. Yeah, say with everything else, but absolutely draw inspiration from your AI creations, whether you do it or find it online. But as we mentioned, make sure you come in with an open mind and let your consulting guide you to what's really out there that's going to bring that vision to life to make you feel the way you're hoping to fill in your dress.

Absolutely and trust us what's real can be just as magical. My voice wanted to disappear for a second. Okay, yeah, great, magically stealing your voice like. But it can be just as magical.

If you're ready to start your bridal journey, head to our website and book your appointment. We would love to help you find that perfect dress that is AI free. What that's crazy? Well, guys, thank you for joining us today. Cas and I always have so much fun recording these and like I said, we're getting on top of doing it.

If you have any topic ideas, feel free to dm us on social media or email us. All of that will be in our show notes. And just remember that everybody is a bridal body. We'll talk to you soon.

Bye. By bag buncle burger. I don't know number bank Um by bang ramba b bang bang.