Dress shopping in hell

Alright, last weekend I gave dress shopping one last try. I hit up the Kleinfeld Sample Sale (yes, the famous Kleinfeld from Say Yes to the Dress), visited RK Bridal one more time and visited a new place called Designer Loft. It was a disaster.
Okay, disaster is an exaggeration. There were no fires, explosions and Will Smith didn't have to save the day, but it did not go well. First was Kleinfeld's which is a beautiful store. It's easy to see how people get sucked into spending 1000s of dollars on a dress in this luxe environment. There are crystal chandeliers, silk couches and unbelievably beautiful dresses. Unfortunately, none of them were on the end of the sale rack that I could afford. I've discovered that if you want a sale dress, you have to go with a ballgown shape, b/c that's all there is. Big, fussy dresses with bows and sequins. So even though our salesperson was very nice (offered to knock a few dollars off the price), there were no winners at Kleinfeld's.
Next up was RK Bridal part deaux. We'd already been there and like last time, it was a mad house. We had to wait an hour for a dressing room and I was rushed through every dress. Also told multiple times that this dress was too dressy for an outdoor wedding. Excuse me? How can a bride look too dressy? Am I supposed to wear overalls b/c I'm getting married outside? Every bridal magazine I've ever seen has done a beautiful spread of dresses outdoors. So I'll decide what's too dressy thank you very much. Also, she even took away the dresses I'd been considering. Then a screaming match broke out b/t the staff and a mother and I'd had enough.
Next was Designer Loft. The experience was totally different and the best so far. The shop was tiny and calm and cute. They only see two people at a time and we were the only ones there for our appointment. They have a unique selection too, although many were out of our price range. (They also have a sample sale every day, but again, every dress was ballgown.) The salesperson was very friendly (and an Arkansan!) and she and the girls almost talked me into buying this flowy Grecian type ballgown. It was beautiful, but I felt it just wasn't me. (which is weird b/c one of my girls specifically said, "it's so you." very confusing.) Anyway, even though I liked the place a lot, no winners.
So at this point, I've decided I've had it with dress shopping and called a custom dress designer. More on that next.