Our Wedding: The Dress

Okay, so writing a giant post about the wedding is extremely overwhelming, so instead I'm going to break it down into some separate posts.

First off... the dress.

Nothing makes the fact that your getting married sink in like going wedding dress shopping for the first time...

I went with Alesha and my mom for the first time and I thought for a long time that I was going to wind up with one of the dresses from that very first visit.

I didn't have a particular style in mind when I started out. I knew that I was not a fan of the mermaid fit, but that was the only thing that I officially ruled out. I like lace dresses but I didn't think I wanted a completely lace dress either. The first dress that I tried on had peek-a-boo lace at the bottom, it was slightly off white and would look amazing with my cowboy boots that I was planning to wear. This was a serious contender. I looked for some other dresses with this feature as well.

{  Brittney Bridal Gown by Maggie Sottero }

{  I believe this was the same designer as above dress  }

But I also loved this fairy tale dress too... another in the line of contenders. Mom teared up a little bit when I came out in this dress. It would be perfect for a courtyard garden wedding.

{  Designer: Casablanca  }

Then I found this lace dress with a satin side sweep, it wasn't as full as the others which is why it eventually got nixed (along with the fact that it was more gold than white), but I was definitely in LOVE with it. Just not as my wedding dress. If it would have been a fancier wedding, I think this would have been the one.

{  Such a gorgeous dress! but I can't remember the designer. ugh! I'm still head over heels for this one... }

We visited many small bridal shops in the St. Luis Metro area over the months, but I couldn't make a final decision.

Mom and I decided to go to David's Bridal one day to look at their bridemaids' dresses. While we were there mom convinced me to try on a few dresses even though in my mind I had already decided I didn't want a dress from David's. I thought since it was such a popular chain store that I'd have a better shot of finding a unique dress somewhere else.

They didn't have any that were like the previous dresses that I'd fallen in love with. By this point I thought my dress was destined to have the peekaboo lace at the bottom, but they didn't have any like that. So I went to the racks and grabbed some totally different choices. None of which turned out to be my dress.

{   David's Bridal Gown  }

As it happens, the woman next to me was trying on a gown that caught my eye. A simple, understated cotton lace. I patiently waited and asked my consultant if I could try the dress on after her. I didn't get the "It's the one!" feeling immediately upon putting it on, but I certainly liked it and kept it on for quite a while. I didn't ring the bell that day (it's a thing at David's Bridal) but eventually I would come back and choose this dress.

{  Galina Lace Ball Gown  }

Now, I still don't like David's Bridal very much, the price of my dress was great but the service was LACKING. Every time we went in I had a different consultant because nobody was ever employed there very long. When I went in to actually order my dress I said "this is the one!" and I asked if they needed to take my measurements, my consultant at that time said that we could if I wanted but it wasn't necessary. When the dress finally came in and I went in for alterations, the lady said it was over a size too big and I would be better off seeing if another local store had the size smaller. Luckily, another one had one, because the size they ordered me, even after it was pinned, would have been a disaster on the dance floor. It had no chance of staying up. It all worked out in the end, but unless you find your dream dress there, they would not be my first recommendation.

My best recommendation for other brides might be to sew their undergarments to the dress. Despite alterations (which were very expensive through David's Bridal) I was still pulling up my dress frequently throughout the night. Take every precaution you can to keep that baby up so you can be comfortable all night long, especially on the dance floor! It was a goal of mine to get a lace up dress so it would always be a perfect fit even if I had some last minute stress induced weight loss (which I did), but alas it was not meant to be. My dress had a zipper.

However, I'm very thankful my mom convinced me to try on some of what David's Bridal had to offer because I absolutely picked the perfect dress for my wedding!

The dress I picked was incredibly light weight, it was all lace but in a more casual way, and as many people witnessed during the ceremony, it had pockets! We each had a reading before our vows and so I kept the paper with the reading in the pocket, and it surprised a lot of people when I reached in to pull it out. Friends and family kept commenting at the reception, "Your dress is beautiful, and I love that it has POCKETS!" I played around a lot with adding a belt or sewing on a little bling to liven up the dress just a tad, but in the end I kept it in it's original form. With the jewelry, veil, and flowers it didn't end up needing anything else. It was a laid back dress for a laid back bride.

There were so many dresses that I loved, but it was all about choosing the right one for my personality and the feel of our entire celebration.  Personally, I think I nailed it!

{  Above set of Photos by Stephanie Bannon Photography  }

You will see much more of THE DRESS in the posts to come!

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