My original plan had been to sew my own dress - but I definitely didn't have time for that at this point. So when I first decided to start looking for one, I felt like I had to mentally prepare myself for an ordeal. I was expecting to have to go to a minimum of three stores and try on perhaps a couple dozen dresses, because what I wanted in a dress was not particularly traditional, nor currently popular in style. What I was looking for, the ideal that I had in mind, was something tea-length (ie. mid-shin or so), very simple lines, not a lot of excess fabric, and easy on the extra frills and beads and lace. I also had thought that I'd find something with a shallow V-neck, with straps almost-but-not-quite off the shoulders, possibly with cap sleeves. I also said that I had seen some wedding dresses that had a colored accent, like a waistband or sash, and I liked the idea of that and had in mind that I would use a light sage ribbon to match my wedding colors. It is important to note that when I had described what I envisioned to my mother, she agreed completely that what I was describing would fit me and my personality perfectly - and more importantly, that it was almost an exact description of her mother's, my grandmother's, 1950s era wedding dress, and this pleased both her and me enormously. Unfortunately, as I browsed the selection at a couple of stores online, I noticed that almost everything was strapless, apart from a couple halter-tops, which I don't like and definitely didn't want. I complained to my mom, and she agreed with me, but said she supposed the idea was that it would be much easier to alter a dress to add straps or sleeves rather than take them off, so I began to resign myself to having to pay extra to at least have straps put on.
I finally ended up going to David's Bridal in Brea as my first stop, which I definitely would recommend, but only if you can request Soo as your consultant. She was wonderful, and had a great sense of humor, but also knew when to not jolly me along. She was very attentive to my feelings and what I wanted, but also gently suggested other options, just in case they hadn't occurred to me, without being pushy or trying to wheedle me into something that I didn't want or was out of my price range.
The first dress I tried on was one I had seen on the David's Bridal website, and I liked how it looked in the picture online, mostly because it looked very simple. Once I had it on, though, I felt like it wasn't nearly so flattering on me. It was cute, but.... eh. When I stepped out of the dressing room, my personal peanut gallery (my mom, Aaron's mom Melanie, my cousin Michelle, and my sister Kelly) started cooing and aww-ing and telling me how pretty and how sweet the dress was. I liked it okay, but I knew that wasn't it.
Then Soo came back into the dressing room with me, bringing along another dress that she'd picked out for me to try. I had seen it on a rack while browsing through the store briefly, and had dismissed it as too busy, too much lace, too much beading, not what I had in mind. But I decided to try it on anyway, because I had told myself when I came into the store to remember to keep an open mind, because I might be surprised.
First of all, it fit. Perfectly. No alterations needed, and a size smaller than I had thought I would fit into.
Second, it came with a little jacket-type thing, called a bolero, which was sheer lace with beading on it to match the dress, so I wouldn't need to alter the dress to put on straps or sleeves, either.
Third, it was on sale, about $100 under the budget I had set for myself.
Finally, and most telling, was the reaction from my family when I stepped out of the dressing room. I was watching where I was stepping, so I didn't see their faces, but I heard an intake of breath, and a few soft, low "Ooooohhh" sounds. No cooing, no ooh-you're-so-cute-in-that. I made it up onto the little viewing platform, and my mom sighed, "Oh, Becky...." I stared into the mirror, seeing the dress for the first time. ...and kept staring.
Soo mentioned the bolero, and my mom insisted I put it on right away. Then she recalled that I had told her about liking the idea of a colored sash, so Soo went and got a green one for me to try on. It wasn't the right color of green, but it was good enough to give me an idea of what it might look like.
I stared into the mirror again. ....and stared. ....and turned, this way and that, and stared. A thought vaguely surfaced in the back of my mind, that this was exactly what I was looking for, and had never expected to find.
Of course, I didn't believe it. That was too easy, right? Too good to be true, right?
So I said, okay, we're going to hold on to this one, but I'd like to try a few more. So I did - I tried on three more dresses.
Nice, but I had decided a long time ago that I didn't want a train, and in my mind, the fact that I was expecting reinforced this decision - why put all that fabric near my feet and give myself even more opportunity to perform a face-plant?
This one was pretty, but once again, it had a train. Plus, I thought it made me look like a pregnant mermaid, and I told them so... they were all cracking up at that one.
Same arguments as before. Nice, but....
Soo suddenly asked me if I felt like doing something just for fun, so I said sure, why not? She ran around the corner, then came back a few seconds later with what she called a "cathedral veil," and put it on me.
Well, it was kinda fun...
But every time I came out of the dressing room in each of those three other dresses, I would glance in the mirror, and then glance at the rack where dress number two was hanging, and mentally compare what I was wearing with that soft ivory lace. That's when I realized - nothing else was going to measure up. None of the other dresses had fit me perfectly, and that one had, in every way. I guess Soo must have noticed me looking at the rack, because she finally said, "Well, what do you think? Do you want to try on that second dress again?" My family all chimed in, yeah, definitely, let's see that one again, and then my mom said confidently, "Yeah, Becky, I think you'd better put the right one back on." So I did, and once again, it just felt right. Mary Poppins popped in my head, saying 'Practically Perfect in Every Way.'
Soo and my family wanted to play dress-up a little longer, though, so we tried a bunch of different headpieces on, just in case I decided I wanted it or something like it for the wedding.
The short veil was cute, but I think I agree with my sister's comment - I looked like an adult trying to sneak in with a second grade class making their first communion. So, nixie on a veil.
These are called 'fascinators,' because they're not quite hats; and the little veil is called a birdcage (except for the one in the third picture, which is just tulle). They looked cute and... well, fascinating. But once they were on my head and in my face, I found them irritating. I told Soo I'd rather just have flowers in my hair, and that's all.
I also tried on a couple different pairs of shoes, but most of them were a little expensive, so I decided I'd look elsewhere first, and comparison shop.
So that was that. I stood there and looked in the mirror again, until I realized that it had gotten kind of quiet and everyone was looking at me. Finally, Soo asked, "Well, what do you think? ...is this it??" and my mom and sister repeated, "Yeah, is this it? Is that the dress??" I stared into the mirror for another few seconds, feeling almost a sense of awe. And then....
Yup. This is it.
David's Bridal has a tradition, where if a bride finds her dress, she gets to ring the bell. But first, "you have to hold the bell close to your heart, and keep it quiet, and make a wish. Then, ring the bell - and the louder it rings, the more likely it is that your wish will come true!" ....and the more free advertising the store gets, I was cynically thinking to myself; but I was so happy with the dress, and still somewhat in shock that I had actually found it, so I told my cynical side to shut up and ring the stupid bell. So I did.
....and it felt good.
