My dress. THE DRESS. The wedding dress of my dreams is currently sitting in my closet. In fact, it has been there since the beginning of September.
I couldn’t be more thrilled with it. I knew it was the one as soon as I tried it on. My sister was in from Ohio for Labor Day weekend so I decided that then was a great time to go shopping. I was so excited as both she and Maggie would be accompanying me for this adventure. This was my first attempt. I was a little apprehensive. I was also scared that I wouldn’t be able to find something in my budget that was beautiful.
I learned shortly before going that the wedding industry is comparable to that of buying a used car. So I prepared myself mentally. I wanted to make sure I stuck to my budget and got the dress I wanted. I was going to get talked into buying just any dress. I was ready to do battle. The first store we went to required those skills. It wasn’t a comfortable situation. It was a small store which I liked but I soon realized they were wanting to sell me a dress and weren’t really good at listening to what I needed or wanted. I must have said a hundred times, “I don’t want to wear a tiara. That’s not my style.” Also, most of the dresses in which to try on were sizes 6. I guess it is not polite to reveal your size online but I AM NOT A SIZE 6. One dress wouldn’t even fit over my hips. EEK! However, I learned some things about what I liked and what I didn’t. I surprised myself a little. I also learned what looked good on my figure.
My second stop was at Cherished Memories in Mt. Juliet which has sadly went out of business. I didn’t really expect to find anything here because the only dresses they had were off the rack sales since they were going out of business. O-M-G! I was wrong. I saw the two tone beauty hanging on the rack and it instantly caught my eye. Checking the price tag I realized it was right inside my budget because of the red tag sale.
It was the first one I tried on and as soon as I saw myself in the mirror I was in love. When I went out to visit Maggie and Tonya I couldn’t stop smiling and within a few second I found myself tearing up. I felt beautiful and wonderful in this dress. I debated and debated in the mirror. I didn’t want to take it off. It was the near perfect size right off the rack! After trying on two other dresses in the store I walked back out to the car in a daze. I realized I had been sweating because I was so emotional! I wanted that dress. But could I buy the fifth dress at the second store on my first trip out? The thought made me anxious. But forcing me to make my decision was the fact that the dress might not be there much longer and if it weren’t on clearance I could not afford it.
After that dress moment I decided to follow through with my original plans and we headed out to David’s Bridal. I tried on several dresses all of which were beautiful. Each dress had something special and something I appreciated but I couldn’t get that same feeling from any of these dresses. Those dresses didn’t make me feel like I was floating.
I left the last store feeling like I had to make a decision. The good thing was I had Sunday and Monday to do it. I called friends and family and sought the opinion of many. After hashing out the positives and negatives, I went for it. I called Tuesday morning and put it on hold. By Tuesday evening before my shift at the Gap I was the proud new owner of the most beautiful (not to mention expensive) piece of fabric I had every laid eyes on.
I can’t wait until Brandon sees me on our wedding day. I have a whole year left to imagine the moment. It’s going to be amazing. Until then it will sit in my closet. Don’t peek!
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