When you are younger (at least for me), when you think wedding you think two main things – dress and ring. I must admit, years ago I made Pinterest boards for just about everything wedding related I could ever think of. I hadn’t touched or looked at those boards in probably 5-6 years and I was so embarrassed to go through them when we got engaged! My taste in things was hysterical – I could not delete those pins fast enough.
I started a few new, much more intentional boards over the last month or so. Something that was really surprising to me was that when I was browsing wedding dresses, I didn’t come across a ton that I just loved. Most of them seemed to just be too much for me. I have always been a very simple dresser and wanted a unique dress that still fit my personality. In my head I envisioned this is an open back, lots of lace, maybe an off-white color, and a train that wasn’t too dramatic. And I must say, in the end that is exactly how I would describe the dress I chose!
But anyway, I didn’t have too much of an idea of what I wanted going into the first bridal store appointment. I had no idea what to expect from the store either. I went shopping with my parents, three sisters, and Chris’s mom and thought that I would no doubt have the biggest party with me, but we were not out of place at all! The store was jam-packed in the best way possible. It was mainly just groups of women smiling and laughing together. The dresses were on circular racks strategically placed around the store that they kind of blocked off about five semi-private areas to be with the people you came with and have your own little space.
I am really happy that my sisters know my taste so well – right off the bat they probably grabbed 10 or so dresses for me to try on and the lady put them in my cute little room made out of pretty drapes right away. One of the pieces of advice someone told me is to try things on that you think you won’t like. This is for a few reasons – something may surprise you or it will reinforce your decision of what you do like even more. Most of my dresses were fairly similar styles, but there were certainly a couple thrown in there that were way out there (but still fun to try on and see myself in!).
It was really special to have my whole family there – and we were so, so lucky to (in my opinion) get the best bridal consultant for all of our personalities. I would recommend her to anybody. So after trying on a bunch of dresses there (and absolutely loving one of them) we had to head over to the second appointment – even though we honestly didn’t really want to.
As soon as we walked in we could tell that the vibe was 100% different from the first location (which is called The Wedding Shoppe in Berkley, MI if you’re interested!). The store was closed to everyone except us and was silent, clean, and had beautiful dresses, but way less than the first place. It just wasn’t us. I tried on a couple of gorgeous dresses (and did really like one), but really just wanted to go back to The Wedding Shoppe and get my dress I loved there.
When we got back we found our lady, grabbed the dress, tried it on one last time, and (thankfully) loved it even more this time around. We took some pictures and got really excited and headed out! I was amazed that we actually got to walk out of the store with the dress. I definitely have to go in for fittings in about two months because it is too big in the waist and shoulders, but other than that it fit pretty well. Luckily my parents are taking responsibility for it though and keeping it in their closet so I don’t have to worry about it.
Like I said in my post yesterday, I am so thankful that everybody agreed on the dress. Deep down I know that it is my wedding and ultimately my choice, but it was super important to me that my family loved it as much as I did. Especially my dad. I was so happy that he came along for the process and actually wanted to be there – I feel like that is really rare! At least to me, it is going to make that day so much more special to know that (most of!) the most important people in my life were such a big part of picking out what I would be wearing. And it was also nice to make a decision as a family that no one fought about for once…. 😉
Although I am happy to check “buy dress” off of my wedding to-do list, I’m also a bit sad that it’s done! My mom keeps telling me to appreciate doing these things, because I will never be doing them again. It’s really hard to remember that in the moment, but I’m trying to be better. And I better get real good at it by the actual day of the wedding, because I sure don’t want that to end and think “what even happened?”
Another thing I am really excited about is deciding on the dresses my friends and sisters will wear and seeing how the bridesmaid dresses play off of my dress. We’ve already started looking and have some good options! My mom is also super excited to decide on her dress, too.
The dress I picked is already so special to me, and I’m really hoping that after the wedding I am able to have it altered in such a way that I am able to actually wear it again. My bridal consultant recommended getting it cut shorter and wearing it every year on our anniversary! I love that plan if it works out.
If you’re married, what was the process to pick out your dress like? If you’re not married, do you have a set “dream dress” in mind?
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