It is helpful that I enjoy being the center of attention because that’s what the Big Day is about, right? So I shouldn’t have been surprised when my Village and I went wedding dress shopping and they literally put me on a pedestal. This day, my Village consisted of my three bridesmaids, my Man of Honor (who is my Bestie you always read about, of course), and my parents (Dad made sure we had enough coffee, water, and other beverages available).
The hunt took us to three different places and it will be easy for you to figure out which one I enjoyed the most:
David’s Bridal
This was our first stop. I had made an appointment and when we arrived I was whisked to a hall of dressing rooms where every bride had a dedicated person. Yram, my person, asked me about what dresses I wanted to try on and he went to the floor to collect them.
Meanwhile, the Village was sat in a row in front of a set of mirrors and a stage. Then, one by one, I came out in the dresses and they passively oohed and aahed. Because I had thought I wanted a particular type of dress (I promised to be extremely vague about any of the dresses in case the Fiancé actually reads this) they only had a few to try. But because we had time to spare I asked Yram if he had any recommendations based on my body type and what he thought I looked good in. He got excited that I had opened up his freedom and became his Barbie doll. It was fun! And, it changed my perspective on the type of dress I actually had my heart set on.
Then we broke for lunch.
Seasons 52, naturally.
Demetrios
The next appointment I had made was at a small shop that I learned existed when I was working at the ad agency. We actually worked with their magazine to do a photo shoot spread of the Beach Collection at an all-inclusive resort I planned for, which made me fall in love with their line.
I had no idea how much they had cost though. Eesh. So my Village and I get there and I have a person again. This person asks my price range and she says there are only three dresses that come close to staying within range. Also, no pictures were allowed. And I was really put on a pedestal in front of a wall length mirror. With another bride beside me. And it felt awkward.
So, we jetted out of there in a hurry.
With time to spare, I was motivated to check out one other place that didn’t require a reservation and one of the “maids” had found her wedding dress there.
Classic Consignment
It’s actually one of my favorite places to shop for regular clothes. Lots of brides consign their dresses there so they have a special dressing room decked out for brides-to-be. MOH dove into the racks hanging Mom ones he liked and she ran them to the dressing room where the Maids helped me get in and out of them in an assembly line fashion. Any that we liked I would wear out into the store so Dad and MOH could see. I loved how involved everyone was and it was way more fun to try on doozies and laugh about them with others.
So which store did I get my dress? Did I even get my dress that day? Alas, I’ve been sworn to secrecy. I’m not even allowed to have pictures because my Village knows I have a hard time keeping any secrets from the Fiancé. This is as close as I’m allowed to get!
Patti is still learning 