Say No to the Dress Shows

I went dress shopping again!  SQUEE!

 

 

You can almost hear the angels singing...

 

For my second dress appointment, I decided I wanted to try on dresses from the Vera Wang White line. I absolutely love the floaty, soft, romantic quality of Vera’s dresses, and I especially like that she has created this line for those of us who don’t want to spend $20k on a dress but still want something interesting and designer looking, and not made entirely of shiny white satin.  So me and MOB went to the dress shop that carries them to check it out. 

 

 

Sigh.  So gorgeous....

 

The Vera Wang White line is beautiful, and I had so much fun trying on these dresses.  The fabric is luxurious, I love the interesting way it drapes and falls, and the dresses are definitely budget-friendly.  At the end of the day I didn’t choose any of them, mostly because the line is quite outdated by now (brides who had their weddings in 2011 have worn these dresses) and I’m still not ready to commit.  Just like you have to kiss a lot of frogs to find your prince, you have to have the same patience when choosing a gown to marry him in!  ;)

 

Here are the two biggest lessons I’ve learned from dress shopping so far.  The first: it’s a mistake to focus too much on gown photos.  Every website that offers tips on dress shopping will place “research dresses and find out what you like before coming to the store” high atop the list.  I understand this, if you have no idea what kind of style you like, the consultant has no idea what to pull off the racks or where to start.  But I have found it is also a bad idea to over-research.  I have spent hours upon glorious hours looking at wedding dresses online, dreaming....admiring....fantasizing....and after heading down to the store excitedly clutching my magazine clippings and ready to see the gowns in real life, I expect to waltz out of the dressing room looking like this:

 

 

 

And sometimes, here’s what I actually look like:

 

 

 

Damnit.

 

So a good trick I learned is to stop poring over the bridal sites where any dress can look gorgeous on any model, and start focusing on real brides.   This is why I love the Maggie Sottero website – she has the dresses on models but on the same page there is a section called “Real Maggie Brides” where you can click on pictures of real brides actually wearing the dress on their wedding day and see what it looks like on.  It can definitely change your perspective on a dress, good or bad!

Model bride vs real brides:

 

 

Looks different on everybody!

 

 

The second is, it’s a mistake to wait for the “Say Yes to the Dress” moment.  I have probably tried on about 20 dresses so far, and have not so much felt a spark of electricity in a dress when I have been expecting lightning bolts.  There are some that I have liked, even loved, and some that I have downright hated, but I’ve never put a dress on and squealed with delight while crying a river of tears like some brides do on that show.  Maybe it’s because I’m overly analytical or maybe it truly is because I haven’t put on the right gown yet, but I think it’s important to enjoy bridal reality shows for what they are and be a bit more realistic when shopping for your own dress.  I’m sure when the right one comes along I’ll know, but I know not to reject a dress just because I haven’t cried over it! 

 

This is my dreeeeeeeeeeesssssssss!

 

I am very excited for the Wonderful Wedding Show coming up in January to try on some more dresses. But I’ll probably schedule another appointment before the end of the year...it’s too much fun!  :)  The dress shopping saga continues...

 

Happy Wedding Wednesday!!!

 

~M