We Did It: Apparel

The Dream Dress that wasn't.

I'm not really planning to enter posts in my "We Did It" category in chronological order, but rather, the order I feel like telling you about it. Right now I'm especially proud of our recent shopping trip to the outlet shops in Oklahoma City, so I'll just start off by bragging.

We found Ben's wedding suit for $99.

Ben and I aren't quite formal enough for tuxes. We want our wedding party to look nice, give them flexible options, and not spend a fortune. Thus, we had already decided that the bridesmaids would choose their own navy dresses and the men would choose their own grey suits. Ben had mentioned that he wanted to stand out a bit (it's his special day too!) and search for a navy three-piece suit. So off we went, planning to look at places like Nordstrom Rack, Saks off 5th, and any other store that might have some hidden gems. The Jos. A. Bank outlet was a magical place. Right away, we found almost exactly what Ben was envisioning with a nearly perfect fit, except for the length of the coat. The manager offered to order in the long size that he needed, even granting us the in-store sale price! While I needed a little convincing and wanted to see a few other suits and stores for comparison, the first suit ended up being the one we went back to. Ben tried it on with his shoes and a tie so I could envision the whole ensemble, and my heart skipped a beat when he came out of the dressing room! GREAT success.

My dress, on the other hand, wasn't quite so straightforward and took mannnnnny shopping trips. My initial goal was to source a pre-owned or purchased-but-never-worn dress, either from a charity-run shop or website like preownedweddingdresses.com or Tradesy.com. You know, to be environmentally conscious and stuff. I also researched all of the outlet-type wedding dress stores in a 3-state region. If you've ever watched I Found the Gown on TLC, you'll know the type of store I mean: beautiful designer dresses from last season or closing boutiques find their way into the hands of gown curators, who sell them to you at a heavily-discounted price. I don't buy anything full price; why would my wedding dress be any different?

However, I also had a vision in mind: a beautiful creamy satin dress with a sweetheart neckline, cap sleeves, and dramatic low cut-out back with buttons all the way down the train, herein referred to as "Dream Dress" (or Allure Romance 2717, pictured above). I went to several appointments before deciding that I would not be able to fall in love with something until I knew whether Dream Dress was an option or not. As it turns out, the stores in Oklahoma that carry Allure did not have that sample and did not plan to get it in for their upcoming trunk shows. So, a dedicated friend and I took a little road trip to Fort Worth, TX to a store that did carry the Dream Dress, and I tried it on, and it was amazing!!!!...........in the back. The front was the single least-flattering dress I put on out of about 65 total dresses. The material was shiny and the seams did no favors. The consultant pressured me to make a decision about it that day, but I left empty-handed and knew I would not be returning.

Juxtapose that "upscale" bridal salon experience with the one I had at Sunday's Bridal, an affordable outlet store that every budget-conscious bride in the Dallas-Fort Worth area needs to check out! The owner is so sweet and the selection of off-the-rack dresses may surprise you. I tried on a beautiful Casablanca that was only $500! Although I was skeptical, I also had a great rebound appointment the next day at David's Bridal. If your style is understated and modern, check out their new Zac Posen collection, for reals.

The following weekend, 3 friends accompanied me to an appointment at Moliere Bridal in OKC. We all immediately zero-ed in on a Justin Alexander gown and took it right to the dressing room. It contained elements from each of my prior favorite dresses and I felt like myself in it. I didn't cry, but I'm pretty sure I said, "Let's do this. This dress is epic." The consultant/owner didn't pressure me with an impending timeline, which was something that had happened in every single other appointment [I get it, wedding dresses take a long time to make, I have < 1 yr engagement, I GET IT LEAVE ME ALONE]. So, with a positive experience and a skip in my step, I bought the glorious dress with no discount negotiation, no price comparison, and no reservations. The bargain hunter in me could have been more satisfied, but the dress was in my decided price range and I felt like a total Hottie McHotterson in it.

So there you have it - the quest for finding something nice to wear when we get married is complete! I am not likely to write two posts in one day again, so sorry for today's information overload. Stay tuned for my DIY veil tutorial and a post about the accessories I have selected so far!