Get it? Got it? Good. Let's continue.
So, after Katherine and my dress adventure last weekend, I about had a heart attack when I saw the price tags on these dresses. I mean, I KNEW that it was going to be ridonculous, but even I (who has never been known to be frugal) was having a bit of sticker shock. But not just any dress will do, either. In the words of Elle Woods, the musical edition:
This dress needs to seal the deal,
make a grown man kneel,
but it can't come right out and say "bride."
(See minute 3:30 above).
Actually though, it does need to come right out and say "bride," and bride doesn't need to be implied. This is a wedding, after all. But there was no way I am going to spend that much on a dress.
And I had that awful experience at Bridals by Lori, who, like the sales ladies in Elle's dress shop, were just trying to make a sweet commission off of me:
[Brides] make commission SO easy.
Excuse me, miss. Have you seen this?
It just came in.
It's perfect for a [bride].
Um. Lady. Look and listen. How many times do I need to tell you that my budget is not $50,000 and I don't need a dress that makes me look like a wedding cake topper. Thanks:
It may be perfect for a [bride],
But I'm not that [bride].
I may be in love,
But I'm not stupid, lady. I've got eyes.
Amen, sister! Sing it! This is basically how I felt all weekend. I just can't imagine all common sense going out the window just because you stick me in white silk satin. No ma'am. Not this kid.
As you may remember, I really liked two dresses. I will not show those dresses here. I want there to be some surprises. Here's a picture of a puppy instead:
I seriously contemplated getting a dress made, but hadn't really looked into that option much. Even if Elle does say:
So, [Katherine,] help me dress for my fairy tale,
Can't wear something I bought on sale.
Love is , like, forever.
This is no time to economize
omigod, you guys
Love is , like, forever.
This is no time to economize
omigod, you guys
I would actually be more than thrilled to buy something on sale. And while love is forever, I'd rather if my debt were not. I have no qualms for not spending the equivalent of a Lexus on a dress I will be wearing for 8 hours. And then, enter from stage left: fate. I got this random e-mail from a website that I had looked at ages ago as an option-- http://www.preownedweddingdresses.com/. Basically, this website is like ebay for preowned dresses. Some are brides trying to sell their dresses that are gently worn. Some are brand new because they bought a dress and didn't like it or the wedding fell through or something. Others are sample dresses from salons which are trying to get rid of their inventory. Either way, you can get Vera Wangs for 90%. Seriously. If you are looking at getting a dress, I recommend going to this site.
You can even search by region in case you want to find a dress near you so that you can try it on. I was lucky because I had already tried my dresses on in a store. So, I did a search for the two dresses that I really liked. One of the dresses is a pretty old design, but I thought it may be possible. Guess what, BOTH dresses were on there and BOTH were in sizes bigger than me. This is good news, because it's easier to take a dress in than out.
They were both at the top end of my budget, but still within range. One of the dresses, was up there for awhile. You can sort by how recent the dress was listed and this one was pretty far down the list. I hoped that this meant that my bridal counterpart would be willing to negotiate in order to get rid of the dress. I asked, and she said she was absolutely flexible on the price. I decided to shoot low. I was thinking she would never give me my asking price, because it was sooooo much lower than her list price. GUESS WHAT? SHE SAID SURE!!!!!!!
What did this mean? I am getting my dress for 80% off. That's right, folks. It's not a fake, it's a designer dress, it's never been worn, and I am about the same as I would have at David's Bridal. She may even throw in a free veil if I'm lucky. Even with the amount I will doubtless have to spend on alterations (adding straps, taking it in and up, etc.), I think I will still be on budget. I had no idea that I would have a dress right now. I was in browse mode. But I am absolutely positive that this is My Dress. It's in Washington, DC, but I'm going up to Norfolk in a month. I'll have nothing to do during the day while Chris is at work, so I'm thinking about just driving over and picking it up, even if it is a 3 hour drive.
Omigod! Omigod you guys!
This one's perfect, and it's just my size!
See dreams really do come true you never have to comprimise.
Omigod!
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