All Dressed in White by Linnea

I had never been bridal dress shopping before; obviously not for myself, but not along with any other brides to be either. I didn’t know what it would be like, but I guess I expected it to be slightly more glamorous with automated “ous” and “ahs” from the entire staff (equipped with trays of assorted cheeses and sweets) each time I came out of the fitting room modeling a new dress. This was not my experience.

The best part of the day was that my two girlfriends, Stephanie and Melinda, eagerly joined me for my dress shopping. Their wonderful attitudes and happiness for me meant so much. Even if it wasn’t the ultimate shopping experience, this evidence of their true friendship made it all worthwhile.

David’s Bridal, as we all know, offers a huge selection of gowns with price points that don’t equal that of a down payment on a house so, naturally, this was my first stop. The appointment started with flipping through their latest catalog and tabbing down pages of each dress I liked. Then, an associate came out to greet us and took a look at what I liked. We were then directed towards the back of the store that had larger fitting rooms (to squeeze in the princess type gowns) a giant mirror and a stage (that I continuously tripped on).

A slight distraction was a fellow shopper who had brought along her husband to-be, two hyper children, and was pregnant with a third child. She was trying on giant white ball-type gowns and proceeded to “shimmy-dance” in front of the mirror. Awkward.

While we were waiting for the dresses to be brought back we had fun trying on the different headbands, bows, and costume jewelry. The associate then brought me about seven or eight dresses. Some were instant nos, some had to be clamped with giant plastic clothespins to fit better, and finally, there were two all over lace dresses that ended up looking the best. Melinda, who is proving to be the perfect wedding coordinator, came equipped with a notepad to write down what I liked or didn’t like about each dress. The lace ones that I preferred I could see myself in, but none hit the nail on the head as being THE dress.

I think the biggest factor that made none of the dresses real winners is that I didn’t feel like I could completely enjoy my wedding day in them: After saying I do, I want to skip down the garden path in sheer happiness without having to worry that I am going to trip over multiple layers of crinoline. When Evan twirls me, I don’t want to worry that my dress is going to be a half-twirl behind and slip down. And when I hug all my loved ones who are enjoying such a special day with me I don’t want to worry that yards of beading might snag on their clothes.

    I haven’t tried it on yet, but I have a feeling that I have already found the perfect dress that I will feel absolutely amazing in. Obviously I can’t share the details here, but you will hopefully see it and love it when I walk down the aisle!