.dress mess, part 1.

Dress shopping began ever before there was a ring on my finger. It was before we met with a jeweler and before I ever had a budget. I knew that couture/designer gowns were costly; thanks to the wedding websites who are kind enough to embark on the monetary journey by featuring dollar signs letting you know what to expect.

I didn’t expect to go and get measured for a bridesmaid dress and fall in love with Star. That is what I am calling her. Ivory charmeuse, corset bodice, curve hugging, gut sucking prettiness on a hanger. At first, the $$$$ price tag didn’t scare me- I wasn’t even formally engaged, there was plenty of time to save up! Well life I this thing that happens while you are busy making other plans and my saved up $$$ went out he door onto more important things. Star was the love of my bridal life until Jai came along at yet another alarming $$$$$ price tag. Jai is the one who put a twinkly tear in my eye. It was a few weeks later when I questioned those tears- was it because the dress was so perfect and so stunning or was it because it was a dress I’d never pay for? I am going to lean toward the latter and carry on.
After this experience and wrangling myself back into reality, I began to browse shops that seemed more attainable. I’ve been to five shops in Vegas and two in NYC. And still no dress. In each gorgeous gown, there is an element in which I fall in love. Whether it’s the material, the delicate detailing, the simplicity, the classic beauty of the dress, there is something.

Finding the right dress easily compares to finding the right man. You try on several, you think that you may have found “The One” but you keep looking and realize that the one still exists in a place you’ve never been. Each dress gets you closer to finding the one, just as each desperate date produced a similar result.

After 7 stores and at least 70 gowns later… I’ve tried on traditional…. Form fitting, lacey, sating, chiffony, and altogether different…. I am not where the journey began, yet 70 elements closer to finding the one.

.ps: none of these are the dress- or even close to the dress.