Theo had told me he wanted my dress to be a total surprise.

Luckily, I found the dress a lot sooner than I anticipated.. The experience of dress shopping was so fleeting, I almost wish it dragged out so I can enjoy and bask in it’s glow for a few more days … I got lucky and can check off Yes Dress on the wedding madness list!

I didn’t realize that dress shopping would be so… FUN. I loved every moment of it- even when I thought to myself “I love them all! How will I choose?”. It was the first time in my entire life that I felt  that I can justify spending a bit more on a luxury garment –  something I only get to wear once, and something that hopefully Theo and everyone will find beautiful during the ceremony. It’s probably similar to what a  dancer or performer feel when they do their first performance and everyone anticipates what they will wear and notice their presence and every admirable aesthetic detail.

I am petite  – 5 foot nothing in height so my main priority was to feel beautiful, alluring, and NOT feel like I was “playing dressup in a grown up gown”. Being petite, my problem with clothes is feeling like “nothing fits” most of the time.  At apparel stores, I often wish I have 5 extra inches on me while trying on clothes.  While  I am petite, I have a fairly athletic build and since my waist is small-  23. 5 inches a consultant suggested I wear a dress that would focus on that.

Some things I learned (that I did not know before) from 2 weeks of the Yes Dress Pursuit:

♥ Bridal Dress Boutiques require appointments. I walked in 3 different places- made appointments for all 3. Wedding Time had a 3 week wait yes, even for weekday appointments. I found the Yes Dress the week before the appointment and canceled.

♥ It’s not like shopping in a store. You don’t walk around and pick 15 dresses you want to try on. Because you are allocated an hour- to an hour and a half, you will probably try on 5-6 dresses max. Your consultant will try to help you find about 5- 7 dresses and narrow it down from there. Try to have an idea of what you want- mermaid, classic, beads, satin vs lace, etc. I knew NOTHING about dresses, cut, fabric so the first 2 places were a bit experimental.

♥ You try on the dress and they will most likely use clippers to pull back the dress for you to make it “feel fitted”. From there, if you pick the dress they take your bust, waist, and hips measurements and order the dress. It might take 4-8 months for the dress to come and then .. alterations! Plan early.

♥ I was quoted $175- 500 for veils in the store!! My jaw dropped. They are fun to try on but I think I’ll find one online for $10-$60. Also, the idea of making one with fancy sheer fabric, sequins, and a hot glue gun is really appealing…

♥ I found that my ideal outfit for shopping was:  a simple pull over dress that was easy to put on and take off. I also wore a simple strapless bra and some black spanx so I felt comfortable stripping in front of the consultant and my friends while trying on dresses.

♥ I created an iphoto stream and invited friends including my event planner Victoria Flame, so while I was shopping, they were also “virtually ” with me as well.

love the bead work

I knew a dress was a strong contender when I hear the consultant and my friends tell me, “ you look so happy when you had that dress on”. Since I am a pretty expressive person especially when I am excited, it was easy for my friends to spot and feel my joyfulness when I tried on something that felt right.

I went to 2 bridal places , that had rental options, during the weekday by myself. The ladies that helped me were so patient and very helpful. One place did not allow photos. One place said if I did rentals- I can save cost on the dress.. and maybe that means if I love 2 dresses- I can get both! Tempting.. I resisted that notion.

After shopping with my friend Susan in Glendale, the following week – I narrowed it down to 2 dresses. Both VERY different styles but both glamorous, fitted, lovely. Susan is a great friend to have during dress shopping- she is very honest – “I love the dress but don’t like the bottom at ALL”. She helped me picked out dresses. She took pictures and got excited when I was excited. And since we been friends through so much, this was another memory to add to our already collective life changing memories. Another tip- bring your best friend!

not “Yes Dress”

One bridal shoppe offered a 15% discount for the July 4th weekend. I told myself that I would only feel comfortable after going home and sleeping on it. Susan brought over pho soup and after refueling we looked at the 2 dresses on my big screen TV for close ups. We couldn’t decide, every time I thought I made a decision, I snuck a peek at the other dress and it was love all over again for that other dress.

The next day, I decided to go back to the 2 stores to have another look. My friends Regina and Danielle came with me – it was helpful to have another sets of eyes and they were super excited- it was their first bridal dress shopping experience too!

Lovella Bridal opened their shop for me luckily (they are appointments only but maybe the girl could sense that I was going to pick THE ONE that day). She found the 2nd contender dress (originally found at a different store). They had excellent lighting and after trying on “the Yes Dress” I knew. My friends gasped when I came out and I lit up when I was in it.

The other store offered 15% off and even though Lovella wanted to price match, they could only lower it by $200. I learned that you need to explore prices on wedding items, many things are negotiable or can be found 3 blocks down for a lower price.

I went to Karoza Design (a business own by a Husband and Wife team), tried Yes Dress on again, and ordered the dress! Bonus was I saved $400-$500.

After I purchased the dress and made it mine, the owner of the boutique exclaimed “ Now shoes!”

xoxo,
Mai