I found my dress. Probably way sooner than most brides, but I guess for me it's a little different. I've worked in a dress shop for over a year and half helping probably over 400 brides find their wedding dress and so I know what I want. So much that some may say I am the pickiest bride ever. Well, some
did say I am the pickiest bride ever. So rewind a little... and here is my story at my experience finding my dress, oh and of course some pretty dresses for you to look at along the way! My first attempt at finding my dress was literally 3 days after I got engaged. I texted one of my friends in Savannah and we went over to a local boutique to check out their selection. At the time I didn't really have an exact budget, and of course I fell in love with a dress that was way too ridiculously expensive. A few days later I went to a store out in Statesboro and kind of liked a few but still loved the more expensive one better. But I knew that there was just no way I could spend that kind of money on a dress...
So after those experiences I thought hey, I live close enough to Atlanta, why not apply to be on Say Yes to the Dress? So I did. And I got on. I had my grandma, my cousin, my aunt and other cousin and friend drive down there with me for the filming. It was a very interesting experience to say the least, which started with a series of questions and interviews then we went upstairs to their showroom...... where I picked out 2 dresses to try. 2. Yeah, just 2. That's it. I did not like
anything. And to be honest I didn't even really like those 2 but one was a pretty color and the other had lots of fun beads. Oh well, I figured maybe my family would find more for me to try... and that they did... and that was even worse. I think the highest rated dress I ranked was a 5...
out of 10.
See the problem is I know exactly what I want and so I also know exactly what I don't want. And now just that but I had this super expensive dress back in Savannah on my mind that was beating every single dress they had. I think at the very end there was one that sort of compared, but being that it was only $500 less and ranked a 7, that was not really worth it for me and at that point I would rather fork out the big bucks for a 10 out of 10 than save $500 for a 7. And every other dress they put me in was exactly what I don't want. I think at one point I called the dress they had put me in a "chicken." It was an experience that's for sure... Not really sure if my episode will air this fall since I was the picky-wedding-consultant-wedding-planner-who-will-never-find-her-dream-dress-unless-she-increases-her-budget-by-about-134932904-thousand-dollars. But really. I was told that what I want I will never find in my budget so I either need to find a way to have a bigger budget or be less picky.
I left feeling very disappointed... but I was quickly happy again once we got Baskin Robbins for the second time while being in Atlanta. Baskin Robbins is my
favorite ever. I worked at Baskin Robbins during high school for my first job and it is my absolute
favorite. It's probably a good thing Savannah doesn't have a Baskin Robbins but I swear I really wish there were one. I would eat it all the time. Okay sorry being sidetracked... so anyway I left feeling very disappointed, but not for long because the next day while at work I tried on a gown I had my eye on for some time and it was love. I just didn't want to take it off. It was perfect.
The funniest part about my dress is that it is
nothing I thought I wanted. When I went to Say Yes to the Dress I said I want a mermaid gown with lots of beading and a sweetheart neckline. Well, I am not going to go in details about my dress but it has none of the above. Period. But it's perfect. It is unique, modern, funky, fun, different, pretty, soft, romantic all at the same time. After putting it on and not buying it yet, I went home and literally planned our entire color palette based on that dress. I mean seriously ya'll, this has to be some sort of a sign right? Well, I think so because it's my dress and I am so excited to share it with ya'll. Although you'll have to wait over a year to see it since the wedding won't be until next summer...
So here is my advice for other brides on the hunt for your dress:
1. Don't try on dresses before you have determined your budget. Falling in love with something you can't afford is just downright disappointing, and makes it harder to find a dress that compares.
2. If you go home and start daydreaming what your entire wedding will look like using that dress as a starting point then you can be pretty confident that yes, it is your dress.
3. Keep an open mind. I'm not always good at this, but my dress ended up being something I wasn't searching for.
4. It is okay to go dress shopping alone. I ended up finding my dress completely by myself and for me that was the easiest thing. I didn't want other's opinions, I just wanted it to be something that I loved and was excited about. Also, I love the element of surprise and that only 1 or 2 people that will be at the wedding will have actually seen it beforehand.
5. Just because it's pretty doesn't mean it fits your personality. The dress I originally fell in love with was gorgeous, don't get me wrong, but was it me? Not really. It was just a really freaking pretty dress. I think it's important to find something that says, "oh wow look that makes sense. Nicole would wear that."
6. Remember the location of your wedding. Some of the dresses I was trying on would have been so impractical and just would have been more of a pain than fun. Which kind of goes against what I've told brides because I have been known to tell them that if they want a ball gown for their beach wedding than that's what they should do. But now being on the other side, and feeling those dresses I can tell you that I honestly would never want to be in a ball gown on a beach.
7. You don't have to spend thousands of dollars to look incredible. My grandma taught me this when I was young, and my dress ended up being a lot more affordable than the first dress I loved. The best part about this is that now I get to use that $6,500 that we saved on some other incredible stuff for the wedding... like a super rad DJ and a videographer!?
Ohhhh... and the photographer that we are hopefully hiring for our wedding shot one of the pictures from above... ;) Also, in the last board I tried on the dress that the bride is wearing where she is facing right. Pretty and all but it was the biggest ballgown I think I've ever seen. I was like 20 feet wide. No seriously...
{Photo Credits} [Unique Back Dresses] Backless Dress via
Lavish and Light, dress by
Jenny Packham // Ortensia Gown via
Green Wedding Shoes, photography by
Sara and Rocky, dress by
BHLDN // Backless Dress via
Grey Likes Weddings, photography by
Kate Harrison, dress by
Olivia Couture // Grecian Goddess Dress via
Burnetts Boards, photography by
Jose Villa, dress by
Alexander Grecco [Bohemian Dresses] Lace Sleeved Dress via
Grey Likes Weddings, photography by
Ciara Richardson, dress by
Penelope's // Bride on Beach via
Style Me Pretty, photography by
DNA Photographers, dress by
Francois Vedemme // Beaded Short Sleeved Dress via
The Pretty Blog, photography by
Welovepictures, dress by
Collette Dinnigan // Burnished Organza Gown via
Green Wedding Shoes, photography by
The Nichols, dress by
BHLDN [Ball Gowns] Bride & Groom via
Green Wedding Shoes, photography by
Studio Castillero, dress by
Monique Lhuillier // Ballgown via
The Sweetest Occasion, photography by
Tec Petaja // Hayley Page "6200" Gown via
Ruffled, photography by
J Layne, dress by Hayley Page via
JLM Couture // Bride with bouquet via
Style Me Pretty, photography by
Christina Carroll // Bride on steps via
Style Me Pretty, photography by
Loft Photographie
