I HAVE MY DRESS! Whew! One big thing is checked off my list!
I had gone to a discount bridal shop with my dear friend
Lauren to check it out. It's in South Jordan so I wanted to see if it was worth taking family with me (my mom, Debbie, and Charity). Turns out it was definitely worth it. The dresses range from $100-$300. This is great considering they are all originally over $500!
I tried on a bunch of different styles. A BUNCH. I quickly found out what I hated. And I quickly found one that I kind of loved. I even almost bought it. It had a lace bodice, dropped waist, and flowing tiered layers to the floor with a mini train. I loved how it hugged my body and was super pretty. But for some reason, even though I was literally ready to pay for it and leave the store with it, I kept going back to another dress. I had tried it on but it didn't fit right at all. It didn't hug my body and it was falling off my shoulders and chest, which is really odd if you have seen my chest, usually I can't fit anything over it. Ha. I just couldn't stop looking at it on the hanger. Turns out the one that I had tried on was in the wrong section. It was a HUGE size just shoved in with the dresses that are my size. When I made this realization I knew I had to find one that would actually fit me and put it on. I did. And as soon as it was on it was a done deal. I knew it was the one. I no longer even cared about the one that I was ready to buy just minutes earlier.
The first one, though beautiful, had a few things that I wasn't comfortable with. First of all there was something weird about where the bodice met the skirt. Lauren knows what I'm talking about. I couldn't get past it. And then the lace... I have been telling myself that I wanted a lacy, detailed dress. Apparently that's not what I wanted at all. It just didn't feel like
ME. If you know me you know that I'm not a super fancy girl. I don't dress up really girly-girly. I don't like things with lots of frills. So having something so... frilly? Just didn't feel like me. It was beautiful but it felt like I was looking at someone else's dress. But when I put on MY dress it felt like me. It's simple and elegant and leaves lots of room for me to accessorize. That's what I'm good at. Jewelry and belts and hair accessories. I won't go into detail about it because my future husband reads this blog, so most of you will get to be surprised just like him when I finally get to see it on September 8th! Just take my word for it... It's beautiful and so very me!
Also... It was originally $700.... I got it for $150. Wow. If you are in Utah and in the wedding dress market, seriously check out BX Two in South Jordan. They are discount wedding dress shop only open on Saturdays. It will be worth it. They have sizes 0-20+. Be warned, they are all modest dresses with sleeves. If that's not what you're looking for, this isn't the shop for you!
I ended up buying my dress that day with Lauren. I didn't get to have my mom and Debbie and Charity with me, but I couldn't walk away from it and there was no guarantee that it would be there 2 weeks later when my mom was in town. I'm sad that they weren't with me, but I just couldn't leave without it!
Yesterday I bought my shoes! I had looked at looked at shoe stores and department stores and I wasn't seeing what I wanted. There actually wasn't a whole lot of red at all, and when I did find red there was generally a cork wedge attached, which I wasn't wanting for my wedding. Last night at Forever Young in the University Mall I found my shoes! $32.95 and perfect! They are red, stripy, open-toed, and they have flowers! EVERYTHING that I wanted! And the heel is pretty but not sky-high so Kyle is still a good 2-3 inches taller than me. I know this because he was with me when I got them so I got to stand in the mirror next to him with them on. :) This was a concern for me because I am 5'7". That's not short! And most heels are a good 4" if not more right now. I LOVE super high heels, but I do not love being 6"tall or more. I tower over most every boy that I am around and that's not a good feeling for me,
This was my inspiration for wedding shoes:
These are the shoes I got:
They are actually brighter than they look in this picture. This is from instagram so they have a fancy filter on them which makes them appear darker. I love these shoes!
Shoes and dress down! Now I need to work on a red sash/belt for my dress and a birdcage veil. These are both things that I am considering making on my own because they are $100+ at bridal shops and that seems excessive to me. The veil I may end up buying because I don't know if I can make it look the way that I want it to, but the belt I know can be done by me! I got fabric swatches cut at Jo-Ann's yesterday so that I can match all of the red's and blues perfectly since there are so many shades of both colors! I was getting overwhelmed and lost every time I tried to look at the blue because it can lean more towards blue or more towards a greenish/blue. Eek! But now I have swatches and I know exactly what I'm looking for! I had originally picked out paint swatches with Kyle at Lowe's so I matched the fabric to these paint swatches: (Again, these were put on Instagram so they are altered a tiny bit by a filter around the edges, but not much, it's pretty much the exact colors!)
I just found this perfect birdcage veil on Etsy for only $39! I think it's a yes!
I also need to find the perfect aquamarine earrings and necklace to wear that will match my beautiful ring that I still stare at all day long. Gosh, it is perfect!
I am loving every minute of planning mine and Kyle's wedding!
