Wedding Dress Challenge Thoughts

~Unconventional Wedding Dresses Challenge~

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After trying on a slew of clearance dresses purchased online (thank goodness for ASOS free returns), I learned a few things about myself:

1. Tradition: Even though I enjoy being cheap when it comes to clothing, perhaps being super frugal for one's wedding outfit is not a great idea after all. Besides the bad fit and off-colors, something else doesn't feel right. When I think about what a "wedding day" means, I think of a day full of love, for my family, and my future family. Wearing a "whatever" fast-fashion dress feels a bit meaningless. Thus I think I might opt for being more traditional (ie. stick to my cultural ao dai), or something borrowed from a loved one, or customized by people who are passionate in what they do, or having the family/friends involved in the choice of dress. When it comes down to it, it would be nice to have a dress with a good story behind it. 

2. The Shape: If anything, I learned that I'm not into the "puffy princess ballgown" (ironically, since I love viewing Victorian era fashion and watching Cinderella movies). I'm not into the trumpet/mermaid/fishtail gowns since I'm too self-conscious. Drapey or Grecian is more my comfort zone. Anything that highlights my upper-waist is flattering. 

3. The Fabric: My skin tone looks best in a cream/ecru shade. I love the luxurious bling of brocade/silk or sequins on top paired with tulle or something soft and flowy on the bottom. 

Alrighty, this completes my unconventional wedding dress challenge. No more buying random clearance dresses on ASOS. I'm going the traditional route, saving money/time for it. 

If anyone has any tips on having a customized wedding dress (any tailors out there?), or spot a dress I might like, or want to lend me your dress (haha, I'm not kidding!), please share in comments!

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~The Local Bridal Boutique Experience~

So my next step was to visit my local bridal boutiques or discount wedding stores to see what they offer. Here are a few things I learned:

1. On-the-rack dresses size 4 or under are rare. There is only a small corner of selections to try on. 

2. It is disheartening to realize how much alterations one needs, especially with lace/appliqué placements.

3. The dress that looks the best, usually has a price tag around $1,500

4. If you don't buy off the rack, wait times for ordering the specific dress may be over 3-6 months. 

5. I cringe every time I try on a dress with those makeup foundation marks from prior wearers. 

6. Most dresses they carry feels old-fashion, repetitive, and the usual...lots of lace, tulle, strapless, trains, and mermaid-ish or quinceañera-ish. 

Luckily, I live in a city where there are lots of LDS /Mormon shoppers, so I was able to find some "modest" gowns to fit my personal comfort level. For fun, I first tried on a ball-gown. Man, it is hard to walk in! Immediately, I knew this was going to be the last puffy ballgown to try on in my entire lifetime. It is just "not me" and not for my age. I am definitely not wasting anymore energy trying on this style, no matter how enticing it looks on the rack or on other people. 

Then it was this sheath dress that everyone (sister and sales people) cooed over. I realized this body-skimming sheath style was more flattering. However, the dress made me self-conscious about my marshmallow arms. Do I have enough time to get my arms in shape? Too much stress thinking about that.  

Kate Middleton-ish with all-over lace, V-neck and sleeves....too matronly on me. 

Cap-sleeve is better, but still not digging the granny all-over lace. 

All the dresses I tried on were size 4 (smallest size available in-store), but this particular one below won points for a great fit in the body (hurray for no pinning in the back so I can see what the gown actually looks like from behind). If I was in a rush, I would have picked this dress and be done with it. However, my picky fiancé did not like the flare at the bottom. Evidently, he prefers a dress that makes me look more like a stick. Maybe he does have a good point about a slimmer silhouette to help elongate the body, whereas flare styles shortens the figure. What a smart guy I am marrying!

I am still shocked the dress fits well in the bodice. Would only need the expected hemming (luckily no fancy scallop lace), moving the belt up a bit, and maybe adding some padding for my sloping shoulders. If interested, this dress is by Allure Bridals Style M534 in Ivory. I am wearing size 4.

The tall stock model looks better in it than me though. My local boutique sells this dress for $1295.00. You can order this dress online for $1198.00 at Madame Bridal (with free shipping, free veil, and free shoes, wow!)

Lesson learned: need to stick to sheath/column silhouettes. Must save up to $2000 for average wedding dress with alternations included.