Wedding Wednesday – The Dress

Well, it's official. I have my wedding dress!

[Dad and Kate, stop reading here! Neither of you are allowed to see pictures. ]

After just 2 short trips to bridal stores, I ended up going with the dress I ordered on a whim from the Ann Taylor website. Did you know that Ann Taylor has a wedding line? Pretty cute stuff, too!

I only ordered it because it had a great price and I had 60 days to return it, as long as the Occasion Dress tag hadn't been removed. Turned out to be practically too good to be true!

This dress hit all of my "wants":

• flowy without the "Is she pregnant?" effect (That would take some explaining - ha!)
• ivory
• not shiny, satiny, or blingy
• no train
• straps
• fitted at the waist
• lightweight/not too hot to be worn outside in June
• less than $300

I got the dress on sale for $199! I was very excited about this. Some of the other less-expensive dresses that I tried on looked cheap, dirty, or broken. This one was brand new, and since I ordered it online, there were no make-up stains from having been tried on several times. (Seriously, how much make-up do girls wear these days?!)

We took it to my mom's friend, who is a seamstress. Before I committed to it, I wanted to be sure the tweaks I needed were doable. She pinned it up for me, and it looked great.

I'll save photos of me in the dress for the wedding, but if you'd like to see it, it is the Brianna Silk Gown. Apparently you can now get it for only $99...if you're a size 00, 0, or 2. (What is size 00??)

But I will show you some pictures of the runners up.

This one was pretty, but the top had too much structure and looked kind of boxy on me.

This one had lace, straps (that formed a keyhole back), and a sweetheart neckline, all of which I liked. However, I think it made me look heavy on top. I have a large chest, and it was highlighted since the lace was only at the top of the dress.

I liked that this one was lace without also having tons of beading. But something didn't look right about it - another one that was too boxy at the top, so it dropped out of the top 3.

This one was pretty - and it was on sale! But the shiny fabric and crystal beads just weren't my style.

I loved the detail of this one, but it was way out of my price range. It was my favorite when I left the store. I made sure NOT to go back and try it on again, just in case I was having a weak moment and decided to royally blow my budget.

This is probably my favorite one as I look back through the pictures. I like that it is flowy but still has a defined waist.

But, still, I'm very happy with the one I chose. As Mine pointed out, since it is simple, I will have no trouble accessorizing it. I bet I could even add a bit of lace around the waist, if I so desired. We shall see!

Plus, it doesn't hurt that I've been told I look like a Greek goddess in it.