The Dress

Life is great! I have my wedding dress! I picked it up on the 18th and I am in love with it (I better be since I bought the darn thing).

So about the dress...
Designer: Nicole Miller
Location: Short Hills Mall (NJ)
Color: Antique White
Price: Only $595!!!
Alterations: Needs to be hemmed (I'm only 5'2")

Obviously that's NOT me in the picture, it's some skinny and tall model that Nicole (yes, we're on a first name basis /jk) hired and looks perfect in the dress. I don't look half bad in it ... but you're not going to see it on me (unless you come to my wedding ceremony or one of the receptions).

I have to say that I really hated dress shopping and I can't understand why girls get so excited over it. I probably disliked the experience because my whole wedding ordeal was ... unique. But rewind to April 2006 ...

• Nick proposes, I say yes.
• The very next day I see a dress (similar to the NM dress) in a shop in Englewood NJ. I loved the silhouette (it was a prom dress in white) and the price. But I try it on and the Fiance says it looks too big on me (don't worry gals he saw it in black). So I mull over it and decide it's too casual for a 150 people sit down wedding reception.
• David's Bridal. Awful, awful, awful. I hate every dress I tried on (about 20 dresses). I'm sorry to those who love DB but I am quite particular and that's my problem.
• Local Wedding Shop - found a pretty halter a-line dress with a sash and was entirely made of re-embroidered lace. I thought this was THE dress and was ready to put down the $1200.
• We decide we don't want a local wedding. There goes the fancy a-line dress with lace.
• Search for a new dress. Voila! Designer and totally affordable.

Even though we're getting married barefoot on the beach I needed shoes (any excuse to get yet another pair of shoes ) and the logic was I am not wearing flip flips with my designer gown and I want to be taller than 5'2" on my wedding day (I also love to wear heels). So I asked Fiance to take me the local Loehmanns Shoes in the pouring rain. I usually hate rain but this was my best rainy day ever! I found BCBG (my favorite brand of shoe) high heeled sandals for only $60! They are Sand Gold in color and so pretty! I wish I had a picture ...

Now comes the issue of jewelry. If you notice, the model has a neat necklace on and I thought I could just buy the necklace if Nicole sells it. Well she does but the twists are: (1) the model actually has on 2 of the same necklace, they rigged it for the layered look and (2) ONE necklace is $300 and not even made of precious anything, just expensive costume jewelry. Fiance said to get the look the necklaces would cost more than the dress, so I bowed to logic and finances and decided to find my own necklace. I have some candidates but need to try them with the dress.