Dress success, part three!

Who knew dresses could inspire so many posts? Eh, who am I kidding- I love dresses and could write about them all the time! In fact, I’m getting pretty good at it. Remember last February I wrote about finding my wedding gown in the original dress success post, and disappointed many of you because this is all I can show you (for now)?

And then, in March I shared the beautiful bridesmaid dresses I picked out with my girls in dress success, part two? (note, that is not one of my bridesmaids- it is the model for the dress on for House of Brides).

Well, this installment of dress success involves double the success! Whoo hoo! Ok, let me rewind a bit…

Saturday morning was my first dress fitting. I’d found my seamstress through my friend Whitney, who used her for her beautiful wedding gown almost a year and a half ago. I met my maid of honor a bit before the appointment, and we headed over. Brynda is super nice, and has an adorable little sewing room in her home. Once I was in the dress, she started pinning- because I got a sample size dress (that is about three sizes too big) there was quite a bit to pin! Once the pins and clips were all in place, I was able to really get a feel for how amazing the dress will look when it’s finished. I’m just bummed I can’t go into more detail here!

I left Brynda’s home dress-less, but with three more appointments set up! Next month, I go in to check the fit, and have the hem moved up (I’m only 5’2″, you know). Then three weeks after that, I go in to have the bustle created. A final fitting two weeks later is just to make sure that everything fits the way I want it. Then I have to wait almost six more weeks to wear it! Brynda recommended spacing the appointments this way so if there are changes at my last fitting on July 21, we have time to make the alterations in plenty of time for the big day.

After we left Brynda, Casey took me to lunch and then we headed to the mall to shop around. Enter the second dress success for the day. I had it in mind to keep an eye out for a dress for my bridal shower, and even potentially the rehearsal dinner. That’s what they forget to tell you about getting married- you don’t need just one dress, you need at least four! The wedding dress, of course, then one each for the bridal shower, rehearsal dinner, and bachelorette party. Okay, I probably don’t need new dresses for each, but I really don’t have any dresses that would work for any of these wedding related events.

We stopped into White House Black Market, one of my all time favorite (albeit expensive) clothing stores. I got my graduation dress there and have since worn it to many events and weddings, so I know that their clothes are well made. I tried on two dresses, but there was no contest- one of them was definitely “the one.” And better yet, with this dress I can show you!

I am completely in love. The dress has the perfect pin-up, Mad Men-esque feel that I love. Although I have to get another pair of red shoes- the ones in the photo are my wedding shoes and I don’t want to unveil them before the big day. And please ignore the random dog paws sticking out behind my legs- God forbid Frankie actually stays more than five feet away from me!

Anywhoo, even the back has some pretty cute detail:

Ahhh, totally in love. Obviously I bought it, but I did have to think about it for a while first. The price tag was pretty high, not to mention the sales lady was insanely pushy. She even told me multiple times that she liked the other dress I tried on better, even though I blatantly did not. Ugh. So, I put the dress on hold and walked around a bit, weighing the pros and cons while Casey patiently listened.

In the end, I had to have it. Especially once I realized I get 5% off on all purchases AND I had a $20 off any purchase over $80 coupon. Yay for discounts and coupons. I also realized while walking around that I could definitely wear this dress for both my bridal shower and rehearsal dinner- I can even change up the look a bit with different shoes and accessories. And, I have a friend getting married in November, so there’s three times this dress will get worn in less than four months!

I think that should be the end of dress success posts, even though I still have a bachelorette party dress to get I’m sure that will be something considerably less expensive than this dress. I’m sure I’ll probably share it with you anyway!

Have any of you ever been shopping and found something you just can’t live without? Or justified buying a piece of clothing by how many uses you’ll get out of it? Please tell me I’m not alone here!