In the Moment: Imagining the Dress

Over the next couple of weeks I'll recap our day. I'll reveal if what we were looking forward to lived up to expectations and I'll tie together our initial ideas with our DIY projects with final reveals. I'll finish our recaps with a list of what went surprisingly right.

I'm going to start off my recaps with the most obvious thing that went surprisingly right. It's the best place for me to start because it ties with the theme of the recaps - In the Moment.

I chose "In the Moment" to describe our day. A day that in the novel that will be our lives together is but a single chapter. As those who know me well are all too aware I read very fast. I gobble up words at a dizzying pace to get to the good parts and to find out how it ends. I knew our wedding day was going to be one of the good parts in our story. And I knew I wanted to be present for it. So I tried very hard to "be in the moment." And most surprisingly, I was "in the moment."

The most obvious thing that went surprisingly right? That's my dress. It went surprisingly right in so many ways even with a whole bunch of obstacles tossed in. Seeing me in my dress was one of the things cubes was looking forward to the week of our wedding.

I started with this idea of what I wanted. My mom's dress. A scooped neckline. The ability to see my boots. A gorgeous silk bustle.

A quick aside and some context. I was incredibly lucky that my mom was/is old school. By that I mean she preserved her gown so that if she had a daughter who wanted to wear it at her wedding the dress would be preserved. Also throughout my childhood, she never pressured me to wear the dress (actually I can't even remember her mentioning the dress). So when we announced to my parents that we were getting married, with the exception of two stains, the dress and detachable train were in excellent vintage condition.

My mom and I met with Scatha (Miss Velvet Cream) to show her the dress, to explain what I wanted, and to make sure my mom was fully on board. There's a photo of me in the original dress. Had my mom not been behind reconstructing the dress I would have worn the dress with alterations. In that moment when I tried on the dress with my mom standing there I felt like a bride. Everything felt right. The photo that Scatha captured of me in my mom's dress has my mom reflected in the studio mirror-a huge smile on her face. I can't believe that moment happened only 14 months ago.

We left Scatha's studio with a sketch of what my dress would look like. Over the next couple of months, Scatha magicked the dress into existence, with me driving to Sacramento once for an initial fitting. When it was time for the final fitting in March I returned with my mom. We returned to the Bay Area with my dress neatly packaged in a vintage gold dress box and a caution to be very careful with the dress as the vintage lace was very delicate. This was March.

To ensure that my corset didn't show above the neckline of the dress, I needed to wear the dress at a pattern fitting. First fitting no problem. It was agreed that we needed to strengthen the lace. This was June.

Now here's where the obstacles came in. Second pattern fitting slight problem. There was now a tear - a small tear - in the neckline. It was July. I tried to be zen about it - the dress wasn't one of my top three must haves - so it shouldn't matter. I don't know how well I held it together for everyone around me. But truthfully I was a mess. On the way from the corset maker in Hayward to our friends' house in Millbrae I'd had to pull over on the side of the road because I was crying so hard.

I think it's safe to say - and I doublechecked with cubes and he agreed - that the most stressful piece of our wedding was my dress. From August to the week before the wedding we didn't know whether or not I'd be able to wear my dress. Lacis referred me to Studio Trousseau. Karen was absolutely amazing. The brides Lacis sends her are her brides. She takes us from tears of despair to tears of joy. She told me it was doable - the lace could be repaired and the bodice reconstructed in time for the wedding.

Once I left the dress with her, she did all the worrying and all the hard work. She laid out the lace from the original dress's sleeves and figured out what looked best. And then she sent me a photo of the pinned neckline for approval. I couldn't believe my eyes. If you didn't know we had to redo the dress's reconstructed neckline you wouldn't know that the neckline Karen created wasn't original to the dress. Her one worry? That the dress, which wouldn't fit on her smallest dress form and actually broke it, wouldn't fit me. When I went in for my fitting I showed her that while it was tricky (ok a big pain in the a** to get into) I fit the dress *without* a corset.

For those not familiar with corsets - specifically corsets that are meant to be worn under clothes - they're made up of a bunch of metal stays. If you're petite, a corset will actually increase your measurements. So a dress that fits perfectly *without* a corset won't necessarily fit *with* a corset. Herein lies the chicken and the egg problem. How do you design a dress without a corset? How do you design a custom corset without the dress?

The biggest challenge we faced was that we didn't have a final corset to try on under the dress as the bodice was being repaired and reconstructed and we didn't have a final dress to try on with the corset pattern. The other problem was that I by myself couldn't get into or out of my dress and cubes didn't want to see the dress. With everyone's crazy schedules there was no way to figure out whether my dress fit with my corset. So the day of the wedding I didn't know whether my dress would fit with the corset.

As you can see everything went surprisingly right and I was actually able to wear my dress. Not comfortably and definitely not without stressing out almost everyone around me. But from the moment we gathered to sign the Ketubah through to when I sat down to eat dinner, I didn't notice the discomfort. Now when I tried to eat... well that's a whole other story. One that you'll have to wait for.

Up next, Herding Cats aka Portraits.

Credits: All photographs unless noted otherwise were taken by Jessica Palopoli. Bride's makeup by Guille of The Lobby Salon. Bride's hair styled by Catherine Walters. Bride's hair color and cut by John Skinner and Louise Frost of CODE Salon, respectively. Groom's hair by Cindy Lopez of Azure Salon. Groom's suit: Vintage Gucci from Sui Generis, reconstructed by Miss Velvet Cream.

{Green} Etsy Tuesday: Vintage Lace

With brides looking for unique looks at reasonable prices, vintage is the answer. For the bride who has to have lace, here's a head-to-toe ensemble for less than $400.

$20

Little Bird by Rebekah Shaddy

$295

Lip Stick Whiskey

$68

Nick and Nessies Vintage

How cute would this dress be for a retro engagement shoot at a tea parlor or ice cream shoppe? Pair it with bold colored gloves and/or kitten heels and you've got a fun flirty look.

What We Did: The Dress

One of the hardest things in the wedding planning was keeping my dress a secret from cubes. The dress set the tone for the entire wedding - from stationery to venue to decor. Here's what cubes knew definitively before the wedding day:

• I was wearing my mother's wedding dress.
• A corset was involved.
• There was lace. Lace that had to be repaired.

Want to know how the dress evolved? Check out the first consultation to the final fitting below.

First Consultation: September 9, 2009

Personal Photos taken with my iPhone

First Fitting: October 2009

Personal Photos taken with my iPhone by Miss Velvet Cream

Final Fitting: March 7, 2010

Personal Photos taken with my iPhone by my Mom

For the final look, you'll have to wait for photos from our wedding to see how it turned out.

The Groom: What I'm Looking Forward To - Part 1

The First Look

From my vantage point, the secrecy surrounding Eden's wedding dress rivals that of the Manhattan Project. Sure, I hear whispers and rumors about the dress, but I know these are likely red herrings and misdirections. Although Eden has posted some sneak peeks of the dress for you, our faithful readers, I've been a good groom. I'm holding out for the surprise, but can hardly wait to see Eden in her wedding finery.

Another Take: The Dress Shot

We're all familiar with that stock dress shot. You know the one I'm talking about - where the dress is hung from a fan or chandelier with light streaming through from behind.

Photography Credit: bec+fo via Whimsical Wonderland Weddings

Photography Credit: Kariz Matik Photography via Polka Dot Bride

Other than overall shape little can be seen of the actual dress.In a magazine, I immediately flip the page. On a blog I scroll past scanning the provided text for a clue to what's special about this particular dress.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not advocating that brides skip the dress shot. I'm just asking for a little more creativity. A background that draws out or highlights features of the dress. Say like these two shots. The first is a shot of a dress in front of a window - but look at all that detail!

Photography Credit: Rebekah J Murray Photography via Inspirations & Creations

Photography Credit: Cathie of BG Productions via Emmaline Bride

Creativity does exist - it just seems to be in short supply. Although when unleashed, an unexpected draping or featured detail catches me mid-scroll and has me slamming on the brakes. For example, this reclining dress.

Photography Credit: Maranda of Evoke Images via Glamour and Grace

Without this image, I wouldn't have read that the bride's mother designed and made the dress.

Have you seen dress shots that take your breath away? Did your photographer do something unconventional for your dress shot?

Update: The Trials of Vintage Lace

It's hard not to talk about my dress. Especially when I've been so concerned about the bodice of the dress for a couple of months now. I won't be revealing the dress - you'll have to wait until October for that. I will be showing why my mom and I have been concerned. I will be showing the damage that needs to be repaired.

So cubes, please stop reading. You can come back tomorrow or later today. But this post is not for you.

No Grooms Allowed!

All grooms gone? Just in case, let me remind you of where we started - my mom's wedding dress. cubes has seen photos of my parents' wedding so this is not a surprise. (If you're reading this cubes please stop now.)

We'd known that we needed to reinforce the lace. The lace on my mom's dress was backed with a structural mesh. When we changed the neckline the backing was lost.

What we weren't aware of is that lace edges need to be finished. So the neckline after a couple of fittings has frayed and stretched even though we've been incredibly careful.

And then during the last corset fitting, the unthinkable happened. The lace tore. Now it's not epic. Not even on the scale of that infamous wardrobe malfunction. But it's still heart stopping. Especially to a bride. Especially when it happens to her dress. Even more so when it happens to her mom's dress.

Right now it's a small tear. No longer than 1/2 inch.

See? Barely noticeable. But that damage is with barely moving and sneezing. Now imagine what the neckline would look like after hair and makeup and going to the ceremony site? The neckline isn't going to look as nice. So a trip to Lacis was in order. (Lacis is our local lace museum.)

Went in with breath held. The verdict? It can be repaired.

This past Monday, I met with the lace expert Lacis recommended. Karen is amazing. Lacis sends all their hysterical brides to her. We all become "her brides." She immediately puts you at ease and brings the light at the end of the tunnel into focus.

She really knows lace and vintage costumes/gowns and it shows. My dress - compared to those she typically works on - is modern in comparison. After a brief consultation, she too agreed that the neckline can be repaired and can be ready in time for our October wedding. (Huge, huge sigh of relief.)

Between now and the wedding, she's going to work magic and transform the sleeves from my mom's dress and a piece of the original neckline into a new neckline. Here are her raw materials.

All I can say is thank goodness we decided not to use the lace from the dress on my hat and veil. If we had, well... Who cares, that's a path we don't have to consider. I know every bride has some drama with her dress. While this was definitely not in our budget, it's one of those things that just needs to happen. I can be as zen as I want to be about it, but at the end of the day, I've formed an irrational emotional bond with what the dress stands for - ties with my mom and her blessing of our upcoming marriage.

Oops! Schedule Fail: Well Hello Monday

I've known for weeks that tonight I have an appointment with the lace expert to discuss my dress. Yet what did I do this morning? I left the house without my wedding dress. I remembered that I needed to drive to work today (yes the reason did actually escape me as I groggily left the house). So yes, I forgot the dress.

Now I've talked about this appointment with cubes. This weekend even. We discussed how a follow up visit might impact my Syzygryd Kitchen Prep schedule.

AND... I still FORGET the dress.

Best part about all this? The carefully scheduled post-work meeting. The getting in to work early. All for naught. I still have to use the PTO that I don't have so that I can drive BACK to the house. And then FIGHT traffic across the Bay Bridge to get to Alameda.

Seriously universe, can't you make Monday a little easier to deal with? Anyone else hate Mondays?

Burning Man: The Bride's Outfit

Two of the three vintage petticoats I ordered for my Burning Man wedding "dress" arrived this week.

And can I just say this? This look is better than what I first planning! I absolutely love the soft contrast between the off-white and cream petticoats and the detailing.

Right now I'm actually thinking of only wearing the two. And when I top them off with my Miss Velvet Cream denim top - wow.

One of the petticoats has a pink stain on the front of the swiss dot ruffle that I wasn't aware of when I ordered. There were (are) a few other stains pictured but as I was layering the slip under others those stains didn't concern me.

So initially the pink stain concerned me. I thought it would be noticeable and was considering dying the slip. But after trying on the outfit I don't think I'll need to.

What do you think? Can you tell where the stain is when I'm wearing the petticoat?

My Dress and I - A Love Hate Relationship

In March I was elated. I thought planning would mean that I wouldn't be one of those brides stressing about last minute fittings or alterations.

In May I fretted about how fragile the lace bodice of my dress was.

In June I was excited. There was a simple, inexpensive fix that would strengthen and support the fragile lace - Power Mesh Fabric.

Well now it's July. Now I'm worried. Why? Timing, a tear, and some raveling. The plan was to reinforce the lace next weekend - the first weekend of August. Between the decision to reinforce the lace and when we'd actually do the work, I was just going to be super careful with it during my corset fittings.

Flash back to last week. My third corset fitting. We were double checking the fit of the corset under the dress. We were being super careful - I mean super super super careful. The kind of careful where you hold your breath, where you inch into the dress carefully supporting all of the material so that there's no way the bodice will be strained.

You can see where this is going. I mean, heck why didn't I see where this would end. Not well. The lace tore.

So the upside. At least the lace didn't tear when we were saying our vows in front of our Rabbi. Joking about a wardrobe malfunction and experiencing one are two totally different things. (It wouldn't have been as scandalous as the famous Superbowl Intermission Wardrobe Malfunction - we designed the corset to ensure that.)

More upside. After consultation with the experts at Lacis in Berkeley, there's a way to hide the tear, finish the edge of the lace, and reinforce the lace bodice. We can use the lace from the sleeves of my mom's dress. (You don't know how happy I am that we decided not to use the lace on my hat and veil.) A lace expert is available. She can fix the dress before the wedding in October.

The downside? It's a lot of handwork. And it's work that can only be done by an expert. Put those two things together and it might be quite an expensive fix. Hopefully only a couple of hundred dollars. But... if I want the fix to look intentional. That is to not look like a fix at all. It will be expensive. Why? Because right now the bodice also has lace applique. To finish the edge AND match the applique can be done. There's enough edge from the sleeves so that the front of the bodice will match the back (original unmodified). And there's enough pattern that we can match the applique. It just requires a lot of skill. And a lot of hand stitching.

So you're probably thinking - why bother? It's just a dress. At the end of the day it doesn't matter what you're wearing when you say "I Do." But see here's where you're wrong. It's my mom's dress. We haven't always been close. We worked on this together with the designer. When I put the dress on for the first time - her dress unmodified - she smiled a real smile. My mom doesn't always smile from the heart or the soul. And here she was smiling a real smile. A smile from the heart and soul for me. Maybe she's smiled this way for me in the past. I'd never seen it. And I actually didn't see this smile in person. Scatha captured this moment with her camera. And that's when I saw my mom's real smile.

So why is this dress important? This dress is important because it signifies what was always true but that I hadn't always known. It signifies that my mom loves me and has always been there for me even when I haven't seen it.

And like my relationship with my mom which hasn't always been easy. There was never any way my dress would be easy. Relationships take work. Foundations must be strengthened over time. This dress is more than a dress. It's a reminder to me to continue working to strengthen my relationship with my mom.

Burning Man: The Bride's Dress Revisited

We're a month and a week away from our Burning Man wedding. My original grand plan was to reconstruct my Junior prom dress into a skirt and wear it with a Miss Velvet Cream denim top and my black playa boots.

Reality check. We're less than 5 weekends away from our Burning Man wedding. Our schedules are pretty full. This is my Junior prom dress that my mom made for me. There's no time to test out my plan on a different dress. I don't want to run the risk that I will damage my Junior prom dress - right now the only thing about the dress that isn't perfect is that the top is too big and needs at a minimum some darts added.

So... Let's deconstruct what I was going for. A kind of "Don't Mess with Me All American Girl" look. I liked the layered skirt. I wanted soft natural fabrics to contrast with the denim, the lacing, and the boots.

Vintage petticoats and slips to the rescue. They're not perfect so I won't worry if the playa stains them - also the few imperfections mean they're not unreasonably priced. By layering a few I have the look without any major sewing. And... they can be worn again later in the week.

A quick search on Etsy (Alley Cats Vintage, Anne Marie Austin, Crafty Crow Vintage), checking the lengths of a few options, and success! Three petticoats of different lengths to create the look I want - two with drawstring waists (no sewing) and one with elastic (an easy thing to tighten if needed).

With shipping my wedding outfit for Burning Man cost less than $100 (less than the cost to have my Junior prom dress reconstructed - a project for another day) - $85.49 and only took 15 minutes to find.

I know that I could have gotten the look for less by making it myself - cotton regularly goes on sale for less than $2 a yard. But I didn't have the time and still wanted to have my "Don't Mess with Me All American Girl" look.

In your wedding planning did you change DIY projects to BIY (Buy It Yourself) projects?

Sneak Peek: The Dress That Started It All

Today's post was supposed to be about registries. I can't stop thinking about my dress though, and realized that while I'd talked about my mother's dress, I'd never shown you a photo of the dress. I apologize in advance for the quality of the photo - my scanner didn't want to work this morning so I took a picture with my iPhone.

Here's my mom and my gram on my parents' wedding day, 10/21/1967.

If you want a sneak peek at how Miss Velvet Cream altered the dress, visit our wedsite. (cubes please don't follow the link.)

The Fragility of Vintage Lace

On Wednesday I had my first fitting with my corset maker. Going into the fitting I'd become more than a little worried about how the lace bodice of my dress was going to support 10 yards of material.

A quick rewind. I'm wearing my mom's silk dress with lace bodice. The dress is in amazing condition, but like any vintage dress, the material, especially the lace, is not as strong as it once was. We also modified how the 10 yard train attaches. It no longer glides gracefully behind me, the weight of the material partially supported by the ground. All 10 yards now hang freely. And this weight is supported by two three-inch wide pieces of lace.

At the fitting we confirmed that the lace is pulled taunt under the weight of the bustle and probably wouldn't be able to support the weight for a long duration. Enter another problem. The dress is tricky for me to get into without my hair done up or makeup on. So I'll need to be in my dress while I get my hair and makeup done (that's roughly 3 hours before we leave for the Swedish American Hall). Luckily we have 4 months and a week to figure this out.

So where does one go to figure out what to do with vintage lace? To Lacis of course.

(Source)

This museum has been in Berkeley since my mom went to California Arts and Crafts and my aunt went to UC Berkeley. What am I hoping to find there? An expert who can direct me to a seamstress experienced with vintage lace.

Who would have thought that wanting to wear your mother's dress would be so complicated? Are you wearing your mom's dress? Or are you incorporating pieces from it into your wedding?

Looks for Less: Outfits for Your Island Wedding for $500

While we're limited to one entry in DIY Bride's contest, I found that I was hooked on the challenge of putting together bridal looks for under $500. Some of these looks would be fun for engagement sessions don't you think? What you splurge on and what would you compromise?

This soft natural look is perfect for the destination bride complete with perfectly packable hat that provides UPF 50+ protection to silk flowers that won't wilt in the tropical heat.

Where to Get the Look ($478.99): Dress: Peach Orchard Wedding Dress by JuneJulySeptember on Etsy $295; Hat: Beach Sun Hat by Coolibar Quality Sun Protection $36; Necklace: Flower Cluster Rope Necklace from Arden B $24; Bracelet: Nickel Butterfly by MyThreeMetals on Etsy $34; Sandals: Gianni Bini "Natal" from Dillards $89.99

Where to Get the Look ($388.59): Dress: Calvin Klein from Nordstrom $178; Fascinator by Enchantedly Yours on Etsy $10.99; Jewelry: Earrings by Heavenly Treasures $39.95, Black Onyx Beaded Bracelet by Nancy's Gift Gallery $10.70; Clutch by Nine West on Zappos.com $89; Boots by Madden Girl from Zappos.com $59.95

Looks for Less: Dress the Bride $500

Classic Elegance for Under $477 (without tax)

Where to Get the Look: Bracelet by Kate Spade $195; Fascinator by Mariell on Wedding BeDazzle $68; Dress by YH Chang 2000 on Etsy $165; Shoes by Karen Scott Shoes at Macy*s $49

This was the $500 bridal look I submitted for DIY Bride's 2010 Inspiration contest.

The challenge was clear. "Submit an inspiration board that contains the following:

• bridal gown
• veil/headpiece/tiara/hair accessories
• shoes
• jewelry/other accessories

When combined, the total cost of all of the pieces of the ensemble must be less than $500. All pieces must be new (no vintage, second hand, clearance/sales, or consignment). Entries must include links to the products and list the prices in the gallery submission form to qualify."
So I designed one traditional look with a "bridal gown" for under $500. Could you put together a look that meets DIY Bride's criteria? If you can, submit it for a chance to win an Apple iPad.
Along the way I found these other cute looks for brides. What do you think?


City Chic for Under $500 ($327.95 without tax)

Perfect for Saying "I Do" at San Francisco City Hall
Where to Get the Look: Dress by Maggy London at Nordstrom $98; Barrette by Aznavour Paris on ElegantHairAcc.com $80; Clutch by Manenail on Etsy $50; Shoes by Steve Madden at Zappos.com $99.95

Fun & Flirty for Under $500 ($352.95 without tax)

Carefree look for Your Garden Wedding in Golden Gate Park

Where to Get the Look: Bracelet by 1928 $28; Necklace by Atelier Edyta Loukia on Etsy $49; Dress by DoveTree on Etsy $78; Hat by Village Hat Shop $19.95; Clutch by Eight Seasons on Etsy $78; Shoes by Clarks at Zappos.com $100

Dress Hunting for the Bride's and Groom's Maids: Trip 2

It doesn't seem like there's a lot of options for dresses in the stores these days. Everything seemed to look the same with one or two minor changes (single shoulder versus strapless; ribbon rose versus beading).

Here's a recap of Saturday's shopping excursion. Before heading out of the city we stopped by the Gunne Sax Outlet. It was about the time of year that new dresses come into the outlet and we wanted to have a wide selection. The black dresses didn't excite me - too plain and over our budget. A brown gown had texture, but was strapless and again over our budget. A quick pass and we were headed down the peninsula.

At Macy*s Serramonte, we didn't find much either. The majority of the dresses were in the Junior section for Prom and were daringly short. We did find a Petite option - dress on left below (it's the same color as the one in the middle, excuse the poor quality - store lighting wasn't that good and I was snapping shots of dresses with my iPhone.)

After making the rounds of the mall (nothing memorable in terms of dresses - the carp and turtles in the fountain were cool though), we headed over to Nordstrom Rack (screaming children oh my!), Marshall's, and then David's Bridal (or as Ames affectionately calls it The McWedding Store). We hopped back in River and headed back to the city.

At Stonestown Galleria we struck out at Macy*s; they no longer stock dresses in that location. After having horrible luck at Nordstrom's in Westfield Centre the night before and finding no dresses (I mean come on - what woman's clothes store doesn't carry evening dresses?) we almost skipped the Nordstrom's. Having braved David's Bridal, we decided to make a quick pass. Lo and behold the dress. Here's a pic of the dress snagged from the web at Dillards.com so that you can see the actual color of the dress:

Adrianna Papell Taffeta Halter Dress Source: Dillards

"This charcoal taffeta halter dress with side zipper features a ruched empire waist, a soutache-detailed skirt and crisscross treatment on the back. Of polyester/nylon; fully lined."

Ames tried on the blue dress to get an idea of size (they run close to true size) and ordered hers in charcoal. Nordstrom will ship dresses free to your house and permit you to return it within 30 days if it doesn't work out. Two dresses - one in blue and one in charcoal - are on hold for Moni to try (they'll be there until Tues) so that we can order and pay for 1 instead of 2 dresses. Helen and I just need to coordinate a trip to Macy*s Serramonte to try on the Petite dress. Fingers crossed that we find the right size.

We spent maybe 5 hours total searching before we found an option that might work. How long did you search for the ideal dress? Did you find it right away?

Dress Hunting for the Bride's and Groom's Maids: Trip 1

Friday after work we started our retail excursion by sipping wine while looking out onto Union Square and plotting our plan of attack for the bridesmaid's dress search. We decided to start with Macy*s and then head out to Nordstrom's and Westfield Centre.

Macy*s yielded a couple of purple dresses (one of our primary wedding colors). They were also having a 60% clearance so we found one potential dress for under $75 (I was hoping we'd find dresses for less than $150 - score.) They had two sizes on the rack - luckily 2 of the 3 sizes we needed - so Ames and Moni headed off to the dressing room while Helen and I continued browsing.


We ended up putting the dresses on hold. They were the first option that might work and we didn't want them to fly out the door before we'd made a decision. Next stop Nordstrom and disappointment.

The dresses at Nordstrom seemed old (like the styles I saw last year's when we were shopping for a dress for me to wear to Matt and Lauren's August 2009 Wedding) and were well picked over and damaged (snags, pills, etc.). We left quickly. Our last stop, cache, yielded a familiar dress - a private label, iridescent blue version of the Xscape dress I wore as a bridesmaid in Ames' wedding. Unfortunately the largest size carried by the store was an 8 and I hadn't seen that color in my online searches.

Did you find the perfect dress at the first place you looked?

Dressing the Bride: In Vintage Silk & Lace

Shortly after cubes proposed - I don't remember the exact moment - I just knew I had to say "I Do" in my mom's wedding dress and it had to be reconstructed by Miss Velvet Cream (MVC). My mom and I meet with Scatha last October to talk about/sketch the dress of my dreams. The dress that appeared on paper was beautiful. I was so excited that my mom was on board with the project.

Fast forward to yesterday. My mom and I met Scatha in her Sacramento studio for the final fitting. Wow is all I can say. I knew the dress would be Amazing based on the sketch. I didn't realize it would be breathtakingly, drop dead gorgeous. And believe you me, this dress is! I totally feel like the fairytale princess.

I can't wait to show off the dress to the wedding party. I have strict instructions from MVC to flounce around in it awhile so that we can make adjustments if necessary. Everyone else will just have to wait to see me in it. And hopefully I won't spill all the details to cubes!

Were you able to have your bridal party with you when you went for your final fitting? Or did you plan a party/get together to unveil the dress to them? Or are you keeping your dress a surprise for everyone?

Dressing the Bride: Today's the Day

My mom and I are driving up to Sacramento today to pick up my dress. I'm so excited. Last September, the dress was a Jackie O-styled gown that my mom wore when she married my dad and a couple of sketches on pieces of paper. My mom came with me for the design session with Miss Velvet Cream - I (and Scatha) wanted to make sure she was okay with the planned reconstruction. She was! In October, Miss Velvet Cream had transformed the gown and I had my first fitting (I was giddy).

I can't wait to see the final dress - it was all pinned magic in October. I also can't wait to see my mom's face. Scatha got this amazing photo from the design session of me in my mom's dress with my mom's reflection in the mirror. The smile on my mom's face was amazing.

P.S. After the wedding I'll post the photos of the design sketches and the first fitting. Although I'm horrible about keeping details of the dress secret from cubes, I don't want him to see the dress or me in it until October 10th and he regularly reads our blog.

Are you wearing your mom's dress? Did you have your dress custom made?