Wedding Dresses

Adrianna Papell Rosette Gown

The first thing I did when I got engaged was go absolutely insane looking at wedding dresses. I looked at the local boutique sites that have dresses $1,000+ which was completely out of budget. There are sites like preownedweddingdresses.com if you love a specific designer and know your size. The Chinese sites that can also replicate any designer dress for less than $300, and the department stores that have everything in between. I discarded the boutique stores because of the high price and the need to alter any dress I order which costs $100+. I was a temped, but a bit skepticle, of the Chinese sites. I was worried they would not be good quality or would never arrive. My decision was to order several dresses from the department stores. If something does not work, then I can always return them.

J. Crew Arabelle Gown

J. Crew Arabelle Gown in Coral

The first dress I ordered was the Adrianna Papell Rosette Ball Gown from Nordstrom for $238. I am a bit more shapely (size 4, 34D) than this model so the dress has more of a princess shape on me. I absolutely love this dress (except for the bejeweled action on the front which I would replace with a silk sash). I also ordered the J. Crew Arabelle Gown for $575. This is a bit more expensive but I thought I might as well try it out. I also ordered the J. Crew Arabelle Long Dress in Coral  ($365) as the coral color is very similar to our peach wedding color. It is surprising the price difference is between the white gown and the coral gown, they are really capitalizing on this market!

Queen Victoria

Mary, Queen of Scots

I am not strict about wearing only white. The tradition is only 172 years young and is credited to Queen Victoria who wore the first publicized white dress when marrying Prince Albert of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha in 1840. It was first criticized due to its conservativeness and unusual choice of color but then sprouted the growing trend. Prior to this wedding, Mary, Queen of Scots, wore a white wedding gown in 1559 when she married her first husband, Francis Dauphin of France. White was Mary's favorite color, although white was then the color of mourning for French Queens. It was not uncommon to wear your best Sunday dress or, if your family had the means, to wear rich colors and expensive fabrics.