After last week's flurry of happiness with two wedding dress recipients (they are over the moon you guys, and it's the best thing ever), we're back with the 11th wedding dress given away on APW. Anne is generously offering her lovely, simple, size 8-ish dress. It was a dress that ended up being more important to her than she expected, and now she wants to pass it along to one of you. The rules are the same as always: Leave a comment about why you'd like to receive the dress. Anne will select the recipient (with occasional lobbying from me… as hard as I try not to). The recipient pays for shipping, and promises to send Anne a picture of them wearing it, full of joy. Hopefully the recipient will come back as a wedding graduate too, but that’s encouraged, not required (but we've never had a dress recipient grad post yet. Snifff!). Beyond that, remember, if you receive a dress from a wedding grad, they automatically become a small part of your bridal brigade. Keep them in the loop, send them a love note or two. Because suddenly, they are now invested in your wedding. With all that, here we go:
I started my dress shopping experience by default. My sister was bringing her dress to a consignment shop and she invited me to go with her to look at other dresses. That day, she and I hit up 3 used dress stores in one afternoon. I was shocked by the prices of used wedding gowns. Don’t get me wrong, these dresses (specifically one Michaela one) were fantastic. The stitching and the regal fabric made me feel like a million bucks. That being said, there was no way that 10% of my budget was going towards a dress (before alterations, shoes, hair, veil, etc).
After that outing, I began to think about the role of the dress in the wedding. You see, my mother rented her wedding dress. You could do that in the 70s. My Husband’s mother made her dress and my sisters bought used dresses. I think those decisions helped shape my ideas of what my dress would be. I wanted to feel beautiful and comfortable. I wanted a formal, fancy wedding dress even though we were having a barbeque. I also knew that my dress would not be worn by my daughters some day. I didn’t have a very sentimental attachment to the dress.
I also asked my fiancé what he was expecting in terms of a dress. The moment I was most looking forward to at the wedding was the moment the church doors would open and I would see my fiancé at the other end of the aisle. I wondered if he had a similar sentiment. My always practical and candid fiancé responded that he did not share that perspective. He knew that I would pick a dress that I liked. He knew that he would like it. He knew that the dress was only a small part in his idea of our wedding. He also pointed out that he was renting a suit. This was all very valuable advice and it helped me immensely.
I ended up picking a David’s Bridal dress on-line. I drove an hour to the closest store that had it in stock and I put it on. I was all alone and I stood and looked in the mirror at myself for 2 hours! Hello, self-consumed! I bought it and returned home. Almost immediately, I wondered if I had made the right decision. I liked the dress, but it is simple and from a big-box store. It certainly isn’t the same quality as a designer gown. Then, on the morning of our wedding, when my mother was zipping up the back (yes, the buttons are fake!), I teared up. It was the only time I cried all day (well, until my honeymoon breakdown). Looking at myself in the mirror, all dressed up like a bride, somehow made the whole day feel real. That dress was perfect for our wedding day and it definitely helped me to realize that the dress plays a critical role in the wedding. Maybe it didn’t for my husband or for other brides, but for me, it was huge. And now, I want to pass it on to one of you.
The specifics:
I'm 5'10. The dress was a bit short on me. I wore perfectly flat shoes.
Label size is a 10; however I tailored the rib cage area and hips down (probably more like a size 8).
It's David's Bridal Style WG9871. Strapless, mermaid-style, plain, ivory gown with faux buttons down the entire back of the dress.
I had a BBQ wedding outdoors, so the bottom of the dress does have some stains. I think it's just dirt on the bottom seam and some of the inside layers. I don’t think there are any obvious stains on the dress.
The dress has a short train and a tie bustle.
Photography copyright by Carol Willoughby
Tall brides unite! I’m 5’10 too, and I’m even wearing heels at my wedding!
I’m not entering into the giveaway, just wanted to say your dress is beautiful & I’m happy for you :)
March 17, 2011 12:08 pm
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ditto!
also 5′-10″. I had to get my dress with extra length.
(though I got nothin on my little sister. she’s 6 feet if she’s an inch.)
hooray for tall brides rockin it!!
March 17, 2011 12:15 pm
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I’m also 5’10″! And wearing heels (I think*)!
*I have yet to find the perfect pair of purple heels in a size 11, so the search continues.
March 17, 2011 10:02 pm
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Ohhh no! I would happily give you mine, but they are a size 7.5, as I also wore purple heels. :) Here they are. Amazon doesn’t have them in size 11, but I know these are sold on sites other than Amazon (i.e., Zappos, Piperlime, etc.)
March 19, 2011 6:34 am
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They don’t currently have them on Zappos either but I set up a notification for if they ever do arrive. I’m getting married in over a year, so I have some time. Thanks!!
March 19, 2011 8:12 am
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Hooray! I’m 5’9″. I can only wear kitten heels though, because my fiance is 5’5″.
March 18, 2011 9:19 pm
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I’m in love with this dress, but am hesitant to put myself in the running. We’re pretty far out, so I haven’t gone dress shopping yet, and I really want the girly-girl experience of dress shopping with my mom and my best girlfriends. But still, GAH, perfect dress. I’m 5’6″ and run somewhere between an 8 and a 10, and this dress has many of the features I really love (trumpet shape, strapless, little buttons down the back). I think I’m going to have to stick with hoping I can find something similar.
Beautiful, beautiful dress though, and you look absolutely glowing in it.
March 17, 2011 2:55 pm
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I bought my dress online while living far away from my family and most of my friends, and then when I went to visit them we went and tried on dresses anyway. It was fun to have that experience, and I was very glad to have my sarcastic best friend and wry mother with me to laugh at some of the horrible things I was thankful I was not going to be buying! Actually, I think getting to do that *after* I had already found the dress I wanted to wear was better for me, since it took all of the pressure out of the day… I didn’t have to second-guess saying no to that one that was “ok but not perfect”, and it was nice to be able to just roll my eyes and not worry even for a second when the woman at the dress shop hinted that I should lose weight so I could wear a certain style, since I already had a dress at home that looked fabulous on me & was just the right style for my body shape. (Bonus points were also awarded when I realized that by having bought my dress elsewhere, I was not supporting a place that employed someone who tried to make me feel bad about myself in a wedding dress. Because I don’t have a problem with my soccer-player thighs, and that’s just not cool to do to anyone.)
March 18, 2011 1:59 pm
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This is a great point. Sarah, I’d reconsider this chance, if it’s really such a perfect dress for you and also if what’s holding you back is going dress shopping — because you can still do that!
I would *so* be entering for the chance to wear the dress, and I’m even 5’10″, but I’m definitely a size 10 — and I assume there’s no way to let the dress out? I hope that whomever wears the dress rocks it out!!
March 19, 2011 8:14 am
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I’m seconding what Kinzie said … DO IT!
I’ll let you in on a secret … I got my dress from the first store I went to. And then I still kept my other appointments with my girlfriends becuase, dammit, it was fun. And, I’ll bet, a lot MORE fun because the pressure of finding “my dress” was off.
So, enter. Please! It seems like it would make you so happy! And then make an appointment at an over the top salon who’ll give you and your girlfriends champagne and let you play a little. Best of both worlds. =)
March 21, 2011 10:54 am
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Thanks to everyone who encouraged me to enter, but I just don’t think going to a bridal salon after I have my dress would feel right to me, and I really do want that experience. I’m ok with passing this up mainly because the dress is still available at DB and well below my budget, so I can always come back to it should I really decide that it is THE dress.
March 21, 2011 11:46 am
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I do love your dress. And it is perfectly lovely on you. And though I’ve spent almost 2 hours thinking about it (I’d really like to wear a traveling dress!) I think it’s too big for me (I’m 5’9, 129 lbs, sz 6ish). Plus, I don’t think I’ll be able to pull off the strapless look. (See, it might not be so easy for me to find a traveling dress to give another special day to).
Regardless, I love your dress. But I think I’ll have to make do with the ideas I’ve already appropriated from your wedding – hopefully I’ll be having epic croquet at the reception (perhaps we’ll find a bocce ball set too)!
Again, beautiful.
March 17, 2011 4:33 pm
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I love this series–can’t wait to see who gets this lovely dress, and big thanks to Anne and all the other brides who’ve offered their dresses! I had a thought/question while I was reading this. Though I haven’t been to David’s Bridal, at every other bridal place where I tried dresses on, the sizes were very different from typical clothing sizes. I ended up ordering a dress that’s 2 sizes larger than my typical dress size, which I was told was standard for wedding dresses. So if this dress is a size 8-ish wedding dress, would it be more like a size 4 in non-wedding land? I just figured I’d ask in case anyone else might be wondering the same thing.
March 17, 2011 5:02 pm
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Thanks for all the thoughtful comments. They are making my day! I do agree that some dresses are cut larger than the size represents, but I’m not sure that’s true of this one. I’ve never been a size 4, and that’s okay with me. I wear a size 8 in gap pants. Of course, the recipient could always tailor it as they want.
March 17, 2011 6:14 pm
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TRUTH. DB runs a little big, you can count on it.
I’m a pretty standard (meaning all-the-time) size 4 … and my dress was a 2 and still big. All the dresses I tried there ran that way.
March 18, 2011 3:30 pm
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I’m not entering either – my dress should arrive in 2 weeks! Yay!
I just wanted to share that I completely relate to the excitement of seeing my fiancé at the end of the church. And the fact the he does not share the same level of excitement. It doesn’t really matter, I think it will still be awesome.
I think your dress is really beautiful. I love the buttons. It is a feature that was on my grandmother’s dress and one I was looking for but did not find. I might just go a little nuts in a couple of months and make the buttons and sew them on myself! You look really beautiful in the photos as well.
March 19, 2011 12:25 pm
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I love this post, I love this dress!!! I will be getting married in November of this year on a very tight budget. My fiance and I will be paying for the wedding ourselves. I have been very much stressing about the dress! The cost of bridal dresses, alterations, undergarments, veils…when you combine them all together it is… wheww..wow! The funny thing is, I looked at this dress on DB’s website months ago and knew this was the type of dress I wanted; somthing simple but elegant. Seeing your pics and how beautiful you looked, made me love this dress even more. However, I am very petite, 5’2′ and a size 4-6. I don’t know if it would workout, but I would love to be considered for this dress.I know who ever recieves your dress will be getting a truly special gift… Thank you for sharing this post!
April 5, 2011 6:05 pm
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Wow, Carly, I’m getting married in November, am on a tight budget, and am petite as well! I would love to take my fiance’s breath away in this dress. I love its simple elegance, and I love that you didn’t overdo the veil and accessories, Anne! Stunning.
I was actually looking to make a wedding gown out of a bridesmaid dress, but the salesman at David’s brought me this one…and I fell in love with it–other than the price tag!
It seems the label size 8 is a teeny bit tight for me in the hips…but get this: I’m a 6 in the top/bodice part. Go figure. Well, that’s me, petite and curvy–I’ve got a chest but also a tiny rib cage. I’m about to go to a different David’s to see how the 10 looks and feels in the hips.
Anne, I, too, would love to be considered for this dress, if it’s still available. I don’t think the fact that it’s probably currently too long will be an issue for either Carly or for me; I figure whatever dirt you picked up at your outdoor wedding would simply be cut off in hemming it up for one of us. I’m just wondering whether you took in a lot at the hips, or just a little, whether it’s still a bit bigger than a label size 8…?
September 6, 2011 6:05 pm
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Hi! I am not sure if this dress has been given away yet – but if not I would LOVE it!! I actually just tried it on the other day and was kind of amazed at how much i loved it because when first looking at dresses online I was very opposed to satin, but in person it is beautiful. I am kinda on a tight timeline and budget as I just returned from a deployment shortly after my fiance returned from his deployment and now he may have to go back to Afghanistan :( So i need a dress a lot sooner then we both originally thought. If it is still out there I would take great care of it ;) Thank you!
March 7, 2012 7:56 am
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