My feelings on “THE dress,” part 2…we go shopping…

So…I had my dress inspiration. Next up, the shopping began!

The first shop we visited was Olga’s in Tampa. My mom and I were on our way to the mall, and we stopped in just to take a look. I tried on 3-4 dresses in that shop; and my favorite, hands down, was:

Harlow by Maggie Sottero

It had a sweetheart neckline, lace, and it was form fitting. My mom loved it. And, with a price tag in the $800’s, it was in my budget. But, it was the first place we’d stepped foot into; we felt like we needed to see more dresses before any decision was made! I wish I had a photo of myself in it; alas, one does not exist!

A few weeks later, my grandparents were in town, and my mother, grandma, and I went on an all-day shopping trip!

First stop…David’s Bridal.

I’ll be honest. I didn’t really like a single thing I tried on there. The consultant listened to me and brought out dresses that relatively fit my description, but there was just something about them that wasn’t hitting me. I didn’t take any pictures, because nothing was really striking me. Here are a few that I tried on:

All images from David’s Bridal

I would only consider this with the straps removed…I’m not a huge fan of spaghetti straps in general.

This was the one dress that I disliked the least in the bunch, but the price tag was over $1,000, and I knew I could find a more “designer” dress for the same amount of money. Yes, I’m a snob…I’ll admit it. *Hangs head in shame.* So, we moseyed on down the road...

Another stop on our shopping trip was The Dressing Room in St. Petersburg. The owner of the shop was hilarious. It is a small shop, and she locked the door as we walked in so we wouldn’t be disturbed. Pretty cool. Our trip to The Dressing Room was for one purpose; they had the Agadir dress from Cymbeline. If you need a refresher…

Cymbeline

I HAD to try it…

And, what was the outcome? *Sigh* Ok…so I wanted to be in love with it. And it WAS gorgeous. The champagne lace was a great color against my skin. BUT, alas, my mom and I decided that it looked more like something you’d wear on the red carpet rather than your wedding day. Single tear.

I felt a little dejected, but then the owner suggested that I try on another dress from Cymbeline that I had overlooked at first. It didn’t completely meet my dress requirements, but I was willing to try it out! Here is the Colibrie:

They informed me that they could turn the neckline into a sweetheart for me if I desired. The skirt was just so…swishy and dreamy. I realllly liked it. What I didn’t like? The price tag was over $2,000. Gulp.

So, without further ado we left the dress shop…I was starting to wonder if I’d ever get that magical “I FOUND THE DRESS” feeling that I was hoping for…