i've found the perfect.... DRESS

 dress: tyler by amsale (photo via amsale)

... but it's not that one. although it was one of my top 3 dresses. i won't be posting my dress up just in case Will sees and really i want it to be a surprise!

i must have tried on 30+ dresses and i ended up deciding on the 5th dress i tried on my first trip out. every other dress just didn't compare. i've said yes to the dress... style.

i'm actually going to be getting a replica of the dress i want, which would cost 5% of the actual dress. yes, i said 5%. i got the idea from my friend, who had one of her wedding dresses replicated by the same company. her dress is exactly like the original so i'm pretty confident that mine will be too. it is a risk, but i think the pros definitely outweigh the cons. i am not the type of person to spend thousands on a dress, i could only wear once so this seems like the best of both worlds. Beautiful designer inspired dress at the cost of a pair of expensive jeans on sale.

i'm expecting the dress to be sent to me in april; in the meantime, they will keep me posted with pictures of the dress production. SUPER EXCITED :)

side note: getting measured by a seamstress was NOT super exciting! i think all the holiday foods i've eaten are finally starting to show...=/

shoes make the outfit

one of the things I was worried about when it came to my wedding were shoes. not the dress but shoes! my lovely little feet are a size 4. not only is it hard to find shoes that fit, it's hard to find shoes that don't look like grandma shoes. But i've done it!

i knew from the beginning that i didn't want white shoes. i wanted a colored shoes that would match my bridesmaids. Plus, i'm more likely to wear them after the wedding.  i actually already have this pair in a black and a champagne. the violet was out of stock for so long that i didn't think they would bring the shoes back but thankfully they did. i haven't been able to find a shoe as cute as these. they're on order right through zappo and i have to pick it up from the states. i'm so relieved =))))))

got the bling, now for the dress

 
honestly, who can deny the excitement of walking into a store filled with wedding dresses? i can't. but being practical, i know any dress shopping i do now is considered wedding dress research. i won't be ready to buy until a little more than a year before the big day. seriously though, i could not wait to try on dresses!


recently, my bridesmaids and i went to bryan's bride in brentwood mall. now when you first look at the place, one of the first things you notice is that they have rows and rows of dresses and on top of that, their dresses are pretty affordable. unfortunately, right off the bat our bridal consultant made us want to leave. the moment she heard my wedding date, she saw us as a waste of time and barely said anything to me. when i was trying on dresses she stood there silently, while the bridal consultant next to us was telling her bride-to-be about the cut of the dress she's trying on, and offering her opinions, etc. at one point, though she told me that i was shopping to early and dresses would start to look the same. VALID point but was moot after how she was treating my wedding dress experience. we had gone to blush bridal in west vancouver awhile back and were not treated like we were at bryan's.