I know I said last week that my new blog feature would debut today, but I think I was kidding myself. C has been sick this week, and I've been running around like a madwoman gathering last minute supplies for the wedding. I think I'll be finished with the big projects this weekend, which will just leave minor details for next week. The new blog feature WILL debut on Black Friday (if you'll be around to see it)!
Anyway, many of you have commented on the fact that I seem very laidback about this whole wedding thing. That's because I am. :) It's been relatively stress-free for us, largely due to the fact that we're relying on ourselves to get things done rather than outside vendors. I always feel a lot better when the ball stays in my court, because I have a hard time trusting other people to get things done the way I would.
I'm no seamstress, so obviously hand-making my dress was out of the question. I had to go to a salon, and I loved the initial experience. There's something to be said for stores full of gorgeous white gowns, and having people fawn all over you while you try them on. I definitely felt like a princess, and I think every woman should have that experience for her wedding. HOWEVER. I don't recommend going to the bridal salon I went to (and if you live in the greater Phoenix area and are getting married soon, e-mail me so I can warn you away).
I went dress shopping with my mom in January, because I wanted her to be with me the first time I tried on dresses. I'm the only daughter in my family, so it's been really important to me to include my mom in as much as I possibly can. I found what I thought was the perfect dress, and we discussed a purchase plan at home. But months went by, and my parents were never able to save up the money for the down payment (my parents are wonderful people with terrible luck, so circumstances were working against us). I decided that maybe I should try and find a different (and maybe more affordable) dress.
I ordered the bridesmaids' dresses through the Bridal Shop of Horrors. They were really nice and helpful when we went to the store in June, so I had no idea that bad things were coming. We ordered one dress, and made arrangements for the other three girls to call in with their measurements. They were having a trunk show that day, with major discounts for buyers, and I got suckered into trying on dresses. They're just so pretty... Anyway, I fell in love with one, and they told me I'd get 35% off of it, so I couldn't really say no. I put a little bit of a deposit on it, and promised to be back with the remaining $200 in two days.
Two days later, I went back and paid the remaining balance. I was ecstatic! I had a dress, it was ordered, and soon I'd be able to transition into the world of fittings and measurements. They called me a week later to confirm the color and size of the dress, and told me over the phone that they were ordering the dress right then. Awesome, right?
Wrong. Two months later (in August...three months before my wedding), they called to tell me that my dress still hadn't been ordered, and they were concerned because my wedding was three months away. I was shocked, because I had been operating under the idea that the dress was on its way and would arrive in October. They told me I owed 43 more dollars before the dress could be ordered. Why they couldn't have told me this the two times I was in the store or the one time they called, I have no idea. If they had even called me sooner, like at the end of June or beginning of July, it would have been fine.
As it was, I paid the remaining 43 dollars over the phone and they ordered the dress that day (with a free rush service, since they messed up). Meanwhile, they hadn't ordered the bridesmaids' dresses either, claiming that they didn't have everyone's measurements (which they did) and couldn't order them. I yelled, they ordered, and that issue seemed resolved.
Fast forward to the middle of October. The bridesmaids' dresses arrived two weeks late, and it took them a week and three phone calls to ship two of the dresses out of state. My dress was scheduled to arrive 5 days before the wedding (why yes I was panicked, thanks for asking). They informed me a week ago that my dress had arrived in Florida early, and that they'd be overnighting it on Monday. You can guess what happened.
They didn't ship it Monday. They didn't even ship it Tuesday. They finally shipped it Wednesday, but only because I called their New York office to complain. The woman in New York told me it was sitting in a salon somewhere, and wasn't scheduled to be shipped until Saturday. The hell?! Anyway, it arrived yesterday, and I rushed in for my first fitting. I had spoken to the regional manager of the store on the phone yesterday, and he made arrangements for free alterations (thanks heavens!), so all I had to worry about was getting fitted.
The dress is beautiful, it needs minimal alterations, and it'll be ready on Sunday. I'm breathing a giant sigh of relief now that I know a major crisis is averted, and I can finally be excited about our wedding next week (NEXT WEEK!). I'll be scheduling posts again next week, but I won't be participating in Road Trip Wednesday (sorry for those of you who do). I'm really looking forward to sharing pictures with all of you in two weeks!
Happy weekend! :D
J
