My Big Fat REAL Wedding – The Bridal Attire.

Lesson #2. Stick to your guns.

Few things about my wedding stressed me out as much as shopping for my dress. At the airport coming back from our engagement trip, I made my first bridal magazine purchase. Dress after dress had staggering prices…some as much as 25% of my reception budget (gotta love those Oscar de la Renta dresses). I was convinced that I had just bought the super fancy magazines with super fancy dresses. Two days later, I bought a couple more magazines…same thing. It gave me ajada.

But on the positive side, I quickly learned from my fancy magazines what styles I liked best. So armed with this knowledge, I went to a Reem Acra sample sale to see if I actually looked alright in this style. The third dress that I tried made me cry so I bought it on the spot. I saved some serious coin on the dress and detachable train (75% off), which afforded me the opportunity to splurge on shoes and accessories – such as my Badgley Mischka shoes, JCrew Slippers for the reception, and the amazing satin hair flower/broach from Gabriella New York.


But I have to tell you, as amazing as it was that I was able to find my dress about a month and a half after I got engaged, I learned my next lesson: once you make a pivotal decision, be confident in it and don’t second guess yourself. With well over a year before I would actually walk down the aisle, it was very difficult to not look at the 1000’s of dresses in bridal magazines and not think “did I make the right choice?” You cannot do that to yourself…whether it is a dress, a venue, or invitation…you will drive yourself crazy.

As for me, my wedding dress and all accessories were a hit. No one else even knew that I had lost sleep lusting over that Oscar de la Renta. --a