The Process of Planning a Michigan Wedding

The Dress

One of the best parts of the planning process was the bride’s dress.

The next step we decided to take in the wedding process was finding a bridal dress.  We took the recommendations from past brides through some of my previous blog posts,  such as  Wedding Advice and Tips, and tried Becker’s Bridal Outlet.

We loaded the van with friends and family and headed to Lansing. Periodically, Becker’s Bridal runs Black Friday and one-day sales. I recommend following their Facebook page to see these deals.

Shelby tried on so many dresses.  Becker’s Bridal Outlet did not lack choices.  There was a dress for all shapes and sizes and a lot of variety. Shelby found a couple of interests, but overall the dress styles were itchy, heavy, lacy, or busty.

As we looked around the bridal store, the 2022 dress styles were not appealing to us.  During the visit, Shelby kept expressing that she wanted a princess dress and their selection did not fit the bill.

There were a few that she tried on a Becker’s bridal:

That night we came home and I had Shelby try on my dress that had been boxed since 1999.  Of course, the style was not satisfactory, but it was fun to see her try it on.

The next day I was at a friend’s puzzling and we talked about our bridal dresses that were saved in a box.  My friend’s mom had her dress from 2000 professionally boxed, and she had three boys and it was time for the dress to go. I said I think Shelby should try it on for fun!   So we called Shelby and she agreed to come over and humor us and try on the dress.

THE DRESS REVEAL

When we opened the box, it was two pieces. I have never seen a two-piece dress since I have photographed weddings, and I have photographed probably well over 400 dresses. I thought to myself,  this is the odd dress and likely a long shot, as it lay in the box!

Shelby tried on the dress and to her surprise said to us,  “I think this is the dress; I love it!”  My friend and I could not contain our smiles. Shelby was beaming and it was a true princess dress with a corset back and a big full skirt. She looked like a princess.

The two-piece dress offers comfort that the other dresses do not.  Shelby is a creature of comfort.  It was light, soft, and not pulling on her shoulders.  The corset was silky, and allowed for a maximum hold, forming her figure perfectly.  Shelby did not think a strapless dress was an option, but the corset’s stronghold could withstand movement and did not need to be pulled up.

As we were all beaming,  my friend said, “It is yours, Shelby.  You can take it and if you find something else, no worries. Hold on to it until you find something else.”  As the day and night went on, Shelby said, “Mom, that is the dress. Just thinking of it makes me teary.  It is perfect.”  Just in case, we decided to continue to look at more dresses to make sure it was the right dress.

A USED DRESS

The dress had been stored for 25 years was purchased in Chicago and was made by designer Maggie Sottero. Two-piece dresses were popular in the 1990s and this particular dress had beautiful Swarovski crystals hand sewn on the top.  You would also see bridesmaids’ dresses in two pieces at this time.  Of course, a used dress brought some challenges.

Even though the dress was preserved and stored in a sealed wedding box, there had been some yellowing around the armpits, a few rust spots in the front, a hole, and discoloration from spills on the train. The dress was not as bright of a white color as when it was new.

THE SEARCH CONTINUES

We were on a hunt for another two-piece dress. We visited David’s Bridal and Spring Lake Bridal which had some nice options but did not compare to our friend’s dress.

RESTORING THE DRESS

The next step was to find a place that could restore the dress.  I made several calls and found one along the lakeshore. They did a great job restoring the dress.  The dress was brightened and looked like new. All stains were removed.  Restoring the dress was approximately $500 and included the cost of restoring, hemming/fixing, and pressing.

LESSONS LEARNED

This woman has an incredible talent for restoring dresses. However,  I would now recommend getting it hemmed or repaired elsewhere.  We had a horrible time with her seamstress, she was rude and snippy.  No directions were communicated about a second fitting after the first hem and repair. The next step transmitted to us was to press one week before the wedding.

Keep in mind, I have not had to have a fitting of any sort in 25 years.

Tip #1. Be sure to go back for a second fitting.

Tip#2. Make sure to try the dress on after it is pressed. This would apply to new or used dresses alike.

I was not aware of a second fitting. Call it stupid, but I had no idea.   We did try the dress on at home after the repairs and it was fine.

However, we did not try the dress on again after the press.  Pressing made the dress considerably longer and on the day of the wedding found it to be too long for Shelby.   She was tripping over it.  We pinned it as best as we could, and we helped hold the dress as we walked her down the aisle. During dancing the dress was often stepped on.

Wedding days have a lot of moving parts, things happen.

Picture: carrying the dress

BOXING YOUR DRESS

I am not sure I would recommend boxing your dress if there are no major stains like spills from wine or large amounts of discoloration at the bottom from a dirty floor. It takes up a lot of room, and in this case, there was still yellowing. If there are dry cleaning companies that can restore the dress 25 years later, I don’t think you need to pay the money to have the dress boxed. Some other ideas could be storing in a cedar chest or box it yourself. Avoid storing the dress on a hanger. A hanger can stretch out the fabric on the dress over time.

THE BOYS

Let’s not forget about the boys…

We were trying to find deals, and with the difference in physical sizes of the boys, in addition to some of them living in different locations, it was not ideal to shop at Macy’s or JcPenney.

We had a recommendation to try Woodland Tailoring, they were great.

THE GIRLS

All the above locations listed, have bridesmaids dresses as well. We ended up ordering fabric from Azazie.

Shelby chose Amethyst for her color. The girls could order from their location to be delivered to their home. Shelby chose a color and fabric and the girls could pick out the style of dress.

We also checked out: Birdy Grey

At both companies you only get to pick three fabrics per household for free, but we would use family and neighbors to get a few more color samples.

THE ROBES

The links to the robes: Bridesmaids and Bride . 

THE FINAL PRODUCT

Stay tuned for Part III of The Process of Planning a Michigan Wedding

The post The Process of Planning a Michigan Wedding Part 2: The Dress appeared first on Jamie May Photography.