Wedding Blog

Ah, the infamous dress search: a bride’s long-awaited pampering experience. Finding the perfect dress should be a piece of cake, right?

Well, maybe for some brides, but not for this indecisive one (*points at myself*)! I must have tried on thousands of yards of satin, lace, and taffeta before I found my perfect gown. It took me quite a while before I found a dress I absolutely loved. But, finding a wedding dress was a fun and often arduous process. For memory’s sake, I scoured the internet for pictures of the dresses that I tried on. I want to remember this entire wedding planning process for years to come and many of the bridal salons I visited did not allow cameras. You can read my dress journey documented below.

First stop: Trudy’s in San Jose, CA

At Trudy’s, my very first wedding gown experience, I tried on six or seven gowns. They had some very affordable potentials, including some gorgeous, reasonably priced gowns by European designer Pronovias. Not many stores in the bay area carry this designer. The front runners were these two beauties (by Pronovias):

The train on this gown was detatchable and the dress could be converted into a sexy party number for the reception.

Made of raw silk, this gown could easily be converted to strapless, which was a requirement for my dress of choice.

Second stop: Gabrielle’s Bridal in Los Gatos, CA

At Gabrielle’s quaint little shop, I was personally assisted by Gabrielle, the owner. She helped me narrow my favorites down to two Melissa Sweet gowns plus one Ines di Santo:

The Melissa Sweet “Mila” was a side-gathered dress with a darling flower bow. It was very unique because the dress bustled on the side.

I loved the crystal detailing on this Ines di Santo, but the bust shape didn’t look right on me.

To this day, I still love this dress.  I almost purchased the infamous “Lia” gown and it’s still a top contender in my books.

Third stop: Unique Bride in Burlingame, CA

My stop at the Unique Bride (which has a large selection of beautiful gowns) happened to coincide with a Monique Lhullier trunk show, so I had the chance to try on these two amazing gowns by ML:

The two-tone coloring of this dress was beautiful and made me feel like a princess, but I was looking for something with a mermaid shape.

I loved the simple elegance of this dress and considered buying it with a jeweled satin belt, but the price tag even with a discount was a bit high.

Fourth Stop: Clarissa Bridal in Walnut Creek

I visited Clarissa in particular to try on Jenny Lee gowns (they are one of two shops that sell Jenny Lee in Northern CA). These two Jenny Lees and one Monique Lhullier were in the running for the finals:

This Jenny Lee gown had the sweetest rose adornment right in the middle of the bust.

I loved, loved, loved the sweetheart neckline on this Jenny Lee!  I didn’t end up getting it because I wanted more embellishments on my gown.

This very dreamy ML dress truly had me feeling like a walking fairy tale.  Unfortunately the dropped waist accentuated my short 5′2″ frame.

Fifth Stop: Amy Kuschel Bride in SF, CA

My experience at Amy Kuschel was among the top three out of all the bridal salons I visited (third after Marina Morrison and Alexandra, reviewed below). The space was so beautiful and their gowns were all simple, yet stunning, and custom-made for each bride’s measurements! These three dresses made it onto the “maybe” list:

Made of delicate lace.

The side rouching of this gown was very unique and pretty.

Sixth Stop: Alexandra Bridal Salon in SF, CA

Let me preface this by saying that I bought my dress here so I might be biased, but I LOVED the dress selection at this posh salon. Stepping in here was a sigh of relief. It was like they hand-picked all the best gowns in my taste and set them all out on racks for me to browse through. Here are my favorite numbers:

This dress by Priscilla of Boston looked a lot better in person than it does in this picture, however it was still a little too “geometric” on my small frame.

 
Gorgeous gown by Romona Keveza!  It fit all my requirements: sweetheart, mermaid, satin, and rhinestones.  Second choice had I not fallen in love with mine.

And of course, my gown. I actually never would have picked it off the rack to try on.  My bridal consultant selected it for me.  This dress is similar to the Romona, but fit me better, and I got a deal at the trunk show!

Seventh Stop: Marina Morrison in SF, CA

Yes, I’m well aware that I already purchased my dress before I made a stop to Marina Morrison to try on even more gowns. I heard so many great things about the salon that I had to take a visit. And let me tell you, they definitely live up to their reputation. The dresses here are timeless. But the real reason I visited was to convince myself that there was no need to feel buyer’s remorse for purchasing my Ines Di Santo so quickly. Luckily, my feelings were confirmed. I found some beautiful dresses here, but they I didn’t love them as much as my prior purchase. Here are a few of the lovely gowns I tried on at MM:

This gorgeous gown with architectural construction is by Judd Waddell.  It was really quite stunning, but I wanted something a little more embellished.

A romantic, timeless number by Judd Waddell that would have looked perfect against my mediterranean-style venue.

Lian Carlo designed this classic number.  The material was summery and light, like wearing a cloud!  I loved it, but it wasn’t quite right for my fall wedding. 

All in all, I really loved the entire gown shopping experience and I’m a bit sad that it’s over. I’m also quite relieved and overall satisfied with my selection. It’ll be ready for my first fitting in August, so pictures to come!