Mrs. Toucan, Boston
Age and Occupation: 25, Full-time Research Assistant, Part-time Graduate Student
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 25, Actuary
Engagement Date: February 18, 2007
Wedding Date: June 7, 2008
Blogging Since: November 07, 2007
Venue: St. Catherine of Genoa, Jin Asian Cuisine Restaurant
About Me: I’m a Gemini to the extreme. On one side, I’m a girly girl. I read countless bridal and fashion magazines, and have an obsession with keeping up with the latest Hollywood gossip. On the other side, I’m a sports fanatic. Despite being a full-time bride-to be, full-time research assistant, and part-time student, I’m also a full-time Red Sox fan from spring training to October, and a full-time Patriots fan from mini-camp to February. I devote almost as much time researching my for fantasy football team as researching for our wedding!
Chronicles of a Two Dress Bride, Part 1
April 7th, 2008 @ 2:35 pm by Mrs. Toucan
**** Mr. Toucan, you may not want to read this post ****
I’ve changed my mind about a billion times with almost all of my wedding decisions. The one area I didn’t think I would be changing my mind was my wedding dress decision. In all honesty, while I really liked my wedding dress, I never loved it. Former brides and other brides-to-be have said that you just know when you find the dress. I never believed them - it’s just a dress right? So, off I went to Running of the Brides last year, and I got a dress. I never really believed it was THE dress, because quite frankly, I didn’t really care about my dress. It’s just a dress. For one day. Or really, for a few hours. I didn’t care.
Or, so I thought.
It was almost a year ago, when I bought my dress. As time passed, I started fighting off feelings of doubt about my dress. Is it really “me?”
The dress in question:
Front of the dress in question
Beautiful long train
Closer look at the back
There was no denying that I thought the dress was beautiful. And it almost fit perfectly already! And yet, there was something I wasn’t feeling. In the dress, I looked like a bride, but I felt out of character. I kept trying to convince myself that it was just one day, and that on my wedding day, I’d feel beautiful in anything that I wore.
And then, last week happened. I came to the realization that I had completely missed out on a real dress shopping experience. At Running of the Brides, I had tried on mostly A-line gowns. I didn’t know how other silhouettes looked on me.
So with about 2 months left until the wedding, I decided that even if I didn’t find a dress that I truly loved, I owed it to myself to at least go wedding dress shopping. After all, I certainly don’t plan on ever going wedding dress shopping again!
Stay tuned for Part II - Dress Shopping at T-2 Months
20 Responses to “Chronicles of a Two Dress Bride, Part 1”
I think is is absolutely gorgeous, but I am curious as to what part 2 may bring!
It is a beautiful dress. And it looks great on you.
I would not discredit the dress just b/c a choir of angels didn’t start singing when you found it. I think everyone over hypes THE dress bit.
That being said, if it doesn’t feel like “you”, thats a whole other ballgame. Go to a few stores, try on lots of different styles (not just ones you think you’ll like - you never know what might surprise you).
Also - take a serious look at your current dress and decide what it is about it you don’t feel right about. At T minus 2 months - it might be easier (and less costly) to adjust your dress to be more to your liking. You might find a sample dress that fits you and is “you” and be rockin. But you might find out that anything you want will need to be ordered - SOME of which will just charge you through the nose for the rush, and some of which will just say no.
ASK before you try any dresses on. If they wont sell you the sample, and it can’t be ordered in time - DO NOT TRY IT ON!!!!!! You DO NOT want to fall in love with something you can’t have.
I hope you find a dress that is “you” and enjoy the shopping experience!
I love dress #1 What designer is it?
My wedding planning motto is do what YOU want. That said, I agree with Michelle on this one. Don’t even try on a dress on if you can’t get in time for your wedding.
You look absolutely BEAUTIFUL in that dress! I picked my dress without having “the one” moment, so I’m also very interested to see how your story develops.
Oh I can’t wait to see the Part 2 installment.
I know dresses can be found with only 2 months to go. I lucked out and fit a sample dress just perfect, and the shop let me buy it- I was the first person to try it on too (so they say….) I walked out of there with my dress that day.
can’t wait to see what comes up next.
Thanks ladies, I’m excited to share Part 2 with you soon! 
@ynichole: The designer of the above wedding dress is Justin Alexander. I don’t remember the exact style number of the dress, but I believe it is a discontinued style.
hey toucan -
you inspired me to attend the running of the brides - i did not have a team like you did though i was planning on going all out - i ended up makign great friends in the line and we teamed up to make one awesome power house team of 5 brides - different sizes. it was completely awesome.
but i know how you feel. i think the same way as you do about the dress thing cause frankly you and i have other dresses to wear that day - your qi pao and for me my ao dai. so this one “other” white dress seems insignificant in comparision to the slew of dresses we need to change into and out of on our wedding day. i originally bought a j crew very simple white dress - no beading, ribbon or anything. and whaddya know mom said something along the lines of “it’s not formal/wedding-y enough” so i went and got my current maggie sottero dress from the running of the brides event. i am 6 weeks away from my wedding and indeed - i never had that boutique search feeling/experience and hell i am not sure this maggie dress is “the one” either! but in the end I think all the planning things that i did do and the “sucesses” leading up to my wedding, i am okay that my wedding dress is not my wow moment - it will be when i get my weddign ring and see what secret message my fiance engraved to me.
maybe since you are getting close to wedding date you are having wedding withdrawal blues early? i am sorry that i can’t help more but i just wanted to let you know that you are not alone in this blase feeling about your dress. =)
Does this mean we’ll be in the hunt for ANOTHER pair of size 5.5 shoes???? 
I agree with Michelle. AND I can’t believe what I just read. I was in the exact same situation about 2 weeks ago. My wedding is in July, but when I hit the 6 month mark in January, and still hadn’t found “the dress” I was so stressed, not to mentioned pressured to buy a dress. I ended up buying a dress that was beautiful, and convinced myself that I wasn’t going to have that “this is the dress” moment. So I bought the dress. After weeks and months of stressing over the fact that the dress didn’t feel like me, I went back to the store to try the dress on again to see if maybe I just forgot what it looked like on. It didn’t feel right. Well, I ended up buying a new dress. I’m not saying go buy a new dress, I’m saying listen to yourself. If you feel the dress isn’t you and you can’t shake that feeling, you owe it to yourself to at least look so you have something to compare your current dress to. That should answer the question once and for all ” is that dress “the dress”. Also, having a dress on standby takes the pressure off of having to buy a dress. Good Luck!
I have such a similar dress experience- the first dress i bought was at the Brides Against Breast Cancer sale, and after I bought I so didn’t feel like me. I think it’s really hard at these one-day sales… you really free pressured to buy becuase you don’t have another chance otherwise! I know that for me, it led to poor decision making. At least it went to a good cause…
Ooh — the dress looks gorgeous on you. If you’re in Boston and are interested in purchasing a second dress, don’t forget to hit up Bridepower.com (Vows Boutique in Newton); they sell all samples, but treat you really well, like a full-price wedding salon. And the Priscilla Sample Sale is this Friday!
OMG!
I am having the same exact issue! What to do , what to do….
@beanchar: haha… maybe? just kidding.
@Thea T: You are totally right. The one-day sale thing really does make you feel pressured to buy! It certainly did that to me.
[…] *** Mr. Toucan, if you really don’t want to have any idea of what I look like in a wedding dress, don’t read this post either! *** Part I: The Realization […]
You look absolutely beautiful. I think that the dress is fabulous!!!!
You look absolutely beautiful. I think that the dress is fabulous!!!!
[…] Mr. Toucan, not this one either!*** Part I: The Realization Part II: Dress Shopping at T-2 […]
[…] the journey to get to this part - THE ACTUAL DRESS. And since you’ve been so patient through Part I, Part II, and Part III, I shall bombard you with pictures of my new wedding dress (whether you like […]
[…] that way you have women buying two dresses and then they have to sell one off. (Here’s one woman’s plight to try to change her dress) You just have to peruse eBay to find tons of people selling […]
