Wedding Blog
… it has to be one the bride can dance in. I love the idea that something is practical and still looks great.” - Vera Wang
I didn’t plan on getting my dress as quickly as I did. In fact, I bought it so fast that I didn’t even wait to try on my original front runner:
Mr. Quiche. Stop. I don’t even want you to see me in the discarded gowns. Do not press “Read More”. Merci et je t’aime!
I went dress shopping at Nicole Miller with Bridesmaid C (for her wedding dress) before Mr. Quiche and I were engaged. Granted, it was only a month before he popped the question, but how was I to know? I didn’t want to “jinx” it (even though, deep down, I know there is no such thing). So, this beauty (with a deep pink border) stayed on the rack while C picked out her gorgeous gown.
Three weeks later, Mr. Q and I were engaged and my mom and sister were in town. We had shopped non-stop for two days and really didn’t have any plans for Saturday. They suggested dress shopping and I readily agreed! I had tirelessly searched for the wedding dress of my dreams, and only ended up with two that I really liked (okay two that I really liked that weren’t a fortune). I gave myself a budget of $650 and still felt like that was too much.
The two gowns that I liked were both by Alfred Angelo. Their store locator lead me to two different non-descript bridal salons on the far northwest side of the city.
source
See how easy, breezy she is in this gown?
So, you can see the style I was going for - strapless, fitted, casual-ish. The first salon had one of the gowns, and I really did love this dress. I almost bought it and left the store right then, but Mama and Sister Quiche talked me out of it:
We found a dress similar to my second choice, but…not so much. It hit at a weird place on my calves and just wasn’t very flattering in general:
You know you love my sexy brown flip flops, yeah!
We also found this one on the final sale rack. It was only $200 which piqued my interest…:
… but we all felt like it gave me alien boobs.
I tried on a couple of others that aren’t worth posting, then we piled in the car and headed further west. This strip mall bridal store made me a little queasy (literally) - the lighting was harsh and all of the pink and mirrors made my stomach turn. I tried on 2 dresses, hated them both. Then stepped into a flowy, feminine little number that was NOTHING like what I had pictured for my wedding dress. Not strapless. Not fitted. But perfect.
I am really, really hesitant to show any pictures of it because I am being old fashioned and not letting Mr. Quiche see it before the big day. I don’t even want him seeing any of the pictures in this post! I worry that he’ll be too curious and look. Let me obsess over it a little longer, and then I’ll decide.
So, dress shopping done in a day. How about you? How long did you look for your wedding dress?
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Just a thought: I was the same way about my FI not seeing me and I worried about pictures and where they were being kept etc. Then he was on my computer and came across a picture of me in a white dress (it was just a spring dress from a few years ago) and he freaked out and nearly threw the computer across the room because he was so afraid of seeing my dress ahead of time!! So as it turns out, when I blog about my day of accouterments, I just need to post a “Go No Further” line and he stops reading right then.
I totally understand why you don’t want to post it, but I really hope you do b/c I want to see it so badly now!
Oh lucky you! My shopping took WAY too many weekends and I still didn’t end up with a dress I loved, but got it because I was kind of out of time to order it.
You feel free to keep obsessing, but I would love to see the dress!
I went with a bridesmaid to “play” for a few hours one Saturday; I tried on around 5 and found one that was kind of liked but was no where near what I what I thought I wanted. A few weeks later, my mother and I went shopping and I ended up purchasing my dress-the second one I tried on that day! I want to keep the surprise for the wedding day, so I haven’t let my fiance see it or hear any descriptions!
You look stunning in these, so I can only imagine what you look like in your actual dress. I haven’t shown pics of my actual dress either; I just want to keep some mystery for my guests. 
I took 2 days and 4 stores. I actually just got my dress yesterday!
Similar to you though I’m hesitant to post pictures of the actual dress on my blog. I posted the “no” dresses though and am debating the actual dress. My FI can’t handle surprises and is already squirming because he doesn’t know…
How about a 24 hour viewing of your dress? Like Sunday, if you know you guys will be out and about, and Mr Q won’t be online much, you could post your dress, and then take it down at the end of the day! 
That way you could hopefully steer Mr Q clear of it for one day!
I don’t know if Mrs Bee would allow a pic up for such a short time, but it might be worth it! I totally understand your reservations of not wanting him to see it!
It took me forever! I think I tried on 30 dresses, went to about 8 stores (some multiple times), and thought the idea of knowing when it was ‘the one’ was crazy because I thought I liked a bunch of them… until suddenly it happened! After being nitpicky about all the other dresses I tried on, I was shocked at how little I had to think about my decision to get my dress and like you it wasn’t what I had started out looking for either!
I found my dress at the first and only store I went to, and I was in and out with dress in hand in under an hour! I knew that I wanted a dress that looked great on me, and I didn’t want to spend a ton of money. So I went with my mom to a bridal consignment shop and found a sample gown and it was perfect! And the best part is I love it so much and I don’t feel the need to obsess over other dresses I find.
Did you go to Vegas to Venice? My roommate from fashion school owns and runs it! I get excited when Chicago bees talk about dress shopping.
I just got engaged on Friday and found my dress Sat! My best friends who were helping my fiance (OMG fiance!) plan the proposal also surprised me with a weekend full of fun & made an appointment at Priscilla of Boston - my fave! The first dress I tried on was the one! I def lucked out =)
@Miss Taffy: No, I didn’t go there! I didn’t know about it until reading other Chicago bees posted about going there! Hmm….
@LzzNYC: Wow, that was fast! Congrats to you!!
@mdarrah: I told Mr. Q not to even think about looking and was very cool about it - just an “okay, I won’t look today” type thing. & I really don’t think he will, so…
I too would love to see what you picked but totally get why you’re not showing it. I keep telling my fiancee that it’s black with red hearts and a pleather corset. ha.
1 store, one hour, ten dresses (all way different). My only criteria was not a single bead and no poof factor. My dream was a lela rose, but her line is way too much for me to justify spending on a dress for a day. What’s crazy is that when I look back at the photos that I gathered in the very beginning of idea hunting, the dress I ended up choosing is exactly in the same vein. Apparently I’m consistent.
YAY to easy dress shopping!
ooo awesome alien boobs! actually i really like that original front runner and i do hope we’ll get to sneak a peak of your precious at some point!
Ooh I hope we get to see it! You could do what I saw on Bridezilla once… the bride left a ‘dummy dress’ in the house just to see if he’d go look at it and HE DID! You could post a dummy dress photo! Ha, just kidding - of course he won’t look, Mr Quiche is too much of a gentleman.
Pretty dresses! You look so chic. Don’t worry, I haven’t revealed my dress either. I keep saying to myself that I will…but I’m just not sure I will take the plunge. Cheers to indecisive dress revealers!
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Mrs. Quiche, Chicago/Montego Bay
Age and Occupation: 28, Interior Designer
Fiance's Age and Occupation: 42, Telecom Guru
Engagement Date: July 2, 2008
Wedding Date: May, 2009
Venue: Coyaba Resort, Montego Bay
About Me: I love Chicago and can’t imagine living anywhere else (Well, except Paris. Or anywhere in France, for that matter!). I’m a full-time worker, part-time student, soon-to-be-step-mom, indie music lovin’, architecture and design fanatic, macaroni and cheese addict, vegetarian, Francophile, Ohio State football obsessed, wedding planning girl. Mr. Quiche and I are “Partners-in-Crime” and cannot wait to celebrate our marriage surrounded by our family and closest friends. I plan on DIYing my little heart out (or as much as a suitcase to Jamaica will hold).
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