Weddingbee Blog

I found my dress without trying on a single wedding dress—crazy, I know. So you might imagine my haste on Monday when my dress arrived in the mail. I tore into the package and I quickly tried it on, but I felt a little guilty. I have a confession; by the time my dress arrived I was no longer a wedding dress virgin. *gasp*

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I cheated on my dress—it’s true.

You see, shortly after ordering my dress I discovered the “need” to have a wedding dress in March. Yes I know “need” is a very subjective term left to interpretation. I “needed” a wedding dress almost 5 whole months before the wedding and a month before I had asked Femia to have my dress finished. ACK!

I weighed my options of cost and time—I didn’t really have much of either—-so I created a list of priorities.

• Cost: no more than $100
• Fit: minimal tailoring - i.e. hemming only. I estimated that a size 10 dress would fit me, but I didn’t know ’cause I’ve never tried one on.
• Condition: previously used is OK
• Design: Anything goes - well, except circa 1985

Because I didn’t have time to search thrift stores and vintage dress shops I turned online. Specifically, I turned to my friend “Craig”. I search Craigslist.org and immediately found what I was looking for. The keywords I used? “Used Wedding Dress, Size 10” After that it was easy to scan the titles and weed out the listings for dresses over $100. I also weeded out any listings that didn’t have photos. Time is money people! Thankfully on the third page I found a local Seattle bride was selling her Mora Lee gown with sweetheart neck and pick-ups. Her asking price was $100 and the dress was a size 10. She had listed the dress for sale two weeks previously so I was concerned that she had already sold it. I called and found out that she still had the dress, she was 4 inches taller than me, that the dress had some grass stains around the train due to a failed bustle and that she was itching to get the dress out of her closet. She told me she would take any offer I gave her. We set an appointment.

Let me tell you, as a wedding dress virgin it felt really funny to have a full dress and train following me around her living room as I modeled the dress for Mr Pretzel. I seriously felt like there was a small village living under my skirt and that when I turned to the left, the village turned to the left. It totally reinforced my desire to have a short dress! Besides being about 6 inches too long it was a perfect fit. I gave the bride $100 for the dress and brought it home.

Pretzel kitty, Cassanova, thinks the train is suspicious

Mr Pretzel had a nice chat with the couple while I wrestled myself in and out of the dress. He had a great story to tell me when we got in the car. The couple’s wedding was planned in 2-3 months. During the outdoor reception the bustle failed and the bride tacked the dress up as best she could with safety pins. It didn’t bother her much and she danced the night away.

I contemplated hemming the dress myself, but decided it was worth some money to save myself the time and hassle. I couldn’t think of anyone better to find me an effective and affordable seamstress than my friend “Craig”. I posted a listing for a “Quick and dirty wedding dress hem” with an asking price of $40. I mentioned it didn’t have to be perfect, just effective. Surprisingly I received a number of responses ranging from a fashion design student to a seamstress who had done theater work. I weighed my options and went for the seamstress with theater experience, because what I was asking for was really just a quick and dirty theater hem.

She worked wonders! Taking 6 inches off the dress really helped it to not swallow me up as it does in the photos above, it also removed almost all of the dirt and grass stains. I can’t tout Craigslist enough. With a minimal amount of work and searching I had found myself a “fake” wedding dress and a seamstress to do alterations for $140.

I have to admit, it was a little sad trying on a wedding dress after ordering my dress. Now what drove me to buy a “stunt” wedding dress? That, dear hive, is another story for another day.

Have you found yourself “cheating” on your dress?