Weddingbee Blog

My grandma and I were discussing dress making and she said she’d like to have THE dress done by the end of July, and I agreed that would probably be a good idea as it would leave me time to get accessories and complete my look by the September wedding. Last week I ordered my petticoat and yet another strapless bra (I’m having a tough time finding THE bra) so I’m gathering all the things I’ll need to get my dress properly fitted. Grandma asked that I pick up the material for my dress so I can bring it down to her house to get things rolling. I wrote down the amounts of what I needed to get, recruited my mom and Bombshell to help me in my fabric search, and hit the road.

My sister, mother, and grandmother have all told me about the wonders of Haberman Fabrics many times, but I had yet to step into the store myself. Bombshell regaled us with stories about her job as mom drove us up to Royal Oak, and I bored everyone with stories about Cherry Bomb. As we arrived at the store, my mom asked what I was looking for. I quite honestly answered, “I have no idea.”

I wanted something fancy looking but not too shiny. But not too fancy, because it’s a casual wedding. But fancy enough it would look appropriate with my petticoat. And so on and so on. I’ve found with many things in our wedding that I don’t really know what I want until I see it, and that was certainly the case with my fabric search.

When we stepped in the store I was taken aback. It was huge and there was fabric absolutely everywhere. As we walked in we were immediately in the bridal section. There was a case full of lace appliques and a display of veils along with multitudes of fabric in all shades of white, cream, champagne, and ivory. I browsed around, unable to remain devoted to any one fabric. My mom suggested we walk around the store and check out the other options. Just because it was going to be used as bridal fabric didn’t mean it had to come from the bridal section!

We investigated every section, including the upholstery section. I flirted with the idea of cotton eyelet for awhile, but didn’t find one I was truly in love with. Finally, we rounded our way back to the bridal section. I stared, flustered at the choices. Mom and Bombshell made some suggestions; I shot them down. Then my mom pointed to a white fabric with a subtle, sheen, print. I pulled it down from the shelf. My mom unrolled it. I nodded. This was it. It was light enough to be comfortable and heavy enough to lay nicely. My fabric was chosen.

Now all that was left was the terrifying moment when I would find out how much this fabric would cost me. I had promised myself that money was no object. I only needed two and a half yards of fabric, so no matter how much it was, I was going to suck it up and buy it.

“It’s $9.98 a yard,” my mom declared.

“Are you serious?” Bombshell asked.

“Well, I don’t have my glasses on, so you probably want to double check,” she conceded.

I looked, and sure enough, I had picked a cotton/lycra blend that was a mere $9.98 per yard. My mind was instantly filled with shoes that would suddenly fit in my clothing budget with fabric this cheap. Awesome! With that, I bought four yards (just to play it safe in case Grandma needs to cut it differently due to the fabric print). I also picked up a zipper and some thread I needed and we were out the door and getting ice cream in no time.

THE fabric

So now I’m one step closer to my dress and less than fifty dollars poorer. I can’t say I’m too disappointed in that.

Have any of your wedding expenses come in surprisingly budget-friendly?