Wedding Dress Shopping

Yesterday my mama, sister and future mother in law went wedding dress shopping with me.  It was a whirlwind of a day, and while overwhelming at times, I was so happy to have the three of them there to share in the ups and downs of the (surprisingly) emotional process that is gown shopping.  Above is a photo my sister snapped of my ring:)  

First stop was Wendy's Bridal in Dublin, where I worked with an amazing consultant named Lila who was extremely helpful and kind.  I was so glad for her guidance- when I walked in, I was feeling anxious about finding the perfect dress.  I had seen some vintage dresses I liked online, but I wasn't able to find anything similar at the salon.  Lila helped me to narrow my choices, and in the end, she picked the dress that was the clear winner.  It was a beautiful ivory lace sheath dress from Allure with a cafe silk charmuse slip underneath.  Oh. My. Goodness.  I have never felt so beautiful and comfortable at the same time!  I truly love the dress, and it is a frontrunner for sure!  Such amazing fabrics and attention to detail.  It looks similar to the dress below, but without the beaded sash.  (I won't be posting any of my real choices just in case you-know-who finds them!)

But I wanted to be sure it is the one for me, so on we went to appointment number two at David's Bridal.  Unfortunately they didn't have the two dresses I really wanted to try- we found out upon arrival that they had been discontinued- but we found some similar dresses and my consultant picked a lovely strapless ballgown with ferns embroidered on the bodice.  It was the best dress of the appointment, but I didn't get that same wow feeling that I got in the lace sheath dress.  (Ok, this one you can see.)

 I was feeling a bit overwhelmed and dissapointed that I didn't walk away with a dress, but my family was good to remind me that we had a fair amount of time (a little over a year!) and that all would be well.  My mom has found some other shops for us to try, and there's a dress online that I really love that looks similar to this one I found on Etsy:

And I know that there's a lovely lace number waiting for me at Wendy's if I find I can't get it out of my mind:)

In the mean time- here is a sneak peak at our engagement photos, taken by our amazingly talented friend Amy Parrish!