My feelings on “THE dress:” I make up my mind…

I suppose I should have started my dress-buying series with the caveat that the shopping experience happened months ago (in the summer, actually)…thank you to everyone who has offered advice/tips over the past few days though!

So…where did I leave off? If you are behind:

Part 1: My inspiration, Part 2: I went shopping

And in Part 3, it’s the moment you’ve been waiting for. I make up my darned mind!

After shopping around at a few other stores, my mom, grandma, and I headed in to CC’s Boutique in St. Petersburg for my appointment. I filled out my info card, and then my consultant, Monica, met with me to start the dress process (by the way, she was amazing!). She had me describe the details that I was looking for in my dress…I provided her with 5 key words: lace, strapless, sweetheart neckline, fitted. Then we began.

Monica explained that the first dress she brings out is the one she feels is the closest match to your ideal dress. Depending on how you react to the different aspects (too tight? Too sparkly? Too poofy?), she adjusts her dress selections from that point.

And…wouldn’t you know it…the dress I purchased was indeed the first one she brought me. But first, let me show you another dress that almost stole my heart, before the big reveal...

Obviously, we couldn’t stop at the first dress even though we loved it, so I spent an hour or so trying on various gowns, comparing each one to the first dress. I tried a beautiful organza gown in champagne by Pronovias, the Oleaje, that was a top contender for a while (actually, you may have seen it before, on a featured wedding on TheKnot! And, coincidentally, she got married at my venue…). Monica informed me that we could easily have the straps taken off as well...yay! The price was also great - at around $900, I would still be under my original $1000 budget.

Sadly, I wasn't allowed to take pictures of myself in the Pronovias gown, but trust me (and the pictures below)...it was gorgeous!

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But...in the end I kept going back to the James Clifford. It met all of my criteria; strapless, form fitting, the neckline, and the lace…perfection. No sparkle, no beading. Glorious. My grandma started to cry when I first put it on. My mom was sold on it, my grandma was sold on it...and then I flipped the price tag when Monica was out of the room, and felt a little sick. My beautiful lace dress was $500 over my budget. Crap.

Well, I'll make a long story short, but after a little hemming and hawing over the price...and some serious reasoning/justification in my head...I decided that I was willing to take the plunge. Throughout my session, none of the dresses were close to being as perfect on me as the J1820 (sheesh, sexy name huh?). Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner!

So, do you want to see it?

Well, the stock photos at least…for now…but I will say that the photos pale in comparison to this dress in real life…they just don’t do it a bit of justice whatsoever.

If you are Mr. Buttons, AVERT your eyes! Go away! And, if you don't want to see it, just don't scroll down!!!

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So…did you feel a sense of relief after you found your dress? Did you stick to your budget, or did you go over/under it?