Say Yes to the Dress

Two friends from work, Jen and Abby, and my best friend, Leila and I went dress shopping a couple weeks ago. I didn’t really have a plan for getting my dress. I just knew I wanted something white, above the knee and at little cost.

I actually went to a bridesmaid boutique on my own, but left feeling frustrated by the cold and frankly, bitchy, saleswoman. So, when my carpool-mates from work insisted on taking me out dress shopping, I figured they just may know what they’re doing.

They made an appointment at a local bridal and bridesmaid boutique, Bella Bridesmaid, in San Francisco and also made a reservation for lunch afterwards at a local gourmet vegetarian restaurant, Greens. It was great – I just had to show up!

We arrived just after 11 and we were given free reign over the available dresses. They’re a small boutique, but they had a good selection of simple dresses. The bridesmaid dresses come in a variety of colors so I tried some of those on, too.

I tried on a variety of dresses, but nothing quite worked. This one was cute, but I felt more like I was going to prom than a wedding:


And I gave long dresses a shot. I confirmed that long just isn't my thing.


And this one would be good for a cocktail party, but not the wedding.


Near the end of the session, I finally found The Dress. Here is a tease of the upper hem line:

I won’t debut it until the Big Day, but it met my vision of romantic, vintage-y, cute and with a hint of one of our wedding colors. Plus, it was under $400! The girls and I agreed – this was it. I said yes to the dress!

I ordered and paid for the dress on the spot. It’ll arrive sometime in May and then I’ll need to get some alterations to bring it above the knee.


We then headed off to lunch to celebrate. What a successful and fun morning. Many thanks to my gals Jen and Abby for organizing!