Transformation

I am not a girly-girl. Although I have always liked dresses and getting dressed up, I never thought I would purchase a 'fairy-tale' style wedding dress. My family and I had already gone on two other shopping excursions looking for the perfect dress—pretty, looks good on me, and most importantly, not too costly. So, we found ourselves trying on dresses one day in an area referred to as ‘bridal row’—an area of town that has one bridal shop after another. I tried on dozens of dresses—all were beautiful, but none were so great that I couldn’t live without. We decided to leave, but on the way home, we passed by one bridal shop that was sitting by itself. It was nearly closing time, but the ladies inside let us in. I told them what type of style I was looking for (no frills), and they brought out several dresses for me to try on. I tried on all of the dresses they presented, but just wasn’t feeling any of them…then they brought out a different style. By looking at it in the bag, I wasn’t sold, but since my family was there, I decided to try it on anyway.

I went back to the dressing room, and my mother helped take the dress out of the bag. I already had on a corset-style bra and petticoat. And from the moment she draped the dress over my head, I started to get a feeling…I was getting married. It seemed to take forever for her to lace up the back in the tiny little room. I stepped out of the dressing room, and before I could see myself in the mirror, I saw my father’s face. His expression changed slightly and he smiled. When I turned around and saw myself in the mirror, nothing could describe it—this was my dress. It was nothing what I expected—beading at the top, flowing gown, with bunches of material. But something about it made me smile…it fit my curves just right, the beading was just enough to enhance the look without overpowering it. And best yet…the price was right!

And after trying on dozens of wedding gowns, I’ve come to the conclusion, that it isn’t about what the dress itself looks like. It isn’t about what type of material it is, if it is a princess or a straight cut, if the gown cost $5000 or if it cost $50…it is about how you feel in the gown. It’s about that feeling when you put it on that transforms you from a girl trying on wedding dresses in to a bride.