The Weight of a Dress

Last September, my daughter, two of her bridesmaids-to-be and I traveled to White Magnolia Bridal to shop for her wedding dress.

I don’t recall how many dresses she tried on that day (maybe 10?). She tried on a beautiful ballgown first, but isn’t sold in a bright white, and the available color just didn’t complement her skin very well.

It also became apparent over the course of the afternoon that a sizable bow was a key criteria.

At one point during the session, she said, “let me try that second strapless one on again.” I barely remembered it. In fact, in a ditzy moment, I asked, “Have you considered trying on a strapless gown?” (She had already tried on several.)

The dress she ended up choosing:

a) has a ginormous bow!

b) is the perfect color white for her skin

c) is structured simply but elegantly. As one of the bridal consultants said, “you’re wearing the dress instead of the dress wearing you.” She was right.

A decision was made.

Once the dress was in our lives

We picked up the dress in February.

I don’t think I touched the dress, though, until Tenley got her bridal portraits done on April 1. I had the privilege of sharing the afternoon with her, and my job was mainly that of carrying the train around so it didn’t get dirty.

Here’s what I have to say about that …

Of all my lovely memories of this wedding-planning period that started in July 2020 when Tenley and Stewart got engaged, one of them is simple and quiet. It’s the feeling of holding that mikado in my hands (mikado is a luxury silk).

Every time I dealt with that fabric — both on the portrait day in April and on her actual wedding day on May 15, I felt a little surprised at its heft. I thought about the seamstress working on the dress. I thought about our long wait between September and February waiting for it to arrive (I told Tenley the dress needed a tracker like pizza delivery places have).

Prior to May 15, I wondered how she would feel in that dress on her wedding day.

Somehow, holding that fabric symbolized the weight of the commitment we make when we get married, and the solemnity of the promise she and Stewart would be making to each other.

All topped off with a huge bow, of course!

This is a response to the Kat Bouska prompt, “Tell us about something new you purchased.”