Say Yes to the Dress - Yes, Please

This past weekend, myself, three of my bridesmaids, my three sisters, my Mama, my MelMom, RJ’s Mom, my Grandma & my Gigi (talk about a party) headed to Nashville, TN to do a little White Dress shopping. And guess what!?

I said yes the THE dress.

Like the dress, the most important dress I’ll ever wear and I actually picked one! I, Riley, who plans outfits for months leading up to a trip, picked a wedding dress in the first shop. I had a lot of anxiety leading up to this decision and honestly a little anxiety post dress shopping so I wanted to share my tips and tricks to make it out of the bridal shop alive.

This weekend was one of the most magical experiences that I’ve dreamed of my entire life & I finally lived it! I’ve doodled what I wanted my dress to look like on the edge of my school work since I was in the third grade and I cannot believe I finally found my dress! My day was perfect and hopefully I can help make your day just as amazing.

1. Find what you like, but be open to new things. I was going into the appointment dead set on what I wanted. One of my best friends told me over and over ‘you’re going to get something that you never thought you would’. I thought she was wrong but it was me who was wrong! I didn’t go completely off track from what I wanted but I’m so happy I had an open mind. I actually didn’t even pull my dress, the associate did! My advice: head into your appointment and pull a dress in each shape, it will help you narrow down what style you like and don’t like.

2. It’s YOUR day. Originally, I had trouble making appointments (& YES make appointments for dress shopping, two-three maybe even four weeks in advance) because I ~~wanted~~ needed to bring 9 people. Eventually I told the girl, I have to bring all 9 or I’ll have to go somewhere else. She suggested no more than three but said I could bring them all. In the end, I wouldn’t have wanted it any other way- rather you’re bringing 1 or 12, just let them know what you need.

3. Ice Breakers. Being a blogger, I’m used to being in the ‘spotlight’ or in front of a crowd. Especially when people are critiquing what I’m wearing but I was still nervous. I wanted something silly to break the ice and lighten the mood when we arrived. I took two photos of RJ (my fiancé) one happy, one mad and took them to FedEx & printed them on card stock (make sure to only take pictures of their head and make sure the head is as close to the same size as possible!). I then taped them to a cute, heart print straw (I couldn’t find popsicle sticks) and made one for each lady attending. If they liked the dress, they held up the happy face. If they didn’t they held up the sad face. Not only did everyone get a kick out RJ’s goofy head on a stick, it definitely lightened the mood! Plus made for super cute pictures. We also drank a mimosa before the fitting, but don’t drink too many!

4. Feel your best. Being a future bride most likely means you’re already implementing a work out/health regime. I made sure to up my workouts a few weeks leading up to the dress shopping, increase my water intake, watch my sodium and tried to get a little vitamin D (a spray tan works too!). Not only did this make me feel my best while shopping but I also looked better! I still have a long way to go before this body is wedding ready but I was so glad I didn’t feel like a junk food-aholic the day of. I also wanted to make sure my hair and make up was completely done so it was as close to the big day as possible!

5. Find the Dress & Stop Looking. If you’re like me this is the scariest part. How am I sure it’s the dress? Did I get the feeling? Will I find a better one? Honestly.. I don’t know the answers to any of these questions. I knew it was the style I wanted after process of elimination. It was 100% my favorite shape. As for the details? How would I ever be sure I wouldn’t find something better? I stopped looking. I knew my dress was gorgeous. My dress made myself, family and friends cry. My dress fits my wedding vision. I won’t see my dress again until October and I miss it. I was sad to take it off. I said yes and I checked it off my list.

I snapchatted a few sneak peaks of dresses I tried on but you won’t be able to see what I chose until November! I’m so excited, I honestly might wear it our entire honeymoon too! I hope my tips are helpful, there are still so many things left on our wedding to do list but I can now cross the most important one off! What a bittersweet feeling!!

ps. I found my dress at Arzelle’s Bridal Shop in Nashville, TN and I highly recommend it. The girls there were amazing and so welcoming. I couldn’t imagine a better place to find my dress.

pps. My ‘Kiss the Bride’ tee is Wildfox, one of my favorite tee brands. The quality is top notch, the fabric is softer than a cloud and the fit is amazing but usually comes with a steep price tag.. I’ve found SO many Wildfox pieces on major sale here.

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