While on my quest for the dress, I felt like I was struggling. I couldn’t find any dresses that really stood out to me. I kept coming back to dresses with four characteristics, although never on the same dress: cap sleeves, lacey, flowy, or flower details.

After a year of looking, I felt like I was never going to find “THE DRESS”. Then, I went to a Wedding Show in Boston and came across Madeleine’s Daughter, a boutique in Portsmouth, NH. It was a little out of the way for me, but they had this dress:

I was instantly in love.

I loved the lace and the flowy bottom. I’m partial to empire waists, so it had extra appeal. Shortly after the show, I had booked an appointment a state away. I dragged Starfish Mom and Sister Starfish along.

We got there and I wasn’t impressed with the dress. I liked it, but I didn’t LOVE it. I also was annoyed by the silver sequin swirl on the top of the dress, it seemed out of place and it really bothered me.

I told my sales assistant Kerry my budget and the four things I liked about dresses. I showed her some pictures and pretty much said everything I liked and didn’t like about each one. She ended up showing me dresses I never would have thought of and I was starting to actually think I’d find “the dress”.

She brought out dresses with cap sleeves, lace, flower details and dresses that flowed:

She brought out one dress with amazing flower details, but it was less modest than I would’ve like. I realized quickly that I did not want a V-neck. The dress was shot down, although I really love the flower details on the top:

I then tried on a dress with cap sleeves. I loved the top of this dress, but wasn’t crazy about the bottom. It was too formfitting for me, although I did love the laced up back. I thought it was different.

I then tried on a flowy dress. It was a dress by Emerald Bridal. They were having a sample sale, so the dress would be 15 % off and under my budget. It was simple, and I loved it when I tried it on in the store.

I thought it was the one.

By the end of the day, I thought a couple dresses were the one. I went from having the dilemma of not loving any dresses to having the dilemma of not knowing which dress to choose.

Did you try on dresses that specifically fit your criteria, or did you let your bridal consultant give you dresses that she thought would look good on you? Did she pull anything you thought you’d dislike, but were surprised to like?

This article was originally posted onWeddingbee.

OK, so maybe I just said my official farewell last week, but I’m so excited to pop back in and share some dress yumminess!

Mrs. Powder Puff shared her favorites from the Chicago Bridal Market this past Sunday… from the sheer amount of dresses that we drooled over, it was fun seeing what dresses she picked out as favorites compared to what I wanted to share! There literally was a dress there to fit every style, from blingy and modern to lacey and romantic. Thank you, Kate and Catherine from Project Wedding for letting us spend the day with you!

So, let’s get going. We’ll start with the pretty and end with the OMG WOW.

This gorgeous dress was probably one of the standouts from the Watters & Watters show. It’s simple yet detailed with small tiers coming down the dress at an angle. I love seeing dresses that have no beading or lace, but still give you some wonderful detail.

I simply loved everything by Liz Fields. Her style is very fun yet sophisticated and she’s really thinking about functionality as well. Mrs. Powder Puff posted about a bridal gown by Liz Fields that went from long to short… but never fear, bridesmaids, there’s one for you as well!

This fabulous dress can be formal for the ceremony…

… and fun ’n’ sassy for the reception! Genius.

Liz Fields also did this amazing petal gown. This is 100% the dress that I would buy if I was shopping again. It pulls in that fabulous vintage feel, but compared to other dresses I saw at the show of a similar style, it’s not so huge that you can’t make your way around the dance floor in it! Swoon.

When we saw the new line Alyne by Rivini, I loved how crisp, clean and fun everything felt.

This dress covered in petals is so fun!

Again, I love it when designers can pull in detail in unique ways.

And, of course, I needed to include this dress – it so reminds me of my wedding dress with the tiers cascading down it! Of course, the top of my dress wasn’t as ooh la la as this, but I’d be willing to take this dress for a spin!

Steven Birnbaum was another wonderful designer that I’m so excited to have discovered! A lot of his pieces felt very ’60s mod (well, to me, anyway… I’m no fashion expert, but I did see that episode of America’s Next Top Model where Twiggy told the girls about Mod style!).

Not only did this dress have a great detailed fabric, but the shape of the dress is really unique.

And, finally, the showstopper of the day for me! While the beautiful Liz Fields dress I showed above is what I would have loved for my own wedding, this to me is almost the fantasy version of that dress. Are you saying “OMG wow!” yet? If not, then don’t worry… I’m saying it enough for both of us!

It was so much fun escaping back into the dress world for a few hours. While I loved my own dress very, very much… it’s still exciting to think about what might have been.

Oh, and ladies… if you want pockets, never fear – designers are listening! Dress after dress came down the runway sporting fabulous pockets.

*All photos by Kevin Ramos Photography

This article was originally posted onWeddingbee.