The next place we dropped into, Stella's Bridal, was a slight improvement to the first. Also a warehouse, where the gowns were on mannequins, but only smaller and with three dressing areas. I found two dresses which I thought was decent enough to try on, and a pleasant bridal consultant promptly came up to help. The first one I put on then stepped onto the platform in front of the mirror made me gasp at myself. More so when the consultant propped a veil over my head, which made me feel like I was a nun in a habit! Heheh... The shock came not from the dress, but because looking at myself in a bridal gown just shook me into reality!

I'm getting married!

Now there's a reality check I can't deny. After trying on another two dresses, it began to sink in and I could focus on what I was there for. I had to try the first one again just because I wasn't looking at the dress, but at myself in one. After about five dresses, nothing really spoke out. But from that, we knew that I didn't look good in ivory and that I love the duchesse satin material.

We moved on to two more places just behind Stella's Bridal, also in Wetherill Park, which were a far cry from the previous two. Calabro Bridal had this amazing dressing area that was literally a catwalk platform with mirrors stretching three meters wide! The posh feeling also meant more expensive gowns that started at $1000. Even then, after browsing on their racks, I didn't find anything that got my attention.

Signature Brides felt a little more down to earth than Calabro, even though they carried the same Barbra Calabro designer dresses. I loved their dressing area which was a boutique hall with four dressing areas each with their own comfy couch, changing room, floor-to-ceiling mirror and one foot-wide platform. I found three gowns from their racks to try on. And I found one that I fell in love with.

Practicality went flying out the door with this one. It was a classic A-line strapless chapel train gown with simple but elegant silver brocade sewn with Swarovski crystals around the bust area and hemline of the skirt, that was impractical for our small lunch-time wedding only because I'd have to wear a hoop underneath. Plus I definitely couldn't breathe in this one. I had tried on a few informal sheath or mermaid cut dresses but none of them felt or looked right for my frame. What almost didn't help was that the dress was going for $899 with a further $200 discount. Of course, bearing that it would need to be altered put the price back up to over $800.

Unfortunately, I don't have any pictures of all the dresses I tried on. Every place we walked in had signs pasted on the walls disallowing cameras and camera phones. I tried asking the consultants nicely even, but one told me that it was because of copyright concerns that they didn't allow it unless the dress was purchased.

So much for not trying to look like a wedding cake. Heheh... In any case, it was quite exciting. And now knowing what looks right, MIL said our next outing would be fabric hunting.