gowns that fit the description of
what I wanted. Each dress I tried
was lovely but nothing had that
irresistible factor for me. Then she
brought me a wild card.
"This one is a bit different," she
said, "but just try it on for me."
She held up a lacey, champagne
and ivory colored mermaid gown
that I normally would have passed
on in a heartbeat. But then I thought
about my custom dress, the A-Line,
satin, long-sleeved gown I was to
wear down the aisle. I wanted the
groom to know in an instant that that
moment was special, that the gown
was different from what I had on
before. I needed the decoy dress to
be as different as possible, and this
unpredictable gown was just that.
When I looked in the mirror, it
was clear this gown was more than
just a decoy. It captured a part of me
the other dress hadn't, a part of me
I barely admitted to myself. It was
glamorous and powerful and bold.
Wearing it, I felt the same as I had on
my first date with Trent, a knowing
in my heart that this was the one.
What began as a spontaneous
endeavor to surprise the groom
became a moment of self-discovery.
I am an intentional, A-line, custom
dress kind of bride and a last-
minute, mermaid, off-the-rack
dress kind of bride and (most
obnoxiously) a two dresses kind of
bride. And I'm okay with that.
FEBRUARY/MARCH 2022 | maconmagazine.com 47
