I can't believe I forgot to mention that I did complete my first dress fitting on August 5, and that it went smoothly thanks to perfect shoes. And how did I find these perfect shoes? With the help of my friend Jean.
Jean had read some of my past wedding blog entries and said she could relate to the one about wishing I liked shopping or had shopping friends. She'd wished the same thing herself while preparing for her own wedding in June, and Grace Hom, style diva extraordinaire, came to her rescue. Jean, bless her heart, came to mine.
We went shopping in San Francisco's Union Square on Saturday, August 3, with finding a slip, a bracelet, and—most importantly—a pair of shoes as our goals. Jean turned out to be the perfect person to help me shoe-shop because she was also born with wide feet. She can understand the chagrin/embarrassment/frustration/anger that goes along with only being able to get two toes into a shoe instead of all five.
We started at DSW Shoes, where I picked up one pair of possibilities, and then headed to Macy's. I'd forgotten how much larger the Union Square Macy's is compared to most others. I was able to find the perfect cuff bracelet, a great little bag (which I set down somewhere and thus forgot to buy—though I found it in a different color at another Macy's the following Monday), a slip, and...drumroll, please...shoes that fit, don't hurt, are the right height, and are a neutral color that blends in with my feet. And the cherry: they were $59.95. Not a budget-buster. Woo-hoo!
I certainly couldn't have done all this without Jean, who kept me on my feet and my eyes on the target. If I'd been alone, I would have given up after an hour. On this trip, though, we even managed to spend a bit of time looking at towels in the Macy's linen department, and at bridesmaids dresses in the Jessica McClintock store. What a productive day!
When we'd had enough, I took Jean back to her new home in Glen Park (which she'd given me a tour of earlier in the day—it's lovely!), and I headed back to Mountain View in triumph. I tried on both sets of shoes for Al, and he promptly picked the Macy's pair as the clear winner (I'll return the DSW pair tomorrow, when I go up to the city for a training class). The shoes were indeed perfect, as the dress did not need hemming at the fitting the next day. The only alterations the seamstress needed to make involved moving the zipper to make the bodice and waist fit a bit better, and adding a button for the bustle.
Of course, at the time I went for the fitting, I hadn't planned on losing any weight before the wedding. However, seeing myself in the dressing room mirror wearing the scary strapless bra and slip seemed to be the spark I needed. I started eating better that very day, and I've lost 5 lbs. My goal is not to lose a ton of weight—I'd rather not have to get the dress altered again—but rather to feel comfortable in my body. That's already happening, and boy, does it feel great!
Posted by Lori at August 19, 2002 04:00 PM