The story of my wedding/dress is a bit different - it actually has very little to do with what I wore, and more to do with how it came to be.

I unintentionally (because I didn't know about it at the time) carried on my family tradition of having my Mom make my wedding dress - her Mom made hers, and so on. I'm a pretty non-fussy person, and I find the big fancy "shock and awe" weddings to be ridiculous, selfish experiences, mostly for the bride. So when it came time to plan a "wedding", my husband and I just wanted to get on a plane and go get married privately on a beach somewhere.

So, my Mom and I picked up about $18 worth of while fabric (don't even know what kind - something flowy and light, thats all I know) and since it was a fairly hot September, she made me this wraparound sleeveless dress (almost like something that a Greek statue would be draped in) that couldn't have been more simple and comfortable. We had immediate family gather in my Nana's livingroom (Nana was entering her last few weeks of a battle with breast cancer and couldn't leave the house) and we were married by a Justice of the Peace. We saved the ring and vow exchange for later - right after the wedding we got on a plane and flew to Europe, landing in London. We took 3 months to backpack all the way to Turkey and back, and while we were in Greece, we stopped in a tiny village on Crete (where my traveling hippie parents used to live way back in the day), bought white bathing suits (I had a little white bikini and a pair of the lightest linen pants I've ever worn) and we finally exchanged our rings and vows privately on the cliffs overlooking the Libyan sea. We celebrated Greek style that night, and it was the best wedding I could have ever hoped for. When we got home that December, we had all the family and friends that we didn't have at the wedding gather at my parents house for a huge 'reception'.

The fact that my dress was handmade by my Mom, and the fact that I asked her to do it before I even knew that it was a tradition for Moms to make the dresses anyways, made the whole experience so special. My older sister got married 2 summers ago, and she made her dress too, although it was a lot more complicated than my simple one piece wrap dress...it was blue silk, poofy, corseted, and generally awesome...

I'm sure that if I wanted to get crazy, I could have put a lot of emphasis on what I was wearing that day, but for me, the big deal was the moment I married my husband. The dress was special, and always will be, but mostly because it was made by my Mom. It could have been a cow-printed kilt and cardigan set and it still would have been the best wedding dress I could ask for. I don't know if we plan on having kids yet, but if we do, I hope I have a daughter so I can make her wedding dress too (despite my lack of skill).

I guess all I can say to any other 'brides-to-be' out there (and I know of a few - YAY!), is to focus on that moment in time when you and your partner dedicate yourselves to one another. That moment, as short as it is, is the only thing that truly stays with you forever. Surround yourself with goodness that day.

oh Angelina...what a lovely story!! I can really picture the whole thing...

me too...went with a very simple design...flowy..midevilish empire waist kinda deal...no veil.bare feet, flowers in the hair kinda deal. My good friend made my dress...which made the whole experience more real and personal for me...lovely small family type of wedding out in central Canada no where.....everything was simple and all about the experience of getting married and having a wicked prairie wedding with our closest people...every single person that was at the wedding would be there today ten years later.....good grief i've been married for ten years this august....the time does go by...

Right the prom dress....well it was the early nineties for me....so we are talking bright bright fuscia...off the shoulder mini skirt but was poofy and puffed out with a crinoline.....white high heeled pumps and white nylons with the biggest hair that a can of hairspray can muster...you end up with a certified Madonna wannabe explosion. Yep I didn't keep that dress. And I really should get around to burning those pictures. annnnd ....I bet that dress is still sitting in some thrift store somewheres. anyways memory lane is grand........