Week Ending 17th November 2023
And she's out of her drought! Last Friday was such a good day let me tell you!! I had a beautiful bride come in that had seen me before. She previously came in with her best friend who was also getting married (yes you absolutely can have a double session with your bff!) and they were both so nervous! The first bride (The one that came back in) was getting married in Santorini so would just be a small wedding followed by a "mate-moon" (a honeymoon but with all of their friends...so good!). She didn't have an exact idea of what she wanted but did want something figure hugging with a thicker strap. She ended up being between two gowns that were the exact same but one just being a two-piece. She tried those two pieces on again and ultimately decided on the two piece which was such a great option for her!
On the same day another bride came in who was getting married in January in Tuscany. It didn't compute in my brain but the bride explained that it was going to be SUPER cold over there (derr Laura) so she was looking for something long sleeved, easy to travel with and classical. She ended up choosing a sale gown which she snagged for $800 which fit the brief to a tee! She even got a fur jacket to match (why wouldn't you! I will take any excuse to wear a fur jacket).
I have a lovely busy Saturday of meeting all of you brides and will check in with you next week (don't take my word for that please).
Laura xox
Week Ending 8th November 2023
Don't even talk to me about how long it's been...she's a busy girl! What a month it has been! Both at the boutique and in personal life. With a little baby in daycare, I feel like I have been continuously sick for 3 months which is just super amazing! I had an amazing trip down south with the girlies - drank a lot of wine. Now onto the bridal stuff:
I have seen so many beautiful brides lately and yepp...so many off-rack appointments!
I had a beautiful bride come in who was getting married the second time round and didn't want to do the whole "big ball gown" thing again. As soon as she walked in I had a dress in mind for her. I always wait until after I start putting the brides in dresses to then pull my picks - reason being is that a few dresses deep you can usually get a feel for their personality. Anyway - this bride actually wanted to pull my pick anyway so that turned out great! And guess what? she loved it!! It was a fully beaded ivory gown, lowest back ever and low in the front which she was going to have sewn up. After a quick consult with the bestie, she pulled the trigger and brought her. I love that she found her dress but Im a little sad as we will no longer have that dress in store now and was actually one of my faves :(
Also a quick PSA to my brides if you are reading. It's come up quite a bit in the last few appointments I've had but you absolutely do not need to apologise...for anything. Here is a list for my lovely people pleasers of all the things that you do not need to apologise for:
1. Hairy Legs
2. Hairy Armpits
3. Sweating
4. Having dirty hair
5. The dresses not fitting
6. Asking me to get a dress off of the mannequin
7. Asking to try on a dress for the third time
8. Your opinions of a dress
9. Not wearing the "correct" underwear
10. Having to think about buying the dress
11. THE WAY YOUR BODY LOOKS
Please take note
Laura xox
Week Ending 6th October 2023
Who knew I wouldn't be super consistent with my diary? Hehe I did. Alas - I am back to recap the last couple weeks.
I'm starting to sound like a broken record or maybe I am just attracting these types of brides but my gosh, the off-the-rack brides keep on coming! and I LOVE THEM! I think these types of appointments are my favourite. I love that there is a little bit of urgency and I love that I can really help my brides.
I have actually been in a little bit of a dry spell for the last couple of weeks - not one single sale. Unfortunately that can sometimes be the reality of being a stylist in a smaller boutique. Thankfully though at this boutique we are not paid on commission so much less competition and a lot of pressure off of our brides because we are a lot less pushy. I would much prefer a sale to walk away with positive thoughts about me and the way that they were treated rather than scaring them away by saying if they don't say yes today then the dress will gone.
I had a lovely lady call me one morning last week saying that she had been in before and would like to come in that afternoon to retry it. Of course, please come in! I retrieved her info card and had seen that the last time this bride came in was November last year...almost a whole year ago and she still had not made a decision on a wedding dress and was now needing to buy off the rack. She came in with her Mum and usually I don't ask but for some reason I did..."Is there anything else you wanted to try on before you retry the one that you love?". I usually don't ask this because I don't want to confuse my brides any more than what they are. She said no so we went and put the winning dress back on. She still loved it! and her Mum still loved it - thank god. The bride turned around to me and said "I know I'm not supposed to but the dress in the window..can I please try it on?" - eeeeek. I let her do it. And ohhhh my gosh we all loved it. Mum was literally ready to pull out her card and pay for it regardless of what her daughter thought. This new dress was COMPLETELY different that the original one. The first one was plain, classical, elegant - the new one was crocheted floral lace, boho style mermaid gown. She has made an appointment to come back to say yes to either of the dresses - my bet is on it being the second!
I had one of my beautiful brides get married this week! The feeling of being with a bride from start to finish is honestly exactly why I do this job (cringeeee). My bride messaged us on instagram about a particular dress she had her eye on. We still had it in store so she came and tried it on. All of her family lived abroad so she attended by herself but facetimed her family while she was here. As soon as she put it on I think we all knew. She tried a few more on but we kept coming back to the first! She was getting married on the mountains of Norway within the next two months so she needed to buy a gown off the rack. Luckily we were more than happy to sell her the sample. She just sent through her photos and boy were they beautiful!! My heart is full ❤️
Laura xo
Week Ending 8th September 2023
What a bloody week (more like two)! I had a few days off these past couple of weeks due to having my wisdom teeth removed which was the best fun. However, squirrel cheeks and spitting blood did not stop me from coming into work! I had my surgery on Friday and Monday I ensured the manager that I would be absolutely fine coming into work as all we had was a pick-up. Boy was I wrong. Mondays are generally fairly quiet but of course it's busy when you struggle to function!
A bride collected her dress and looked so stunning! She had changed the lining on one of the gowns and to be honest I loved it a lot more like that. Some brides have really amazing ideas and a lot of time I like their changes more than the original dress.
After that, and after I had just gotten comfortable in my place on the couch I had a walk in. Now this bride I think will go in my personal record books of shortest time getting married. We've had 3 months away and even 1 month away but this bride was getting married on Sunday...as in 6 days away. For someone who was getting married in a week, she was incredibly calm and had a really good idea of what she wanted. Her only option that we could offer would be to buy off the rack - THANKFULLY she chose a gown and brought it on the spot! She was super happy and was able to go into our dressmaker that morning! Isn't it so funny that we all stress about something a year away when things can just all line up and work out so quickly?
My day didn't even stop here! After about an hour I had another bride come in. She had been in a couple days before hand and was also looking to buy off the rack. This was a bride who is technically already married but wanted to have the big fanfare after having babies. She was having 3 weddings in total - go big or go home right? One in Bali, one in Malaysia and one is China. She had already purchased TWO Paolo Sebastian gowns (she showed me photos and I almost passed out....CHEF KISS Dresses!) but just felt that she needed another one. She was such good fun and ended up coming back in later in the week and brought a total of three gowns - if it makes you feel better one was for her Mum.
My last bride of the week was so so lovely! She happened to be walking past and just thought she would come in for a look. She wasnt getting married till November next year but honestly, never too early to start. I asked what her dream dress would look like and she said something plain and simple, maybe A-Line as she was a little mindful of her tummy region. I asked her if she would be comfortable trying on a fitted gown as a lot of the time they look amazing as long as the detail is right. Thankfully she said yes and her favourite dress ended up being a fully beaded, strapless, FITTED gown - she looked so amazing and really didn't need the extra fabric of an A-Line.
Such a great end to the week and start of the bridal season and amazingly a lot less swollen!
Laura xo
Week Ending 25th August 2023
"Laura, why are starting the diary on this random day of August?" Don't worry, my OCD is also fighting me that it isn't the start of the year or even halfway. However, in "wedding world" the new year/season is about to start. I just wanted to have a little outlet to summarise my weeks (especially in the busier months) in the boutique where I can talk about subjects that come up, questions I get from my brides and anything I feel like really.
Kicking off this week I had a bride come in to retry a gown that she has tried on a week before. This particular bride was not after just one dress, or two dresses...but three wedding dresses!! The bride came from Singapore and there a lot of events and photoshoots within the wedding celebrations, honestly I was exhausted just hearing all of the things that needed to happen! For a bride getting married within the next few months she was so chill and easy going. The particular dress that she came back for happened to be my favourite in store. A gown that I had seen when I went shopping for my own dress but chose not to try on as it was out of budget. I have been WAITING for the day someone came and brought it. The bride was a vet (all vets hold a place in my heart) so I know the dress has gone to a good home.
To end my week on a high I had two beautiful solo brides! We all know how I feel about brides shopping alone (We LOVE!). My first bride was a scheduled appointment. She came in and had previously done a little bit of shopping but hadn't quite nailed what she was looking for. This bride was quite blessed in the chest department which can be a little challenging (a lot of the time samples will only have a B sized cup). We chose out about 5 dresses and she looked incredible in all of them! Whilst some of the dresses didn't fit the bust right, she was really good with imagining what it could look like. In the end we narrowed it two stunning gowns - and of course they happen to be completely different. One is fully beaded and glam and the other is classical and elegant. I can't wait to see what she picks!
My second bride happened to be walking past and came in to have a look. She was getting married in Lombok, Indonesia and needed something light and easy to manage. I LOVE an Indo wedding, so so stunning but so so hot! The bride had to take into account how she was going to travel with the dress, the weather at that time of year and her fiancé's preference (no exposed boning or sheer tops). We tried on some styles but they weren't quite hitting. I pulled a gown that happened to be a one of a kind sale dress. She ended up loving it and LOVING the price (from $2,400 down to $720) and ended up buying it on the spot! It is so amazing to have someone find the perfect dress and just fully committing to it.
Words of advice from this week - trust your gut! If it feels right then go for it.
Laura xo
