Vicky Found The Dress @ The Dress!

Vicky found the dress @ The Dress for her April 2012 wedding to her fiancé Patrick. The couple met at a bar in 2006. They both accepted their first jobs out of college in the Milwaukee, WI area. “Although we lived only a couple of miles away and hung out at all the same places, it wasn't until July 3, 2007 that our paths crossed.” Vicky was out celebrating her 23rd birthday and Pat was out on the town for the 4th of July, both with co-workers at the time. After kicking the night off at Vicky's friend's place it started to rain. Conveniently, one of Vicky's favorite dive bars, Jo-Cats, was only a couple blocks away. Upon walking into Jo-Cats a group of men on the dance floor were quickly noticed. Pat and a few others stood around and laughed as their one friend busted out some "sweet" dance moves in the corner. Vicky quickly made her way to Pat and introduced herself. Pat hung out with the "PPG Crew" the rest of that evening and called the very next day. From that moment on we have never gone a day without talking to each other.

 

How Patrick popped The question…In early January 2011 they began looking to buy a home together.  They quickly found a few places that we were very interested in. The week before Patrick proposed he had many restless nights, and blamed it on the excitement of the house search. Although Vicky was skeptical, she was also very excited. “Then on Thursday, January 13th Patrick suggested that we go out for dinner that Friday. I thought it was a little strange to be planning a Friday night out ahead of time but figured he had some Groupon's to use so sounded great.” That night Patrick said he wanted to go on a quick run before dinner but strongly suggested that Vicky take a shower and get ready for dinner at a local sushi place. “As we walked to the door to leave Patrick said he had one thing he wanted to show Vicky before they left. In our den in River North with the city as the backdrop, Pat got on one knee and proposed. He continued with the surprises by telling me to dress up as he had reservations at Spiaggia to celebrate. It was an absolutely perfect night. :)”

After much debate the couple was very tempted to do a destination wedding in the Florida keys because Vicky grew up in Miami. Although, they knew that it would limit the number of friends and family that could make the trek. That being said, they did not want to lose sight of an outdoors as an option. “Downtown Chicago was tempting, but as we began our search we agreed to stay true to ourselves. Pat had fond memories of the Morton Arboretum growing up so we decided to check it out. We loved it instantly. One of our favorite features was that even if Chicago’s unpredictable weather sent us indoors for our ceremony, the Morton Arboretum’s Gingko Room’s floor to ceiling windows would provide an unforgettable backdrop (good thing, it was a little too cool that day!). We decided on a spring wedding to avoid some of the summer heat and enjoy the Arboretum as it began to bloom!” It was the perfect setting for their 175 wedding guests.

 

How Vicky found The Dress…"I actually started my dress search looking for something completely different! I wanted something flowy, with a larger flowery skirt, something dramatic! With my small figure though, I just got lost in them all. Four stores and way too many dresses later, I came across           The Dress by Nicole.



When viewing the website I followed the links to Amy Kuschel’s site. I knew from the second I saw her ‘Kennedy’ dress that it was THE one. I texted my mom a picture and said I had to try it on. She had been begging me to try on something more fitted and also loved it instantly. When I made it to the shop to try it on, there was no question. The detail of the lace and the form fitting, yet comfortable body were unmatched. The dress was feminine, romantic, modern and classic all at the same time. Perfect!”  The Kennedy style by Amy Kuschel is an Alencon lace mermaid gown trimmed with silk Mikado that is tied in a bow in the center back. Vicky also selected a gorgeous glimmer tulle veil that was flat on the comb but fuller at the ends for a soft, romantic look.

Choosing her colors was the easiest decision. “We started with Pink, Gold, and Blue because I love Pink and Gold and Patrick loves Blue! As we put together our color inspiration board (yes Pat had to sit through this), the colors just came together naturally! As the planning continued the colors evolved to include a lot of green in addition in order to compliment the beautiful backdrop of the arboretum!

 

Vicky’s favorite moment of the day…”I think it would come down to two moments: exchanging our vows and our first dance. There’s not a second of my wedding day that I did not love. Everything went perfectly and I just could not stop smiling, but at those two moments I will never forget the way Patrick looked at me and the overflowing love I felt for him.”

Her favorite or unique wedding detail was her place card table. “I absolutely loved our place card table! The beer koozie favors were also a huge hit! Lastly, we made our table numbers by hand after some online inspiration. One of my co-workers actually cut down a tree for me and Patrick and his dad sharpied on all the numbers and the Mr.  & Mrs. I loved them!”

They chose the very romantic and beautiful city of lights, Paris, for their honeymoon! “There is nothing more romantic than standing under the Eiffel Tower at night with your new husband!”

Her advice for other brides planning is, “Don’t be afraid to do some things yourself to save money (we did our programs, menus, place cards, table numbers, candy table, etc, super easy!) but if you are, ask your family and friends for help! I was so stressed two weeks before our wedding trying to do it all myself. When I finally just asked for help everyone jumped right in and they were happy to do it.”

Her advice for the day of…“Cry all you want, but only happy tears. Don’t spend one second over analyzing a detail or worrying about a vendor or guest. It’s the best day ever! One of my bridesmaids found out as we were changing to leave for pictures she had grabbed the wrong dress from home! It all ended up working out (thankfully the dress was in a near suburb), but you know what, if it hadn’t I wouldn’t have cared. Some of the best, funniest memories are the ones you did not plan.”

Thank you so much Vicky and Patrick for sharing your beautiful day with us! If you would like to be featured as a bride that found The Dress @ The Dress contact us!

Dana Found The Dress @ The Dress

Dana found the dress @ The Dress for her October 2010 wedding to her husband Greg. They met at the restaurant she was working at, Redstone American Grill in Oakbrook Terrace. "He would come in every day for lunch, and eat at the bar. His office was walking distance away. I always thought he was so handsome, but could never find the right way or time to talk to him. So after months of agonizing, I said to my mom (who also worked there) 'That is the guy I am going to marry'. She of course said , 'Well, maybe you should talk to him first!' 
So one slow Friday, I wrote my phone number down on a piece of paper and gave it to a server to give to him. He came up to me, said he would call.  That Monday we went on our first date....the rest is what you might call history! After that we were together all the time, went on vacation and by that December we had moved into an apartment together in Oakbrook Terrace. By April, we had moved into our dream home in Glen Ellyn.

How Greg popped the The question...it happened on December 2nd, 2009. "I actually knew the proposal was coming. We decided to pick out the ring together, because as my husband put it 'I don't want you to not like the ring you will wear for the rest of your life!'.  The ring arrived in November, and Greg showed everyone but me.  It was almost more fun, wondering when and where it might be. I kept thinking it would be at dinner, or out, but no...WEEKS went by! I thought maybe he changed his mind...just kidding!"

"Then one cold night in December, we were finishing dinner. It was late, and the fire was going and the TV was on and I was putting olive oil away in our pantry. I turned the corner to go back into the kitchen and there he was on one knee, with white ring box in his hand.

I wish I could tell you what he said...but I can't! I just held on to our counter and tried not to pass out. I was so in love and so excited. He said some very nice things I am sure, but the most important thing at the end I DO remember clearly "Dana Marie Mazzuca, will you marry me?" Of course I said yes and jumped into his arms."

"It may not sound  romantic or crazy, but he accomplished what he set out to do, completely surprise me! And to me, there was nothing better than that moment being in our home, with our dogs Bella and Bauer. Now, every time I put Olive Oil away I smile, or when I look at that spot in the kitchen where he proposed, I smile. It was the perfect memory to start our lives in what we call our "forever home".

They chose October for the wedding because they didn't want to wait a full year, neither wanted a winter wedding. "Fall seemed perfect. Also, my parents were married in October, it was the month we met originally, so there was a lot of meaning in that month."

They chose the Westin for their 200 guests for the ceremony and reception. A hotel was the perfect choice because they had a lot of out-of-town guests including Greg's family from Ohio. "We knew SO many people were flying in and we wanted a nice location that was close to the airport and where our guests would not have to worry about rental cars or traveling. One stop shop! We wanted our guest to feel comfortable. The hotel had everything, great accommodations, was set right in Yorktown mall and was only a year old. They were so wonderful and organized that it was perfect. Our block of rooms was set, each overnight guest had a gift bag waiting, and we held a brunch there the morning after. Every detail was perfect and thought out and every dream I had about my wedding, The Westin made come true. I was very set on not moving during the day. I wanted to get ready and take pictures and do everything all in one place. Call me a control freak, but it was orchestrated perfectly."

 
"Oh my dress....I knew from day one that I wanted a big beautiful ball gown, strapless, sweetheart neckline, satin dress. I always dreamed the bigger and fuller the skirt the better! I started searching for dresses almost right away because I only had 9 months to find, order and alter a dress. What I came to find out, was that ballgown style dresses were very hard to come by. I tried on beautiful dresses, in all styles and of course I loved every minute of it...who doesn't like trying on beautiful gowns?? It was like playing grown up 'dress up'. I always just went with my mom, because I wanted my dress to be a surprise. But as my search continued, I got really frustrated. No one seemed to have what I wanted. I started putting 'wedding dress shops near Glen Ellyn' into Google, since I had just moved there. I had only been to the more well known shops, because that was all I knew. When I Google searched that day The Dress by Nicole came up-and it was just two miles from my house! I browsed the website and the designers and told my mom about it."

"We went in one quiet night. We walked into The Dress and met Nicole and started browsing. I still didn't see what I was looking for, but Nicole pulled a variety of dresses and tried to find what I was looking for. Every single one was beautiful, but I kept saying "not big enough". Nicole was laughing and she told me to hold on-it was like a light bulb went off in her head. She told me she had a dress that I might like in the basement. She wasn't carrying the designer any longer and this was a floor sample in a size 12 (I am a size double zero!) BUT with a hopeful grin she went and got it. She walked upstairs carrying this large garment bag, and I all I saw was gorgeous white satin. So we tried it on and with the help of those handy clips, pulled it all the way back to make it fit me." 

 
"I walked out and looked in the mirror and started crying. This was my dress. It was the only dress that evoked emotion in me like that. It was a deep sweetheart neckline, it was white satin fitted so perfectly in the waist and opened to a ball gown style dress with a train that had the most incredible detail and detail all around the bottom. Nicole asked, 'more poof?' I said, "Yes!' We put a big tool skirt underneath...even more of a ballgown! I was so excited. I didn't want to leave, I stood up on the box and Nicole draped the dress all around me and put the final touch...and long, cathedral style veil with details that matched the beading on my dress perfectly. She had me face the opposite side of the mirror and gave me a mirror so I could look back...and It was perfect. I knew it was THE dress. She told me that she had a big ballgown style dress as well and that if I wanted even MORE poof I could add a hoop skirt (which I did). Sadly, after what felt like all night I took the dress off. I called my Dad right after we left and told him I had found THE DRESS. He was fine with the price, but told me to sleep on it (had it been up to me, I would have bought it right then and there!)"
"We also needed to find a seamstress who could make a size 12 fit a size 0! Nicole was amazing and had Mary Burlingame,  a local seamstress in Glen Ellyn, come look at the dress. She assured us she could do it and that was all I needed to hear. I LOVED going for my fittings. At my last fitting, Mary had it so perfectly tailored to my body. It was tight and fitted at the top, down through the waist and then just blossomed into this stunning satin skirt. We poofed it out more with a hoop skirt, and Mary added buttons for an English Style bustle, which made it even more elegant. The final touch were my Christian Louboutin wedding shoes, a gift from my husband. The red bottoms made the all white dress just POP! The whole experience of buying my dress, finding that one, and having so many people at The Dress excited and helpful made the whole process even MORE magical for me. I loved that The Dress by Nicole had a personal touch to it. Sometimes I wish I could do it all over again (with the same guy of course!)"

Dana wanted a simple, and elegant wedding. She chose classic black and white for a few reasons. Truly it was black, white and twinkle lights. "Black and white surrounded by candles gave the reception this amazing old Hollywood feel, which fit my very traditional wedding. My girls had black gowns with white sashes, they carried white bouquets, my junior bridesmaids were in white, mini versions of me and the boys had tuxes in black and white accented with white flowers. The flowers were all white, tall vases with orchids up the middle, dripping with floating candles everywhere. It was stunning, when you walked in, you felt like you were walking into a glamorous movie from the 1950's. It was just an electric feeling when you walked into the room."

Dana's favorite moment of the day was tough to choose only one..."there were SO many great moments. But the one that sticks in my mind was my grandmother coming up to my bridal suite when I was getting ready. She had be very sick leading up to the wedding and we were not even sure she would make it, but she was determined to see her only grandchild walk down the aisle and she did. When she came through, being wheeled in by her care taker, it was the only moment I cried. I really worried all morning about her and to see her there, looking at me, talking to me, telling me I looked beautiful...well there are no words to do that justice. She meant the world to me and once she was there and ok, well THAT was my favorite part. She died just a year later, so I know in God's hands the timing of our wedding was perfect."

Dana's favorite detail of the wedding was the weekend that we made out of the wedding. The wedding celebrations really started Thursday. "We had our rehearsal dinner that night with about 40 people at Carlucci. The next day, my husband hosted a golf outing with all the guys. That same day, my bridal party got together and went to Cosmo's in Glen Ellyn for mani/pedis,/drinks and fun! Then we came back to my house, girls only, and had a proper girls night, while the boys stayed at the hotel. The next morning the limo came to take us all to the Westin. While some people do it differently, I loved the unique idea of making it "wedding weekend" and involving everyone. This was just as much about us as it was our family, friends and loved ones."

Dana's advice for other brides is..."TRY not to stress out. Easier said than done. Go to your bookstore and get The Brides Essential Wedding Planner Deluxe. It is a life saver! It helps give you timelines and guidelines, even if you don't follow them to a tee. Shop around and NEVER take a first offer, people in the wedding industry are there to negotiate! Make use of this, I know I did. Most of all, remember this is your day. Other people will offer their opinion, their input, etc. And they might be hurt if you don't use it. But YOU are planning YOUR day....so make it essentially YOURS. You can't make everyone happy, but that doesn't matter, only making yourself and your groom is priority."

Her advice for brides the day of..."don't sweat the small stuff...something will go wrong and remember that when it does, it will make for a funny story years later. I will pass along the best advice I got from my cousin-she told me to enjoy every moment, because before I knew it, it would be over. She advised me at some point to go to the corner of the reception room, and just look around...at the flowers, the people, the decor, the dancing. To take it all in and 'take a mental picture'. I did get a chance to do that and it was one of the best pieces of advice I got." That's great advice from Dana! I also was told to take a mental picture and it's so true!

The couple chose Hawaii for their honeymoon and visited the islands of Maui and Oahu. They left a week after the wedding and said it was just the best way to relax.

Thank you so much Dana and Greg for sharing your beautiful day with us! If you would like to be featured as a bride that found The Dress @ The Dress contact us!

Aria Trunk Show and 2013 Prom!

We're so excited about the upcoming bridal and prom season! We're very proud to be the exclusive Chicagoland retailer for Aria Bridal and are now adding their Aria Bridesmaid collection! To celebrate, we are hosting a trunk show this weekend, February 15th-17th. Appointments are already booking up fast, this will be a very busy weekend!

Aria 272FB

Aria 616KJ

Aria 619FX

Aria 273FQ

We now have our full prom collection out and ready for you to shop! We've added a few more designers this year like Precious Formals and Angela & Alison along with our favorites Faviana, Mignon, LM Collection, and Clarisse. Shop early for the best selection and we only sell one dress in one color to your school! Be sure to stop by and see us in downtown Wheaton for all your prom essentials like jewelry, handbags, and don't forget your garter!

We now are open Sundays 12-4pm through May!

Angela & Alison

 Happy Valentines Day!

Brittney Found The Dress @ The Dress!

Brittney found The Dress @ The Dress to wear for her 2011 Labor Day weekend wedding to her husband Chris. The couple met at work and the rest is history! Chris proposed on the beautiful Hawksnest Beach in St. John.  "He had a little speech prepared, which began by him asking me how long I wanted to travel with him for.  I thought he was asking me how many days I wanted to be on vacation with him, in a row.  Of course, that was not the case.  He wanted me to say “forever!”, so he could follow up with saying he wanted to travel with me forever, and continue on with his speech.  My confusion caused a funny hiccup, but he kept at it anyway, and after a few seconds of trying to process everything that he said (and thinking in my head that he had the sweetest, most sincere look on his face at that moment), I of course said 'Yes!'."

Brittney and Chris love the fall, and since the ceremony was outside, they thought September would be one of the safest months’ weather wise.  "We were picturing a sunny day with a cool breeze.  It ended up to be about 95 degrees and sunny that day.  The poor groomsmen were extremely hot standing up near the altar, directly under the sun.  But no one complained and the guests danced through the heat.  To this day, whenever I mention it being hot, people that attended say they don’t even remember the heat; they were busy having too much fun!"

The couple chose Galleria Marchetti for the ceremony and reception for their 175 guests. It was the last place they looked at.  Right away, they felt like it was the right fit. "The space for a ceremony was beautiful and garden like. The cocktail area was hosted on the darling patio, right next to the ceremony spot.  The reception area was under a great big tent next to the patio."  They loved that it was all in one spot, so guests wouldn’t have to worry about traveling from the ceremony to the reception.  They could just move seamlessly from one place to the next.  "Chris and I are also self-proclaimed foodie’s, so the meal was an important factor for us, and they did it right.  All in all, it’s a place that’s in the heart of the city, but it feels tucked away somehow in this romantic, garden setting."

Brittney chose a gorgeous lace gown called Paris. It was designed by Amy Kuschel and was handmade with love at her studio in San Franscisco. The hem had a tightly gathered tulle ruffle just peaking out from under the skirt and really gave the skirt a vintage look. It was the very first dress she tried on. "I knew from the beginning that I wanted a dress with lace. 
With an outdoor wedding in mind, I felt that lace matched the idea of the style of wedding we wanted.  I was open to vintage and classic looks.  I loved everything about it, from the detail in the French Chantilly lace, to the cap sleeves, to the hemline.  I kept trying on others for good measure, but my mind kept coming back to Paris." Brittney says, "It was one of those 'when you know, you know' moments.  It just felt right.  Amy Kuschel also sent me a signed sketch of the dress, which was such a nice keepsake." One of the perks to ordering her gown during a trunk show weekend. "As far as where I purchased, I liked how The Dress By Nicole was an intimate shop.  It didn’t feel like you were one in hundreds of brides being shuffled around."

Her bridesmaids wore short navy dresses with white wedge heels. Brittney chose dark navy blue, apple green, ivory and hints or gold as their wedding colors. They wanted to stay away from flashy colors, and stick with a “simple elegance” theme.

Her advice for other brides with their planning is that you should try to focus on one task at a time.  Getting the ceremony spot/church and reception site planned is the first big step, and major weight off your shoulders once reserved.  "After that, commit to the next task, and do your research and see it through until it’s booked.  If you’re looking at multiple vendors for each item (flowers, linens, transportation, hotels), keep a spreadsheet of information such as the vendor contact information, pricing, and any relevant notes.  It gets overwhelming to try and go back and find information in a sea of emails.  Also, most hotels require that your guests book a percentage of the amount of rooms you reserve.  So, try not to overestimate how many rooms you’ll need, or you might be shelling out cash for unreserved rooms.  On the other hand, you don’t want to greatly underestimate, and have the rooms booked up with many guests left that aren’t able to take advantage of the special room rate, or having to stay at another hotel all together.  I kept in contact with my two hotels and reserved more rooms when we were nearing zero rooms remaining."

Brittney's advice for brides on their actual wedding day..."A lot of blogs suggested getting a day of wedding planner.  Since we had an employee at Galleria Marchetti that was going to be there the whole time, I thought I could do without.  Looking back, I think this really would have helped to keep us on track and on time.  We started getting ready so early that morning, but the time really flies, and the trolley we bought to take the bridal party and groomsmen around to take pictures ended up waiting outside our hotel (without me knowing) for an hour.  Not only was not a lot of money wasted, but since we were that late, it cut down on the time we had to take pictures before the ceremony.  The photographer and I had a few spots in the city planned to take pictures, and we weren’t able to hit them because of the time constraints."

Her favorite moment of the day was probably the first look at Chris.  Since we took our pictures before the ceremony, the first look allows the bride and groom some private time to see each-other all dressed up for the first time that day.  "Chris cried! I think I was too overwhelmed to cry, but it was such a happy moment.  It kind of felt like an out of body experience, like the whole day did for me, but it was one I’ll never forget."

Brittney's favorite detail was that her mom bought a ton of mason jars, and filled them with fresh cut Hydrangeas from her parents’ house.  "It was such a cute idea, it looked great, and it was extra special since they came from my mom."

Hawaiian honeymoon in Maui and Kauai

Thank you again Brittney and Chris for sharing your day with us! If you would like to be featured as a bride that found The Dress @ The Dress contact us!