'Eliminate the negative, latch on to the affirmative, don't mess with Mister In-Between. You've got to spread joy up to the maximum, bring gloom down to the minimum, Have faith or pandemonium, liable to walk upon the scene.' I love that song. It's by Bing Crosby. Wrinkles, grey wiry hair, bags under my eyes, a little chubby. These are some of the not-great things that come with age, but every one of those things also comes with a heap load of wisdom. I thought since God gave me wisdom, I might as well use it.
February of 2020, when my son got engaged, I started looking at Mother of the Groom dresses. I had several things to tick off my list to make sure it was the kind of dress I would wear.
It cannot make me look old & frumpy. You would be shocked at how many dresses are just not flattering on us moms. I'm the MOG not a carcass with skin.
It can't be an "old" color. Some colors just make us look old-er & for some reason they like those for MOG dresses.
It needed to accentuate my positive features & hide the flaws. Linebacker thighs baby, linebacker thighs. My mom once told me that Bo Jackson, a Heisman Trophy winner from Auburn, would love to have legs like mine. Yeah, his legs are huge, so you can understand the innuendo. Thanks, mom, I've carried those words around in my head for 30+ years.
Pockets are a definite positive. I've always been the pack-mule for my children, I might as well have a place to stash things, just in case.
Can I cut a rug in the dress. I have to be able to swing dance in it & that is non-negotiable.
I don't know if I've ever mentioned that I'm married to a CPA. A lot of accountants are a little tight with their money & Hopson is no different. Although, I have gotten him to loosen up a little. But there is no way he will loosen up enough to justify stroking my vanity. I had a bunch of friends say they liked my dress & wanted to know where I found it. It didn't look like most MOG dresses, which I will take as a compliment, so I thought I would share the expedition in MOG dress shopping. (they may have been blowing smoke at me, but for those who are looking for something a little different, I thought I'd share.)
I started this escapade how I begin most, on the internet. I found a dress pretty quickly that I fell in love with. I knew it would look good on me. Bonus that it's satin, so it is soft. It is a great color, has a cinched waist & eeeee, pockets. It also has a different neckline. I could pop the collar to give it an Elizabethian or 80's look depending on how you look at it. Yes, yes, yes, this is it, I'm sold, I found my dress! Where's that 'Order Now' button? I look at it again & no, no I'm not sold. That dress was about $3K. What??? Yes, you read that correctly, three thousand dollars. (pre-tax & shipping) I feel like Eddie Murphy in Beverly Hills Cop when he says "Read my lips, five thousand dollars". You can see the clip HERE & it starts around 3:29. (Warning of foul language.) That's more than a lot of brides pay for their wedding gowns! I'm utterly heartbroken. Hopson would kill me in that dress & then bury me in it. $3K is too much for a MOG dress. I will only be wearing it for pictures, the ceremony & the reception, so conceptually about 9 hours. That rounds out to $334 an hour. YIKES! Back I go to the drawing board. I have to find a cool dress. Not to outdo the bride, but to look like my best self.
I love to internet shop, did I mention that? The hunt is the fun part. Can I find something that works that fits my budget? In case you didn't know, the wedding business is a racket. Flowers, invitations, photographer (this is a fee worth paying), dresses, jewelry, hair, makeup, band, food, the list goes on, and it adds up very quickly. I'm not falling for the racket, so on I go with my search! I decide to type in the name of the dress into a search engine & see what pops up, maybe I can get lucky. I type in Lela Rose gown & up pops this dress that looks pretty cute, has the right lines & has pockets. It even has a slit on the right side, so I can show a little leg. ;) It's not satin, but that's ok. Hum, it might work. I'm on the site & notice the dress is customizable. Well, that's cool. Ok, do they have it in a style that will look good on me? Check. What about the neckline? Check. It has pockets & is the right color. Check, Check. Last test, how much is this dress? Oh, the price is good. I found a coupon for the site as well, so all in, after I customized it was $85.71. That is perfect, I'll take it.
The cool aspect of this dress is that it was customized to my height, sleeve length & could have taken out the pockets if I wanted. So cool. The name of the website is eshakti.com. I know it sounds sketchy, but they were so easy to work with & when you get your clothes, they actually have the people sign a card who worked on it. Mine was sewn by Pawon, Ramu, Sonu & Monu. When you go to the website, there is a tab at the top labeled weddings & you can click on it to see what different styles they are offering. If you need to accentuate the positive & hide the negative under a fuller skirt and/or you're on a budget, check them out. I wasn't disappointed & I'm seriously thinking of wearing it when all my children get married because I like it that much. ;)
