Online Shopping, Deadlines, and My First Girdle

Don’t you just hate it when you work really hard writing a post only to find when you go to post it that you’re NOT SIGNED IN?? And you have to write it ALL OVER AGAIN even though it won’t be as good as the first time? Eugh. Anyway…

There’s nothing wrong with waiting to save up to buy something. We all have to do it, and it makes you appreciate the thing more when you finally get it. That’s part of luxurious living, being grateful for everything you have. Unfortunately when it comes to this waiting, sometimes there’s a limit on how long you have and you need more time. Just like with buying things in person, online sometimes things go off the market, get sold out, or a sale that you were depending on ends too soon. I dealt with this a lot lately.

A certain dress I had been wanting since January, the Lizbeth Day Of The Dead dress from Pinup Girl Clothing, finally came back in stock this week. Because of the embroidery it always takes a long time, so opportunities to buy it don’t come along very often. Unfortunately I have also just recently lost my job. BAD timing. And I was assured that even though I start at a new, higher paying job next week, I still couldn’t afford to just charge it.

Something else I had been wanting for a very long time, which is much more affordable, is a girdle. I wanted something that would give me that exaggerated hourglass figure without the stiffness, bulkiness, and severity of a corset. Unfortunately most of them are just more old-fashioned versions of spanx, that hold you in without defined shaping, with all the boning and lacing that you just don’t want showing through a tight dress. The one that I DID really love was the Vargas Girdle by Kiss Me Deadly. It was exactly what I was looking for, and very sexy. I went through my bookmarks to find it, only to find out that it had just recently been discontinued! VERY frustrating. So there I was searching the internet for a site that might still carry it, thinking I very well might have missed my chance, and knowing I would probably miss my chance on the Lizbeth dress. Money sure does suck sometimes.

So thankfully there was one place still selling it, Fairy Goth Mother, which I have been admiring for years but never purchased from before, and which also happens to be the first place I ever saw the girdle. And they were already out of mediums. So I just made it, and now I’ll finally have first hand experience on these intriguing articles of lingerie described in Girdle Zone. Hooray!

3 Dresses 3 Times

After reading My Wedding Dress I felt maybe it would be interesting to write my own story. I have three wedding dresses, and I wore the official one three times. Most people definitely don’t do that. And maybe it will turn out to be good luck that I did.
It certainly wasn’t something I did on purpose. When we first decided to get married we thought we were going to have a wedding like everybody else – a ceremony in front of family and friends followed by a party. Unfortunately my family is not normal, so neither would be the wedding. After a long time resisting, we gave in to everyone’s wishes and eloped, to “prevent fall-apart”.
We were frustrated already even before we planned a single thing. We were planning on visiting Mike’s dad on the west coast early in the summer, and thought about what such a thing would mean to him. He never gets to see his own son on Christmas, and my own family was giving me a hard time about potentially having to be in each other’s presence. So we decided to bring the wedding to him and his family.
This left us with just two months to plan. Sure, it’s really all we needed, but dresses with all the alterations you’re expected to have take much longer, and I just didn’t have the kind of money normally needed for such a thing. I’m not a very fussy person and didn’t feel like wearing some sort of huge frothy ballgown in a tiny ceremony anyway, so we hit up the Le Chateau outlet to see if we could find any pretty formal dresses on sale.
And indeed we did. I found a very simple white dress for no more than 20$. It was strapless with a pleated bust and empire waist, straight to the floor with a ruffle and some ruching down the side. I was fairly satisfied and I bought it.
But it wasn’t long before I wasn’t so satisfied anymore. I was already giving up so much of what I would have wanted, and suddenly the dress felt too simple and boring, and even unflattering. If I could have just one thing right, I wanted it to be the dress. I knew I could do better. But I still didn’t have much money. So next I went to eBay.
I can’t say I don’t regret not having the typical wedding dress shopping experience, with mom and girlfriends attending in a beautiful salon going through all the spectacular dresses they have to offer. But at least on eBay, with my shopping savvy, I could at least look like I did.
It wasn’t long before the most absolutely perfect dress showed up in the search from one of the asian sellers who sell knockoffs direct from the factory. Again it was long and strapless with an empire waist. But this time the skirt was fuller, there was a ribbon under the bust, and the top and bottom were covered in the most beautiful gold embroidery. I had always wanted a gold and white wedding dress. It was only 200$ after shipping and I had to have it. I was so excited.
Just a few weeks later I got a horrible email from eBay. The store I had bought my dress from had been shut down. I think they got in trouble for listing the dresses at 50$ and the shipping for 150$. I know it’s wrong for sellers to do that but any intelligent buyer looks at shipping BEFORE making a purchase, so it wasn’t something that bothered me. Suddenly I had no idea if I was ever going to see that dress. I cried for days. And with only a few weeks to go there virtually wasn’t any time left to buy a new one, at least online. Terrified I would end up getting married in my pajamas I took a couple friends shopping in the local boutiques the next day. It was my last chance, and I knew it wasn’t going to be what I had originally hoped for.
In one of the little boutiques, I found dress number three. It wasn’t a wedding dress at all, even less than the first one. It was a semi-formal cocktail dress, but it was gold, and had beading all over the sheer top. It was beautiful. My friends absolutely loved it, and even if it wasn’t what I’d planned, I had to admit I did too. I could be happy in this. I felt much better as soon as I bought it. Things were starting to work out.

You can imagine my surprise when barely 2 weeks before the wedding, my dream dress from eBay showed up in the mail. It must have already been shipped when the store got shut down, even though I hadn’t received any notification. I couldn’t believe it! Sure it wasn’t the one from the photo, but a cheaper, stiffer version, but I had expected that. I invited over my grandma and we went downstairs to visit our caretaker/house mother Janina, who was as excited as any mother could be, for the very first fitting. Janina even did my hair and posed me for pictures.
A few days later we took the dress to my grandma’s tailor for the few adjustments it would need. The loose embroidery was reinforced, a loop of ribbon was sewed to the underside of the train, and snaps were put on the inside of the bodice and on my corset so the dress wouldn’t slip and expose it. This was especially important since I didn’t own any white or gold corsets and would have to suffice with a black one. I had to admit that my body type was a little curvier than what the dress called for, so being held in was important. So there unexpectedly, I had three wedding dresses.
The day of the wedding was a very hot one. Everybody was uncomfortable and very hungry. We decided to take the formal pictures as quickly as we could before going to supper, and the next day we got all dressed up all over again to take the more artistic ones. The atmosphere was so much more relaxed, and I hadn’t attempted to curl my hair again, so I was very happy we did it that way. A local friend joined us, and it was the first time I had actually met her. That was the second time I wore the dress.
At the end of June, my mom held a reception at her house so family and friends from her side could celebrate with us. She wanted us to recreate the wedding for the guests, and I wore the dress for the third time. I walked down the isle for the second time, and did it to a string quartet version of Love Cats by The Cure, partly to honor the precious fur babies that couldn’t be there. When the quick ceremony was over, I changed into the gold cocktail dress, which I considered a perfect casual version of the Big Dress.
The story of my wedding and my dresses is over for now, but after experiencing both an elopement and a wedding at home, I’m tempted to have as many different experiences as I can. One day maybe we’ll have a Vegas wedding, and who knows what dreams may come true in the years ahead if we decide to renew our vows again for a special anniversary. Maybe there will be even more dresses in my future. I have to say it beats only having one!

Gowns for Grads

I can’t wait to write here about Gowns for Grads, because grad season is fast approaching. I actually just heard about this today, and I can’t pass up the opportunity to let you all know about it. I wish I had known about it sooner.
Something we don’t always stop to think about is the fact that many girls graduating from high school are from low-income families. What happens when it comes time to attend their graduation banquet when they can’t afford a dress, shoes, or a bag? A lot of girls unfortunately skip this major life event for lack of these things, and that’s just not cool with me. These girls worked really hard to graduate and they deserve to go! So what’s to be done?
Gowns for Grads was started just for this reason. They accept donations of gently used grad dresses, shoes, and bags, and donate them to these deserving young women so they have something to wear to their grad banquets. It’s a great cause and if you have an old grad dress or other formal gown of your own taking up space in your closet I highly suggest you consider making a donation. If you’re not in Winnipeg, try to find a similar program in your area because I’m sure this isn’t the only one like it. Now how’s THAT for fashion making you feel good?

For more information visit http://www.gownsforgrads.org/

Guest Blogger Juanita Talks About Online Shopping And Lolita Fashion

I write about what I know, but my style universe is a lot smaller than the big picture out there. This is, after all, an art form exercised by countless people with many different lifestyles, tastes, interests, and levels of expertise in different areas. So this is why I’ve started asking friends of mine to write up their own guest posts, so we can all get some insight into many of the different perspectives there are. Here’s my first guest blog post written by Juanita about our online shopping experience together.

Shopping is a skill that I generally lack, especially when done online. I like to stick to ‘safe’ clothing items, such as hoodies, t-shirts, and jeans. So I suppose you can conclude that I enjoy feeling comfortable in my clothes or as some would define as the ‘low maintenance’ look. It’s not that I don’t enjoy looking fabulous, who doesn’t? It’d just that I unfortunately lack the knowledge or the motivation to put any effort into my physical appearance.
This is where Victoria* interceded and provided the advice and assistance that I so desperately required to help polish my look for a night out of the town. She suggested shopping online for original items you cannot find in our lovely city. All I could think about was the mishaps of my latest purchases that looked ridiculous both on me and in my closet. I was slightly apprehensive, but I also knew that she had impeccable taste and would not let me purchase something that would look asinine on me.
So we browsed the web and looked at many different websites that I had never heard of before. The two that made a huge impression on me were Timeless Trends corsets and Retroscope Fashions, both from which I purchased items and have no regrets.
I have never owned a corset but have always admired the fashion from afar. It brings a certain elegance that has been lost through our current trends of shorter skirts and lower shirts. So as an inexperienced corset shopper I had no idea where to start. What’s my size? What should I start out with? What is considered good quality? Well I was in slightly over my head, but with Victoria’s guidance and the countless corsets she owns, all my questions were answered. I found my size and was able to try different styles and colors to give me an idea of what I would like. That’s one of the benefits of shopping with an experienced online consumer. However, if you do not have the advantage of knowing an expert adviser, the website provides a sizing chart that will enable you to find the appropriate size for your body as well as information about their corsets.

The boutique I am absolutely captivated by is Retroscope Fashions; it has your classic Victorian and Lolita styles, which are breathtaking. I am fascinated with the air of sophistication this style will give those who choose to wear it. I gladly embrace the style and was able to find a Lolita dress that solidified my new found addiction to it. My excitement could not be contained when my dress arrived in the mail and the excruciating dance of waiting to wear it out almost was too much for me.

Overall my online shopping experience was quite enjoyable. I found what I was looking for, learned a lot of valuable information, and acquired the confidence to shop online by myself.

*My name for the purposes of this blog.