It's not dumb

  Posted by Jenny, the bloggess

This weekend I was at a vintage shop in Galveston and in an old armoire I saw a glimmer of satin.  I'm a whore for satin.  I started to pull it out and out came more and more and more champagne colored satin, with small bits of lace and pearls.  It was a wedding dress.  A 1940's...30 pound...slightly decomposing...wedding dress.   The shopkeeper absentmindedly named her price.  Forty dollars.

My husband and I looked at each other with wide eyes and stage-whispered "FORTY DOLLARS!" to each other except that he meant it like "Holy shit, can you believe she thinks anyone would spend $40 on this moldy wedding dress?" and I said it like "Holy shit, can you believe anyone would let this go for only $40?"  We fought about it for about 15 minutes before I finally realized he was an idiot as far as vintage wedding dresses were concerned and handed the shopgirl my credit card.  Every time I open the closet I see the dress and smile, wondering who wore such a beautiful gown.  Every time Victor opens the closet he looks at this giant wedding dress and grunts passive-aggressively while giving me the stink-eye.

I may have to wear it to my second wedding.

Comments

[anniemcq]

It's stunning. SO worth the $40.

[Sugar]

I used to work at a wedding shop. I loved running my hands along all of the dresses. The other girls and I would try them on after we closed up. It wasn't the dream of marriage so much as the feel of the softest fabrics and the look of that spectacular girl looking back at you from the mirror. So much fun playing princess...

[califmom]

$40? You couldn't buy the fabric for $40. Amazing, and gorgeous. I'd sleep with it. Screw the husband.

[Rhi]

I would be wearing it now, if I had bought it. You're wearing it now, right?

[badgerbag]

Let him rip it off you and he won't be so skeptical that's all I'm saying...

[motherbumper]

I'd be wearing that all the time, grocery shopping, picking up the kidlet, visits to the therapist. Screw that "don't wear your wedding dress after the wedding" crap (that's a rule, right?). And califmom is right, you couldn't buy that lace for 40 bucks.

[Kaza]

Came over from your tweet, then tweeted you, THEN came back and saw it was you who bought it! Gorgeous!

[Jenny, Bloggess]

I love you people.

I'm printing this out and pinning it to Victor's chest.

[blissfully caffeinated]

Ohhh, it's gorgeous! Grace Kelly!

The real question in my mind is, how did you get your husband to go shopping with you to someplace other than Home Depot?

I would have bought it, then hid it in the back of my car or something and then slowly moved it to a visible location. Then when my husband asked about it, I would say, "Oh, that thing? I've had that for years!"

That's how I sneak new shoes in the house.

May have been a bit more tricky in this situation, given the size of your purchase.

[debbie]

oh. good lord. it's fucking FANTASTIC.

[magpie]

you are awesome. i will look at my mother's wedding dress with fresh eyes.

[Nic]

Is that off the shoulder 3/4 length sleeve lace? OMG I LOVE it. LOVE it.

[foradifferentkindofgirl (FADKOG)]

That's cheaper than a crappy pair of jeans! Hell yes, I would be wearing that thing to scrub sinks, take the kids to school, and volunteering in a wealth of good deads. It's stunning. For real.

[foradifferentkindofgirl (FADKOG)]

Also, I apparently kill those I volunteer for. I kill them good. I'm the Volunteer Angel of Death.

Then I go do good deeds.

Yep...

[nonlineargirl]

Um - I was totally promised this post would appear 97 more times. What a rip off. (but the dress is nice)

[Desiree]

That is the most amazing wedding dress that I've almost -not in person- seen! It looks absolutely stunning. What is truly amazing is that stylistically (is that a word?) it could be worn today. In my opinion.
Enjoy!!

[WhenSheWorePonyTails]

Totally awesome find.

Saw this last night via your tweet. (sounds dirty) Tweeted back. (I'm 12 cause that makes me giggle) Went to bed last night and started dreaming I was at my wedding. It was bad because 1. my husband bought me a ribbon to tie around my finger instead of a diamond which is just NOT going to cut it. I'm no priss but I'm pretty sure a ribbon is not what I want. and 2) And most importantly, none of the food or booze showed up for the wedding. I spazzed as the wedding march started because "where the hell is my cake and booze".

[daisybones]

Yes- it's gorgeous. Clean house in it. Sex him up in it. Go to work on the bus in it. It's fabulous:)

[the slackmistress]

It's in the closet? Why are you not wearing it while sitting in your front window sipping straight bourbon I'll never know, Miss Havisham.

[shane_onegoodie]

That's my dress! Give it back! KIDDING. It's beautiful. My husband and I have a similar quarrel over a piece of art we bought at an art fair last year. It is a gourd but he calls it "that vegetable." REALLY annoying. Thanks for sharing the picture of your beautiful dress.

[Lamont Cranston]

Um. And you're going to use that wedding dress for what?

Other than to take up space in the closet, I mean.

Lamont

[Jenny, Bloggess]

Honestly? I'm probably going to keep it a few weeks to admire, use the train to make pillows and then wear the rest of it into the ocean.

http://tinyurl.com/6oz5gh

[gurukarm]

Hah! "second wedding"... love it!

[deb]

Lamont, are you, perchance, not actually named Lamont? Rather, is your name, in fact, Victor?

Just, you know, curious.

It's merely that -- you're so very willing to carry on Jenny's husband's end of the argument for her.

[flutter]

this is pretty damned beautiful

[Amanda]

Reading you is always sheer decadence, this piece in more ways than one.