My Dream Wedding Gowns: Whimsical and Princess-y A-Line Wedding Dresses

Every girl has a dream wedding and in it, a dream wedding dress. Long before I got married and way long before I met the man of my dreams, I already had my wedding perfectly planned. It includes the location, the theme and motif, the number of guests, and down to the very details. I wanted my wedding dress to be whimsical, like it´d make me feel like a princess. I´ve always dreamed of a big, A-line wedding dress in peach or white.

But life isn´t always what we dream of. I was engaged to a man who lived a continent away. We could only take a leave from our work at most three weeks from our proposed wedding date. Plus we both lived abroad (he in Germany and I in Thailand) and we still had to fly to our home country (the Philippines) for the wedding. We couldn´t have a church ceremony or a garden wedding due to legal reasons, a civil wedding is the only wedding that´s recognized in Germany (and we needed it for my visa requirements). We also didn´t have the luxury of time to have both church and civil weddings. After our three weeks vacation, we quickly had to go back to work. Would you believe that when I arrived home two weeks before the wedding date, we didn´t have a concrete plan and no preparations were done yet?

That´s because upon our arrival, that´s the only time when we could apply for the marriage license, our parents couldn´t do it on our behalf. We weren´t even sure if we could get a judge to officiate the wedding because it was already second week of December and most of them had their holidays early. I and my then boyfriend almost didn´t get to wed. Think of all the expenses spent on our plane tickets. It was a very stressful process and we could only be thankful that eventually, we were able to get a date for our civil wedding.

This is the time when you get to appreciate your long time best pals. Luckily, four of my closest friends were in the city and they helped me plan and prepare for the wedding within just a week timeframe. It was a beautiful, small wedding nonetheless. I am forever thankful to my friends for making it possible.

But how did life´s reality affect my dream wedding? Instead of wearing the long gown, I settled for a short tulle white dress that made me look like a fabulous modern bride. However, whenever I see a video of a whimsical wedding that resembles my original dream, I cry. Hubby would hug me and ask if I still wanted it, he´s willing to give me a second wedding so I could get to wear my wedding dress. But for what? We´re already married and having a second wedding is just impractical. So I refused.

Strapless Sweetheart

Sweetheart Tulle

Sweetheart Tulle

Sweetheart Chiffon

Strapless Organza

V-neck Lace

What´s the lesson you could pick up from my experience? Even if it´s important to keep things practical in planning a wedding especially with today´s tough economy, you get to walk that aisle just once so you may as well achieve the beautiful wedding you´ve always dreamed of.

If you decide to forego your dream and be a modern, practical bride, it´s great! Use the money for the down payment of your new house. But believe me, every time you see your dream wedding gown, it will always strike a nerve and somehow, rip off your heart all over again.