Note, this a true story, none of the names have been changed, but certainly not the events of the days!, this is taken right from my diary entries of the time.
My (email) name is Joyce Devries and it was a real life adventure that till this day has never been matched for an exciting adventure. I am 5’2", TV, live near Toronto, Ont., Canada, pass quite well as a woman and have done tons of "real life" things as a woman, but this was the ultimate in adventures.

 

Bridesmaid For Real        by: Joyce Devries          joyce_devries@hotmail.com    ICQ: 26082876

 

Part #2

A long adventure of how I became to be a Bridesmaid in a real Wedding when only the Bride and Groom knew my real gender.

 

ENGAGMENT PARTY

I opened the car door and Debbie as usual, told me how good I looked and I to compliment her as well, as I could tell she spent some time on her makeup as well. I asked her were Carl was, and she said he was already at the party, then she asked me who answered the buzzer and I told her it was girlfriend and that she could not wait to meet her. Debbie told me she was also looking forward to meeting her, as I had told her so much about my girlfriend. We made idle chat about this and that, discussed if any other plans were firmed up and the only one that she was thinking about was when to get the dresses, both hers and ours. I spoke up at this point and said, "let me guess, your going in April of next year and we are going in May?", she laughed and said, "I see you have been studying". We were about half way to the party, Debbie said, "so Barb, have we got all of the stories ready for when you get introduced at the party?. I told her I did and that I had copied down everything she told me about Barb and had been rehearsing it with my girlfriend for the last couple of weeks. She said, "great, and if anything comes up, don’t worry, I will take care of it". Debbie then took a turn into a part of the city that was just loaded with huge home, my guess is million dollar homes and drove up the long driveway and parked. I guess Debbie could see that I was in awe and said, "oh did I mention my father is the president of a bank?".

We got out of the car and walked towards the front door, and I noticed that Debbie was wearing her "work" black heels, and got more and more nervous as our heels clicked and the door got closer and closer. Debbie took the lead and opened the door and chimed out, "were here!". Carl came out of an adjoining room and said, "I’ll take those ladies", and helped myself and Debbie out of our coats. As he closed the closet door, came towards me and gave me a big hug and a light kiss on the cheek and said, "nice to see you again Barb, it has been a long time", I gave a sly smiled and in a sexy voice said, "yes it has". Debbie immediately commented on the dress and said, "the dress is perfect and I love the heels". I complimented Debbie back, as she was in a knee length red coat dress, sheer black hose, and was also wearing pearls and some sparkly earrings, she really looked pretty. Carl and Debbie took the lead and said, "right this way Barb", I started to take off my heels and Debbie said, "you don’t have to Barb, you might ruin those hose", I gawked around the house as we walked, it was huge and very well decorated.

Before I knew it, I was in a large room full of people, more importantly strangers and none knew who or what I was, and my knees were shaking. Right away Debbie’s mother came over and introduced herself and shook my hand, I remembered what my girlfriend told me, "remember, smile!". Debbie then got everyone’s attention and said, "hi everyone, this is my old college roommate, Barb, one of the Bridesmaids’". Debbie then pinned a cute little button on my dress that said, "Bridesmaid", as she finished, she whispered to me, "your doing great, now let’s get you introduced to the other Bridesmaids". She took my hand and lead me across the room to a couch that had two of the other Bridesmaid’s, Connie and Liz. They both stood up and shook my hand and both commented something to the effect of, "so you are the Barb we had heard so much about over the years, so nice to meet you".

Connie and Liz were both cousins and Connie was older than all three of us, I guessed early 30’s and was a more portly sized woman, she stood about 5’5" and had short black hair. She was dressed in a black knee length skirt, white blouse and had sheer black hose and black flats. Liz had just started College and was 19, she was almost the exact same height as I was but was much thinner. She had long straight blonde hair to just past her shoulders and was wearing a short tanned coloured skirt, a white blouse and matching jacket, her heels were black and slightly higher than mine.

They told me were I could fine some wine and I headed over to the table were it was and on the way back ran into Debbie and her sister Teresa, the Maid of Honor, and shook her hand as she introduced us. I nearly died as I tried to control my emotions, trying not to gawk at her, she was an absolute drop dead gorgeous looking woman. I never imagined this scenario before and played it cool as we casually chatted. Words cannot describe her looks, she was a senior in college and a cheerleader, 5"6", a body that looked so tight and firm, and nice full and firm breasts, the red and black sweater dress she was wearing clung to her body. Her face was cute as a button and her curly blond hair framed her face perfectly. I could probably guess that her legs were very shapely and could only see from her knees down. She was wearing sheer nude nylons and had heels on about the same height as mine.

I turned to leave and the usher that was going to be paired with me walked past and Debbie stopped him. She introduced us and let me know that I was Barb and let us know that we were going to be paired at the Wedding. He introduced himself as Paul and told me it was pleasure to meet me. As we stood and talked I felt a little awkward as he was eyeing me up and down, he of course asked if I was single, and I told him I was. He was a pretty handsome looking guy, I guessed around my age, maybe a little older. He was Debbie’s cousin as well and we chatted about this and that and eventually we said goodbye and shook hands and I said, "I look forward to seeing you at the Rehearsal Party next year".

I made my way back to the couch were the other Bridesmaids were and sat and chatted and got to know them better, after awhile Teresa came over and joined the conversation. I was grilled about a ton of things and thank heavens I had practiced and that I answered every question they asked as if it was natural. I also remembered something my girlfriend told me and that I should chatter just as much and them and ask just as many questions and they did and that is exactly what happened. I found out that Connie was married, and Liz had a boyfriend and that Teresa was getting married in the spring of the following year. I joked with her and told her that she should be the matron of honor, not the maid of honor, she smiled back at me and jokingly slapped my knee and said, "no way, I am not THAT old". I told them that I was single, that I had broken up with my boyfriend a couple of months ago and was not really over him and was not dating at the present time.

The party basically flew by and I talked to pretty much everyone in the room and got really comfortable after a while. I took frequent trips to the bathroom to ensure that my makeup, especially my lips were always perfect, and so did the other girls. The dinner was served around 6:30pm and man there was a ton of food, it was a casual buffet and they had everything from simple sandwiches to hot roast beef and such. I ate light and afterwards Debbie came and offered me a tour of the house. She took me upstairs to the 2^nd level and showed me her bedroom, and it was huge, and told me that this is were we will be dressing on the day of the Wedding. When I saw the master bedroom I nearly died, it had a huge walkout that overlooked a ravine and a large yard. As we stood and looked out Debbie commented, "so what did you think of my sister?", knowing full well what she meant, I told her casually, "she’s pretty". She gave me a light shove and laughed, "get out of here!, I saw your eyes pop out when I introduced you, better be careful, rumors might start that you are a Lesbian!". I laughed with her and we turned and headed back to the party and I again began to mingle.

At one point all of the Wedding party was together at the party and Debbie started talking about Wedding plans and wanted to hear what we all had to say. Things like any preference for dyed shoes vs., trying to find matching shoes elsewhere?, ideas on Bridal Salon’s in the area, when we wanted to go dress shopping, etc., etc. It was a really special time listening to the other girls and putting my 2 cents worth in. Eventually, like all good things, they had to come to an end, and at around midnight, Debbie came and got me and told me it was time to go. I said my good byes and followed Debbie to the front door were Carl helped us on with our coats. After Carl put on my coat he gave me another hug and a light kiss and whispered in my ear. "I thought the next time I was going to see you was at the rehearsal party. After seeing you again, it is going to be when I make love to Debbie". I just said jokingly, "Carl, mind your self!", and turned to leave with Debbie, as we walked back to the car Debbie asked me what "that was about", I just said, "let’s put it this way, the next time and Carl make love, it may be a little more passionate". She just laughed and we got into her car and she started to drive. She commented that she was watching me all evening and said, "you did perfect and fit right in, I think you will make out just fine next year". She asked me how I thought it went, I told her "at the beginning I was really nervous, but after awhile, everything was natural". Once we got home Debbie gave me a light kiss on the lips and said, "thank you", and I left to walk up to the apartment.

I opened the door and my girlfriend was on the couch, reading a book and put it down and joined me at the door and helped me with my coat. She was all smiles and asked, "so how was it?, come into the living room and sit down and tell me all about it". I did and after 2 hours of talking and telling her all of the stories it was time for bed. As I walked into the bedroom and turned on the light, lying on my side of the bed was a new sexy red lace teddy. She came up behind me and gave me a kiss on the neck and said, "I got that the same time as I got the bra and panties, you like?". I of course told her I did and she said, "well tonight will be the first time you and will sleep together as girls and I wanted something special". I was floored but excited all the while staring at the teddy, she turned me around and opened her housecoat and showed me her teddy, which was black and sexy with lace around the edges. She smiled and said, "I had to get something for myself as well, now get changed and I will see you in bed".

I grabbed my teddy and headed for the bathroom and washed off my makeup and slipped out of my clothes, except for my pantyhose, I left them on and then the Teddy, it fit perfectly and looked so sexy. I went back into the bedroom and my girlfriend was already in the bed and I did not know what to expect when I got in, but decided to let her take the lead. We cuddled and that was about it and fell asleep in each other’s arms, it was really special.

The months went by and my girlfriend and I grew as girlfriends, we would go out every Tuesday as girlfriends for dinner and shared a closet full of clothes, eventually her whole work wardrobe was at the apartment and frequently she would wear something of mine. Debbie would call every once in a while to say "hi" and tell me a little bit more of the plans as they started to firm up. Eventually the menu was set, invitations were in the mail, the flowers were going to be made by a friend of hers that was into arts and crafts and that was going to be her Wedding present to her. My girlfriend and I had not yet started shopping for me, as we decided for the spring sales to get clothes for the first trip to the Bridal Salon for dresses.

The cool months of winter started to fade and I would watch the calendar to see the days go by as spring weather started to come and it got warmer and warmer. The second Saturday of April came and around 4pm I got a call from a very, very excited Debbie, all she did when I answered the phone was squeal, "I got my dress, I got my dress!!!!". I was really happy for her and asked her why so early?, she had a few more weeks she should have waited, she responded, "my mother found out that the fall fashions were in, and once I knew that, I called a few places and they confirmed it, and I could not wait!". She told me that they went to 3 shops, the first in my city, which was a "waste of time", the second in the next city over, and she thought she found the dress of her dreams. Her mother convinced her to go to a "darling little boutique" in the same city and the first dress she tried on, she nearly cried, as it was so beautiful. She asked me to get my recent spring copy of "Modern Bride", and I put the phone down and went and got it. I passed my girlfriend as I went back to the phone, she smiled and said, "Debbie found her dressed didn’t she?", I smiled back and told her "yes".

She directed me to a page and told me that that was close to the dress she got, but not exactly, hers was a little more elaborate. To call the dress beautiful would be a total understatement, the beads and the sequins, the high collar and sheer material around the bust and all down the back, and the long row of buttons on the back as well. The train was huge, full of beads and lace, the skirt was pushed way out from the waist down, it was truly a stunning gown. I was floored and told Debbie she would look like a million bucks walking down the isle, and she giggled and said, "well at least $1700, as that is how much it cost". I said, "what?", she told me it was her mother that paid for it and she wanted to as it was so beautiful. After we finished talking about her dress, she told me that there was no need to go anywhere else for our dresses as this place had a huge selection of Bridesmaid dresses, far more than the other two, and all the fall styles were in. She asked me what weekends I had available in the next several weeks and I told her "whenever", she told me she would get back to me, but expect early to mid May. After hanging up the phone I showed my girlfriend the dress and told her how much it cost and she agreed the dress was stunning, but could not believe the price. She asked when we the Bridesmaid’s were going for their dresses and I told her probably within the few weeks. She then said, "I guess we will have to keep our eyes open for spring sales?".

About 2 weeks later my girlfriend and I were walking through the mall on a Saturday (unfortunately it was not as two girls, if you know what I mean), and she spotted a sale at a discount clothing store and a skirt she fell in love with. It was a long flared denim skirt, below the knee and decided to get it, then she found a blue flowered blouse, ¾ length sleeves. She smiled and looked over at me and said, "I think I just found what Joyce is going to be wearing for shopping for a Bridesmaid dress, this is perfect". The following Monday I got a call from Debbie telling me that in two Saturdays we would be going for the fitting and that Connie had a van and she would pick me up around 11am.

 

FIRST FITTING OF THE BRIDESMAID DRESSES

On the days leading up to the fitting I was excited, but in an excited way, not nervous at all. Every night I went to bed dreaming of what the actual day would be like and every waking moment I was thinking about what the actual Saturday would be like. Every night I thumbed through all of my Brides magazines and looked at all of the dresses and every time that I did, closed my eyes and imagined what it would be like to slip into some of those dresses. My girlfriend and I never really talked about the skirt and blouse that she bought the week before and I was left thinking what I was going to be wearing. My thoughts were to grab a long tight a-line jean skirt that was on my girlfriend’s side of the closet and a purple turtleneck sweater as well as some nude hose and 3" black patent heels. My thoughts were to be like any other girl and "pick the clothes that I felt like that day".

The Saturday morning came and I woke up around 8am and was really excited. My girlfriend got up just after me and told me to start getting ready right away. I definitely did not need any convincing and jumped right in the shower and started to get "squeaky clean". About 15 minutes into my shower I heard the bathroom door open and my spouse excuse herself as she came in. She told me that I needed to turn around and allow her to do something. I was confused at what she was talking about, but turned around and as I felt something scrap my back I heard her say, "I need to shave back here as I have no idea of how low the dresses are going to be that you are trying on". At that moment I had no clue what she was talking about and just trusted her. When she was done she told me to finishing showering and get dressed and that she would make sure everything was perfect before I was to get picked up for the trip to Promises and Lace, the Bridal Salon we were going to.

After I was done showering, I dried myself and wrapped myself in a towel and headed to the bedroom to dress and put on my makeup for a day I was sure I was not going to forget. I opened the bedroom door and sitting on the bed was the skirt my spouse bought the weekend before, another new pair of sheer nude nylons, my kid black 3" heels and the blue short sleeved blouse. As well, on the top of the pile was a note from my spouse which read:

 

Dear Joyce,

When I saw this skirt I fell in love with it, then I found the blouse and realized it was perfect for your trip with the other Bridesmaid’s. Consider the outfit yours, after all, I can get at it in the closet (just kidding), I want you to feel really comfortable today and have something easy to get in and out of. Good luck today!, always remember, smile!!.

Love, Your Girlfriend.

I got really excited started getting changed into the outfit and made sure everything was perfect. The bra I chose was my first, a gift from my first girlfriend, a satin pink one, and the panties were matching as well. After I slipped into them, I put on sheer nude pantyhose, and they were so sheer I was afraid of putting a run in them, but that worked out no problem as I really took my time. Finally the skirt and blouse and then the final touches before I made it to the makeup table. I put on a gold anklet, my favorite long gold dangly earrings and gold watch. I spritzed myself with some Obsession perfume, just lightly, enough for someone to notice. I then made my way to the makeup table and sat down and started to gently put on the colours I felt comfortable with. As I applied my eyeshadow and eyeliner, blush and mascara, I remembered back to conversations with my girlfriend that I should do it really lightly as I need to minimize the risk of getting makeup on the dresses I was trying on. I finished off with my lipstick and liked the look in the mirror and then slipped on my 3" kid black heels and grabbed my purse and headed into the living room to meet my girlfriend.

As I rounded the corner of the living room my girlfriend commented, "I can see I made the right choice for your trip today and you do look lovely!". I thanked her and she had me sit down and grabbed my brush and started to fluff out my hair to make the curls surround my face and make it look softer in appearance. She spent about 10 minutes working on it and then asked me to have a look to make sure I was happy with it and when I got to the washroom and had a look, I was definitely pleased. As I was standing in front of the mirror, just making minor adjustments, I heard the buzzer and checked the clock, if it was the other Bridesmaid’s they were 15 minutes early!. My girlfriend answered the buzzer and it was Debbie and my girlfriend answered back, "no problem, Barb will be down in a couple of minutes". My girlfriend came into the bathroom and handed me my purse and suggested I fix my lipstick, and as I opened my purse and grabbed my lipstick, she commented on something she added. She told me, "if you check your wallet there is $50 in it, if you girls do find your dresses, you will need it for the deposit". I thanked her profusely as I never even thought that I would need something like that, and she told me the only way she knew was that she was talking with her cousin who was getting married in a couple of weeks and told her.

I left the bathroom and my girlfriend met me with my long winter coat and helped me into me and then gave me a light kiss on the cheek and told me, "have fun Joyce, oh, I mean Barb, dress shopping can be really fun!, enjoy and I want to hear all about it when you get back!." I looked back and saw my girlfriend close the door and wave to me as I slung my purse over my shoulder and walked down the stairs to the parking lot. I paused briefly at the door and after a "pregnant pause" seeing the van running and a bunch of heads in seats, I took a deep breath and put on a big smile and walked into the cool May air towards the van. As I approached the van, the side door opened and it was Debbie, she came out, gave me a little hug and a kiss and invited me in to a seat at near the door. As the door was closed and the van started to move, I started again getting re-acquainted with all of the girls.

I kind of knew were we where going geographically, but was not really sure and just decided to enjoy the ride and talk with the other girls. In the van were all of the Bridesmaid’s, including the maid of honor Teresa, Connie was driving and Debbie’s mother was along as well, so the van was definitely full. As I looked around I could see that Teresa still looked as stunning as the last time I saw her, Liz’s hair had grown even longer and was gorgeous, Debbie had not changed and I could see by Connie’s face as she drove that she had gained some weight. After talking about "this, that and the other thing", we arrived at the front of the Bridal Salon, it was a Saturday, so we got lucky in being able to park in the front of the busy street. When I got in the van I really nervous, but like the engagement party, after a while, I started to settle down as the drive went on. I was the second one out of the van and stood beside Debbie as the other girls came out of the van. I could not help but stare at the front to the store with the mannequins dressed in absolutely beautiful Bridal wear, both Bride and Bridesmaid. I then noticed that only myself and Liz were in skirts and heels, Liz was in a tight little jean mini and heels lower than mine and all of the other girls were in jeans and sneakers. I was getting worried at first and Debbie could see that in my face and as we gathered to go into the store, she came close to me and whispered, "Barb, you look fine, don’t worry".

The next thing that happened was like one of those scenes from the "Twilight Zone", everything happened in super slow motion as we entered the shop. I cannot even remember who was in front of me or who was behind me, but we went through the front doors and what I saw literally caused me to freeze dead in my tracks. I was in awe as I walked through the doors of the shop, it was unlike anything I had ever seen before, it was like walking into another world, a feminine heaven. I still remember, looking in the front foyer area, tons and tons of racks of satin and lace gorgeous Bridesmaid dresses. Beyond a doorway lined with a trellis and gorgeous silk flowers, the very large mirrored area for the Brides to try on their dresses and Wedding dresses as far as the eye could see. As my head moved around, the atmosphere "oozed" femininity, pinks, tulle, satin, lace, peach, the colours and even the smell of the atmosphere was overwhelming, beautiful flowers. I was jerked back to reality when I the owner, Sally I guessed in her early 40’s, and her assistant Maria, probably 19 or so, came to help us with our coats and hung them up. Sally greeted us with, "good morning Ladies, I recognize Debbie the Bride, I assume you others are the remaining in the party?". Debbie answered back and Sally smiled and shook each of our hands and asked us our names, and then told us to follow her.

I had absolutely no clue what was going on and just followed the other girls to a side room that was huge, it had several large Victorian couches, tables, Recent Bridal magazines on some tables, about 3 change room doors and two pedestals that were well lit with mirrors everywhere. We were all asked to sit down, Sally then addressed us, she basically asked each one of us to stand up and get on the podium tell her who we were and what our position was in the Wedding party and do a twirl. It was really silly, but like the other girls I giggled and played along, she explained that it would better help her assist us in finding the right dress for all of us. She noted that only Liz and I had on nylons and asked Maria to go and get some knee highs for the other girls in case we wanted to see the dresses with heels on.

Just after we were done, her assistant came back with the extra nylons and offered each one of a glass of white wine, I was floored, what was this all about?, I had bought dresses before, but this was something completely different. Normally, you grab a dress of the rack and some salesgirl shows you a cubical that is tiny and if you are lucky you get a mirror!. As I sipped on my wine I listened intently as Sally asked if any of us had previous Bridesmaid experience?. We all said no, and this is what she explained, "alright ladies, all of the Bridesmaid dresses in the store are samples. What I encourage is that you all go and choose dresses that you like, we all then come back and have a little ‘fashion show’ and critique each one and hopefully we can come to an agreement on one that will look great on all of you. Most of dresses are one size, but there are a few larger ones, depending on the style and material". Sally then looked over at Debbie and asked, "so your colour is blue right?, any idea of what shade?". Debbie informed her that "slate" or "baby blue" is what she had in mind. She then explained that her assistant Maria would watch our purses if we wanted to go into the next room and scan the racks to find the dresses.

I followed the other girls as we entered the area of the shop that had the Bridesmaid dresses and at first had absolutely no clue as to what to do, but I followed a couple of the other girls and started scanning the racks. The first reaction was to grab every dress, as they were so darn incredible and wonderful looking!. I snuck a glance from time to time and saw that the other girls were being picky and decided to be the same. The fabric of the dresses was amazing, so silky and soft and I pulled out dress after dress and then it happened. It was a hunter green satin dress, I saw the wide open back, then looked at the tag, it was an Alfred Angelo!, I pulled it out and in my hands I had the dress I fell in love with in the Bridesmaid catalog!!!!!. I definitely grabbed it and kept on searching, the next one I found was another Alfred Angelo, this was a red jacquard pattern, silk, and again a low back, I had not seen this one in the catalog. Finally a royal blue dress, long, with white lace around the bust and collar and more of an A-line style. I had my three dresses and looked around and saw that only myself and Connie were left and I headed back to the cozy room for the ‘fashion show’. Maria grabbed my dresses and put them in the change area and as I turned to sit down looked over at Debbie and gave her a little smile, and she smiled back. Eventually Connie came into the area and gave Maria her dresses and sat down and we all sat and chatted about what we found and sipped on our wine.

Sally came back into the room and checked with Maria and asked if we were all done and then announced it was time for the ‘fashion show’, as we sat and chatted, Sally went into the change areas and looked over the dresses we had all picked. She came out and said, "I hate to ask this ladies, but to do this right, I need each of you to tell me your dress size and your name, I was the first and told her 12, Teresa, 8, Liz, 6 and Connie, 16. She then went into the first dressing room and pulled out a Fusia dress, which had a gathered waist a huge bow at the butt, lace top and satin skirt. She then said, "this is an 11/12, Teresa, we need you as a model". I thought, "what the heck?, what about me?, I was soon to learn why.

Teresa got up and headed to the dressing room, eventually Maria knocked on the door and asked if she needed any help, which she did with the zipper. About 5 minutes later she came out, I almost laughed, white socks, no nylons and all, and the dress would not even come close to doing up on her, bra showing, it was quite comical. Sally asked Teresa if she wanted the nylons and to try the dress with heels, but she said "no". We all had the same comment that her dress size was 8, and how come an 11/12 did not fit her?. Thus came "lesson 101" in Bridesmaid/Bridal design and Sally carefully explained it, "ladies, Bridal fashions are not your usual sizes, always go down 1 to ½ sizes depending on your body proportions". She was right as Teresa’s breasts were very large, and the dress was loose in the waist but it was way to small in the chest. As I stared at her she was gorgeous, but I had to agree with Liz sitting next to me that it did not flatter her body at all. Sally could see by our faces that we were not pleased with the dress and then proceeded to try and find another dress that would fit Teresa that was her size.

The next dress was one of the ones I chose, an A-line, figure hugging, off the shoulder, crepe style of dress in royal blue. The dress was adorned with a large white lace collar and was beautiful, Sally handed the dress to Teresa, and she had the one she was wearing unzipped by Maria as she went into the change room. A few minutes later the door opened and Teresa backed out and her back was wide open, we white bra strap showing, which Maria quickly did up. As Teresa turned around I was in awe, she looked amazing, and the front of the dress had a thigh high slit on the front. She got up on the podium and as the light shone on the dress, she looked amazing, I was imagining her with her hair teased up and she definitely would look hot. As she modeled the dress, Sally made the comment that even though it was a lovely dress on Teresa, it probably would not work for the entire party. At that point I had no clue what she really meant, as I thought the dress was extremely gorgeous. I sighed when Sally said that, and Debbie who was sitting next to me, heard me, she leaned over and very quietly whispered, "remember, we have to consider Connie". I then looked over at Connie and realized what she meant and knew there was no way the dress would flatter Connie’s full figure, it would basically make her look like a stuffed sausage, no matter how big we ordered it.

The dresses came and went and basically, the only people trying on the dresses were Teresa and Liz, as most of them were small store samples, in a size 11/12 or 9/10. From time to time when we got a dress that was close, Liz would slip on a pair of white satin heels to see what the dress would look like. Maria kept our wine glasses topped up and after a while it got to be kind of fun critiquing each dress and trying to figure out what would work for each girl and what would not. Finally there was 3 dresses left and all of the others did not work out, two were the other two I picked out and the other was one that Liz had picked out. What we had decided to this point was that we needed a dress that was full, in other words flared out from the waist and was not too revealing in the front, as Connie and Teresa both had more than ample breasts to conceal. Sally went to the change room and asked Connie to come and try on the next dress, and I was kind of miffed as I had not gotten to try on any of the amazing and beautiful dresses, my heart sank. Connie went into the change room and a few minutes later Maria knocked on the door and asked if she was ready. Connie came out backwards and even though her bra was showing, the wide open back looked really sexy. The dress fit Connie, and looked amazing on her figure, the bow was certainly pretty and skirt flared out nicely, totally concealing her hips. All of the other girls were commenting about how lovely the dress looked and Sally was about to go get a crinoline (whatever that was), to help out the look, when Connie mentioned she was really not happy. She was not happy with how wide open the back was open and hated to show that much skin and that the fact we would all have to wear uncomfortable low backed bras for the entire day.

Her whining convinced the rest of us (not me), that the dress was not right, so we were down to one last dress, and that was the one chosen by Liz, which turned out to be another Alfred Angelo and a size 13/14. Sally came out and looked over at me and said, "one last chance girls, and Barb, this is one that you can model". I tried to control my emotions and walked towards the change room, I was so excited, my first time actually trying on a Bridesmaid dress!. As I walked into the change room, firstly, I could not believe how big it was, and secondly, all of the walls had mirrors!. I saw the dress that Liz had picked and nearly died, it was drop dead gorgeous (if you want to see it for real, email me!). I cannot describe the dress, it was full length, pale pink, with ribbons, lace and bows everywhere. It was off the shoulder, gathered waist and just oozed "Southern Belle". I quickly changed out of my clothes and heels and just like all of the other girls, I had the knock on the door asking if I needed help and I was ready. The dress was really heavy and nothing like I had tried on before, there was a TON of material that made up the dress. As I stared at myself in the mirrors, I told Maria that I was. Maria opened the door and zipped me up, the gown fit perfectly, she then said, "you were one of the girls that wore nylons and heels right?". I told her "yes" and she grabbed my heels and I held on to her shoulder as she slipped them on. Maria looked me over and then took my bra straps and then tucked them down my arms, underneath the fabric of the dress and said, "if you girls choose this dress you will need the proper strapless bras, but this will do for now".

I turned to leave the change area and Maria commented, "better grab the skirt, it is long, I will get a petticoat (whatever that was), and meet you at the podium". I did and noticed how much material was gathered around and grabbed it and headed to the podium like all of the other girls. Sally immediately commented, "well ladies, if you like this dress, we know what size to get Barb!". Again, everything went into "slow motion", as I stood on the lighted podium. I could not believe I was staring at myself, the dress and the look was so beautiful and feminine. I was knocked back to reality when Maria came back with the petticoat, and I had never seen anything like this before, it was a huge bunch of white fabric, is all I can describe it as. Maria held open the waistband and told me to grab her shoulder and put it on like a slip. I did that and Maria held out the skirt of the dress and then dropped it and fluffed out the skirt and adjusted it here and there and when I looked in the mirror I was floored!. The petticoat made the skirt of the dress push way out and made it look so much more feminine!, Sally tapped on my shoulder and handed me an umbrella, in the same material and colour as the dress and told me to sling it over my shoulder. I was totally floored about how I looked and stood there and in the distance could hear the other girls talking. Unfortunately it was Debbie who came to me and gently said, "Barb, I know you love the dress and so do the rest of the girls. However myself and Teresa don’t want the Wedding to be ‘Debbie gets married and little Bo-Peeps are the Bridesmaid’s’, I really hope you can understand".

To say I was disappointed was an understatement, but I knew this was for Debbie’s day and accepted it. Liz came up and grabbed my hand and lead me back to the couch I was sitting at. Well!, sitting down in that much fabric is an undertaking, but Liz helped me and we giggled as I did. The only other person more disappointed than me was the owner Sally. She stood there for about a minute and looked over all of the girls then said, "now that I know more about you girls, I think I have something that came in last night, it just might work". She left us all sitting there and came back around 5 minutes later with what looked like a satin dress in fusia, in a clear dress bag. It was hard to see what the style was, but she again ensured us as she hung it in a change room that this would be the one that we would choose. She came out of the change room and looked us over and said, "girls, I am sure this is the dress, so I want to make this perfect for seeing it for the first time. It is a size 11/12, a true 11/12, so I want to see Barb modeling it, and Barb, tell me what your bra size is as I want the right undergarments to be worn".

Right away I was starting to get really excited and told her my bra size, she then asked for me to head to the change room to get undressed. Liz helped me off of the couch and made sure none of the fabric of the petticoat was damaged when I got up and I smiled back at her as I headed to the change room. Maria met me there and I turned to get unzipped and about that time Sally came back and handed me a "contraption" that I have never seen before, a strapless bra, it reminded me of a big rubber band. After I slipped out of the dress and petticoat and hung them up, I undid my conventional bra, then tried to figure out the bra Sally had given me, after some fooling around, I discovered, how to put it on, and once that was done, moved to the dress.

I opened the bag and pulled out the dress, it had a wide collar that was definitely to be worn off the shoulder, also had what looked like a satin rose in the middle of the bust. It looked shorter than most of the other dresses we had seen all day. I slipped it on and almost got the zipper up all the way by myself, Maria knocked at the door to see if I needed help. I told her I did and opened the door and she came in and did me up, the dress was definitely tight, but not too tight to do up (Maria had to struggle a bit with the zipper). She asked how the bra fit and I told her well and that is was a little uncomfortable, but that I have never worn one before. The fabric of the dress was much different than the other dress I had tried on and it was stiffer and made a rustling noise as I walked (I would later learn the fabric was taffeta). I stared at the dress in the mirror and knew, right then and there, I knew it was the dress we were going with, at least in my opinion. Maria adjusted this and that and then eventually told me to slip on my heels and show the other girls the dress. I did and headed out the door to the pedestal. I got on it and all I could see was me in the dress, it was perfect, the dress fell off my shoulders, the wide collar made the whole dress look sweet it was knee length and except for the colour everything was perfect.

The next word out of almost all of the girl’s mouths was "perfect, that is the dress", even Debbie admitted it was perfect and all of them came and got a closer look as I stood there. The only foreseeable problem was the fact that even though I was wearing a strapless bra, the back dipped a little too low, so a low backed strapless bra was going to be needed. Debbie then started to inquire about the available colours and before I knew it, Sally shoved a Bridesmaid bouquet of flowers in my hands and told me to pose with them in front of me. All girls had decided on the dress and Debbie on the colour. I eventually got off the podium and started to head for the change room to change back into my skirt and blouse, I was stopped by Sally. She said, "Barb, why don’t you leave the dress on and you and the other girls follow me to the front of the store and we can look at some accessories".

I followed right behind Sally and the other girls followed, laid out in a couple of glass showcases were tons of jewelry, little combs with organza material off of them, garters, white satin gloves, etc., etc. The first thing I noticed was the price!, damn!, were those earrings made of pure gold and real pearls?. Sally then took the lead and said, "alright girls, let’s pick out a few things and take them back and have Barb model them". I really lost count of what was grabbed, but certainly, elbow length white satin gloves, several pairs of earrings, a few different styles of necklaces, pearl chokers, etc. Debbie grabbed my hand and then lead me to back to the room and on to the podium. Sally then commented, "first things first, my suggestion is that if you are going with this dress and the taffeta fabric, the black heels she has on, or white ones, will not work". After asking my size, Sally asked Maria to go and get a pair out of the back that were dyed and fusia. All of the girls were talking and agreeing with (me included) that dyed satin was the way to go. Eventually Maria came back and had a pair of fusia satin heels, not quite the same tint, but close enough. The shoes were only a size 6, and Maria helped me struggle to get them on, and worse, they only had about a 1" heel on them. I made the comment to Sally that I was not used to such a low heel, and she commented back, "don’t worry dear, they come in all heel heights". When I saw myself in the mirror I knew dyed heels definitely made the whole dress look.

Over the next 30 minutes I felt like a store mannequin, as Sally and Maria tried hair combs, necklaces, earrings (which was funny as they had to hold them in place if they were for pierced ears, which mine were not). Every once in a while I would look over at Debbie and she would give me a big wide smile as they were doing it and knowing full well I was enjoying it. I was standing facing the other girls and Maria was holding up a mirror in front of me so I could see in between changes. Debbie then asked us to not decide on the jewelry right then, but to consider other accessories and we could talk about jewelry later. Sally then put her finger to her mouth in a "mmmm, I have an idea" manner, and asked Maria to go see if the purse that matched the heels was in the same spot as the shoes. Maria returned with the purse and handed it to me and Sally asked me to pose with it gently at my side and I did. All of the girls loved the idea and it was decided we were going to be going with the matching purses to match the dress and heels. I started shifting from side to side as I stood there as the size 6 heels were absolutely killing my feet.

Sally noticed this and asked the other girls if I could get changed and they all agreed and I got off the podium and hobbled to the change area were Sally unzipped me as I went in. I changed back into my clothes and hung up the dress and could not believe how beautiful it was, even sitting on the hanger. I managed to get the heels off and my feet screamed "thank you!". I could hear the girls outside the change area and Sally had started asking them one by one about heels and what style/height they wanted. She mentioned that the stiletto pumps was the current style, and that they came in all sizes. As I came out of the change area, Connie was on the podium, sporting a pair of knee high nylons and satin pumps that had a heel of about 1" or maybe less, certainly not for me!. Liz was the next one and she wanted a 3" pump, and she was warned that we were going to be doing allot of standing, but stood firm on her choice and slipped on her pair and commented on how comfortable they felt. Next was myself and Teresa and we both chose the same as Liz, and the funny part was that each of us was a size 7 as well!. When it came to my turn, I could not help but comment on how comfortable they felt and Sally mentioned that the shoes are designed slightly wider than normal pumps for comfort.

So with that all decided, the owner, Sally asked us all to take a seat while the paperwork was being prepared. I had to admit the wine was starting to get to me and so did my bladder and myself and Liz asked were the washroom was, and Maria lead us to the rear of the store. I nearly died as I walked under the trellis leading into the Brides area!, what I did not realize is that two other employees of the store were helping Brides try on their dresses, and they looked absolutely gorgeous!. Maria showed us the washroom, and it was for a single person at a time and Liz was more in need than I, so she went first. I spent my time with my jaw on the floor, staring at the two Brides to Be, they were not that attractive of girls, but the dresses sure made them look like Princesses!. Liz came out of the washroom and I took my turn and she was waiting for me as I came out and made the comment, "are they not beautiful dresses, I cannot wait to wear one and walk down the isle, can you?". I did not even hesitate and told her "yes!", even knowing the possibilities are slim and none.

We joined the other girls in the sitting room and eventually Sally came in and said she was ready and to come to the front desk and we would settle things up. She had 4 pads, each written up with the articles we had to pay for, and our names at the top, I looked at mine and nearly had a stroke!, I had to read it twice!. The dress was $265, purse was $32, and the shoes were $35 with dyeing charges of $19.50 as well as "alterations extra". All of us had questions, not about the price, but the dress size that was written down on the order, Teresa was the first one to speak up and asked why her order had a size 13/14 dress and so did Liz. Sally went on to explain that the dresses were all made with the same proportions, since all out bodies were not the exact same, the dresses will have to be fitted a few weeks before the Wedding to make sure they look absolutely perfect on each one of us. Sally then asked if any one of us was going to be putting down a deposit as it was required before she actually ordered the dresses. I opened my purse and handed her the $50 bill that my girlfriend had put in my wallet and handed it to Sally, as I did I looked over at Debbie and she gave me a big smile and looked away. Sally completed my receipt and handed it to me and the only other girl that had a deposit was Teresa, and Sally just told Liz and Connie to drop by sometime soon to give theirs.

Maria got our coats and handed them to us and we got ready to leave and thanked Sally for all that she had done. After we got back into the van, I saw the clock on the dashboard showed 3:45 PM!!, we had actually been dress shopping for 4 hours!. On the way back to the apartment we all discussed the dresses and it was funny listening to Connie, bitching and complaining about the fact we still would have to wear a low backed strapless bra (I was soon to find out what she was bitching about and why). We eventually got to my apartment and I climbed out of the van and Debbie said, "thanks for everything Barb, I will be in touch".

I walked upstairs and opened the apartment door and there was my girlfriend standing there waiting for me. She had a big smile and could tell right away that I had a great time, she had to comment, "you have been gone for over 4 ½ hours, I certainly hope you girls found your dress". I told her that was not all we found and handed her the receipt from the store, even she had to say, "holy cow!, we better increase the amount of money you are saving for this Wedding!". She helped me out of my coat and then grabbed my hand and lead me to the living room and asked me to tell her all about the day, which I certainly did.

 

To Be Continued.

 

Joyce Devries    joyce_devries@hotmail.com       ICQ: 26082876

 

 

 

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