The Bride Said Yes to the Dress . . . The Mother-of-the-Bride Diaries Begin

By Barbara Falconer Newhall

The woman said yes to The Dress. To the dress she’ll be wearing on her wedding day.

And with that, her mother — that would be me — opened yet another credit card account and placed the order.

I bought my wedding dress off the rack at Saks Fifth Avenue forty years ago next March. But many brides these days plan way ahead, ordering their gowns months and months in advance. Typically, the fabric is shipped to China where the gown is assembled then shipped back to the U.S. for alterations in the store.

Christina’s Big Yes was the climax to the three days we’d  spent in August driving all over Los Angeles (where Christina and her fiance live) trying on A-lines, princess waists, mermaid curves, and big, fluffy concoctions.

It was fun. Fun for the bride. And big fun for me to see my daughter looking gorgeous in gown after gown — and absolutely dazzling in the one she picked out.

You won’t get to see pictures of it till next May. But, trust me, it’ll be worth the wait.

I had offered up my own wedding dress and wedding shoes for Christina’s walk down the aisle. To no avail. The dress was too short, the shoes too long. This calls for a mother-daughter shopping trip.

For stories about my adventures as the mother of the groom, go to “I’m the Mother of the Groom. Now What Do I Do?”   Also “The Mother-of-the-Groom Diaries: Am I Too Old for Splashy Earrings?”