In My Words: A Wedding Gown Revisited

I hadn’t seen my wedding gown in almost 32 years.

You read that right: 32 years. I celebrate my 32nd wedding anniversary with my husband Rob on May 24.

With my book launch celebration slated for May 5 (just a couple of days ago), I decided it was time to unpack my wedding gown. Why? In Wish You Were Here, my debut novel, the heroine’s wedding gown is almost a secondary character.

Women spend a lot of time searching for the perfect wedding gown. Then again, sometimes they find themselves wishing they hadn’t said yes to the dress. That’s exactly how my heroine Allison feels about her dress, which she thinks of as a “walking fire code violation”  a “designer debacle” and, oh yeah, a “silken tsunami.”

Unlike Allison, I felt beautiful in my wedding gown, which included a hoop skirt because, well, how romantic is that? 

At my celebration this past Saturday I displayed my wedding gown on a dress form — right next to a beautiful wedding cake made by my friend, Wendy. It was fun to tell people that was my dress.

And then … I shared the mystery we unpacked with my gown. Inside the box was my pristine dress, my simple wedding veil … and some other bride’s wedding veil.

Gasp!

It’s a lovely, expensive long lace veil, complete with an ornate crown. And I have no idea who it belongs to or how to find the owner. Sounds like the beginning of a novel, doesn’t it?

In Your Words: Yes, that’s me holding the mystery veil (my husband has my veil). If you’re married, did you find your perfect gown? If you’re not yet married — do you have a dream gown in mind? What would you do if you found a mystery veil hidden in the box with your wedding gown?