Turning Don’ts Into I Do’s
09/18/2009
Tonight’s episode opens with a pep talk by Kleinfeld bridal salon’s senior management to all of the consultants. Given the economic climate, they really need to go above and beyond to provide excellent customer service to the brides-to-be. This pep talk proves prescient in Audrey’s case, as she tries to reconcile bride Hillary and her mother Pam’s divergent ideas on what the perfect wedding gown is.
Hillary never wanted a big wedding. Her ideal was to elope to Spain. Her mother, Pam, wants her to have the “whole wedding experience from soup to nuts, whether she likes it or not.” Steve, her fiancé, is there to help pick out the dress and also wanted a traditional wedding. I’m confused when he says they compromised on the wedding, since they’re having a big wedding. Seems to me that the bride isn’t really getting what SHE wants, but who knows?
Hillary wants a dress that makes her look sleek and slender and doesn’t cost over $3,000. Her mom and fiancé have other ideas and reject the first dress she tries on.
Across the store, Nicole is very nervous. It’s five weeks before her wedding, and she doesn’t have a gown. The bridal store where she originally purchased her dress is going out of business, and Nicole opted to get a full refund and look for a gown elsewhere. She is having a 300-guest formal wedding, and her gown price point is $10,000. Nicole asks consultant Debbie, who is helping her, if they sell the same dress she had previously purchased. Once Debbie finds the dress and Nicole tries it on, everyone can see she’s not passionate about it.
The second dress Hillary tries on is everything she wanted in her wedding gown. It’s elegant, simple, looks great on her and fits her personality. Her mom doesn’t like it because it doesn’t pop, and her fiancé isn’t crazy about it either. However, her dad, Mike, thinks it’s beautiful.
Poor Nicole doesn’t like any of the dresses she tries on and is resigning herself to buying her original gown again. However, Debbie wants her to be ecstatic about her dress, so she enlists Joan, the director of sales, to help. Nicole loves the dress Joan finds because she “finally feels like a bride.”
Meanwhile, Hillary is having a meltdown because she doesn’t like any of the other dresses she’s trying on. She really liked the second gown, but her family isn’t being supportive. Her mom and fiancé go to the dressing room to find out why she hasn’t come back out and find her in tears. Hillary explains once again that she really loved the second dress, but Pam insists on looking for other dresses. “I want it to be the happiest day of her life, whether she likes it or not.” Alrighty then. Her dad is very wisely keeping his mouth shut.
In the fitting rooms downstairs, Lindsey is in for her first fitting. This will actually be the first time she is trying on the gown, since Kleinfeld didn’t have the gown available in her size when she bought it. I’m holding my breath, because this fitting could go very well or horribly wrong. Her family loves the dress and she looks amazing, but Lindsey seems unsure. Fashion director Randy’s reassurances of how beautiful Lindsey looks allow her to relax and realize the dress is perfect.
Pam is so determined to find the “right” gown for Hillary that she goes into the backroom and starts pulling dresses for her. She finds a dress SHE loves. Her daughter? Not so much. Audrey is way more tactful than I would’ve been when she finds Pam has brought gowns into the dressing room.
To try and make everyone happy, Audrey adds a glittery belt to the second gown, which gives it some pizzazz. When Hillary comes out, everyone FINALLY gives it a thumb-up and starts crying. I’m as relieved as if it were my wedding dress.
Fast-forward to Lindsey’s wedding. As the bride is set to walk down the aisle, her sister Rochelle accidentally steps on the train and rips the dress. Fortunately, it is a small rip and it is repaired in about five minutes, although not without the sisters sniping at each other. I think it makes for a great story, but maybe you only think that when it’s not your wedding. The wedding proceeds without any further problems.
New consultant Jessica joins the team in tonight's second episode. Although she was a bridal consultant in Chicago, the adjustment to working in the faster New York City environment and keeping track of more than 1,700 dresses in Kleinfeld’s stockroom is going to be a challenge.
Mirjana is getting married in three weeks, so Jessica’s challenge is to find her a sample gown that fits and doesn’t need alterations. I’m wondering why she waited until now to look for her dress if she got engaged a year ago?
Mirjana wants a sleek wedding gown that shows off her figure and costs less than $2,500. She’s having a traditional Serbian wedding in Serbia. The first dress she tries on is a hit. Fashion director Randy, who’s checking in to see how Jessica is doing with her first client, is impressed.
Akilah has come to New York from Maryland in search of the dress that consultant Sarah wore for her wedding. She fell in love with the gown while watching a past episode of Say Yes to the Dress that featured Sarah.
I can tell even before Sarah says anything that she’s not happy at the thought of someone else wearing “her” gown. Sarah finds it weird, but flattering. She gets the gown and several others that look similar but are cheaper, since Akilah doesn’t want to spend more than $5,000.
Meanwhile, new consultant Jessica is struggling to fit a gown on Mirjana, since it is supposed to drape around the shoulders with long ties. This is NOT inspiring confidence in Mirjana. Jessica wisely decides to get help from Dorothy, the director of merchandising. After Dorothy drapes it correctly, no one really likes it. To top it off, Jessica gets reprimanded for trying to sell the dress, as it is brand-new and can’t be sold as a sample.
Akilah loves the “Sarah dress,” but at $11,8000 the price is well over what she wanted to spend. Although her family loves it on her, no one is digging out the checkbooks, so she goes back to try on more dresses.
Jessica is starting to feel the pressure. Her next appointment is waiting for her, and Mirjana has just informed her that she only has one more hour to shop. On top of that, Mirjana is now stuck in the fourth dress she’s tried on and may have to be cut out of it. Dorothy, the “zipper queen,” steps in once again and Mirjana is freed from the dress.
Bethany and her family are wedding consultants, so I’m thinking they will either make finding a dress VERY easy or VERY hard for consultant Keasha. When Keasha asks Bethany how she envisions her wedding day, Katie, who is Bethany’s sister-in-law and wedding consultant, jumps in to answer the question.
Keasha brings Bethany several dresses in her $2,000 price range. The first dress Bethany tries on is a hit, but she wants to try on a few more to make sure.
Although the second gown Akilah tries on is similar to the “Sarah dress,” she is not satisfied. She asks for private time with her family to discuss the cost. Meanwhile, Sarah speaks to Nicole, the director of sales, to see if the price can be lowered in any way. Nicole gives Akilah a trunk show promotion, which drops the price of the dress to $9,900. Her family agrees to help with the cost of the gown so that she can get her dream dress. Aww. I also think it was very sweet of Sarah to make sure that on Akilah’s day she feels special and beautiful.
Unfortunately, it is not a Cinderella-ending for Mirjana. She is unable to find her dream dress and leaves empty-handed.
Bethany thinks the second gown she tries on is the one, although her family likes the first gown more. Keasha asks Nicole’s opinion of the two dresses. Although Nicole likes the first gown, the second one has the “wow” factor. Although sister-in-law Katie doesn’t look too pleased at being overruled, she does ultimately seem happy for Bethany.
Bethany’s lakeside wedding is beautiful as are the bride and the gown.
Mirjana is getting married in three weeks, so Jessica’s challenge is to find her a sample gown that fits and doesn’t need alterations. I’m wondering why she waited until now to look for her dress if she got engaged a year ago?
Mirjana wants a sleek wedding gown that shows off her figure and costs less than $2,500. She’s having a traditional Serbian wedding in Serbia. The first dress she tries on is a hit. Fashion director Randy, who’s checking in to see how Jessica is doing with her first client, is impressed.
Akilah has come to New York from Maryland in search of the dress that consultant Sarah wore for her wedding. She fell in love with the gown while watching a past episode of Say Yes to the Dress that featured Sarah.
I can tell even before Sarah says anything that she’s not happy at the thought of someone else wearing “her” gown. Sarah finds it weird, but flattering. She gets the gown and several others that look similar but are cheaper, since Akilah doesn’t want to spend more than $5,000.
Meanwhile, new consultant Jessica is struggling to fit a gown on Mirjana, since it is supposed to drape around the shoulders with long ties. This is NOT inspiring confidence in Mirjana. Jessica wisely decides to get help from Dorothy, the director of merchandising. After Dorothy drapes it correctly, no one really likes it. To top it off, Jessica gets reprimanded for trying to sell the dress, as it is brand-new and can’t be sold as a sample.
Akilah loves the “Sarah dress,” but at $11,8000 the price is well over what she wanted to spend. Although her family loves it on her, no one is digging out the checkbooks, so she goes back to try on more dresses.
Jessica is starting to feel the pressure. Her next appointment is waiting for her, and Mirjana has just informed her that she only has one more hour to shop. On top of that, Mirjana is now stuck in the fourth dress she’s tried on and may have to be cut out of it. Dorothy, the “zipper queen,” steps in once again and Mirjana is freed from the dress.
Bethany and her family are wedding consultants, so I’m thinking they will either make finding a dress VERY easy or VERY hard for consultant Keasha. When Keasha asks Bethany how she envisions her wedding day, Katie, who is Bethany’s sister-in-law and wedding consultant, jumps in to answer the question.
Keasha brings Bethany several dresses in her $2,000 price range. The first dress Bethany tries on is a hit, but she wants to try on a few more to make sure.
Although the second gown Akilah tries on is similar to the “Sarah dress,” she is not satisfied. She asks for private time with her family to discuss the cost. Meanwhile, Sarah speaks to Nicole, the director of sales, to see if the price can be lowered in any way. Nicole gives Akilah a trunk show promotion, which drops the price of the dress to $9,900. Her family agrees to help with the cost of the gown so that she can get her dream dress. Aww. I also think it was very sweet of Sarah to make sure that on Akilah’s day she feels special and beautiful.
Unfortunately, it is not a Cinderella-ending for Mirjana. She is unable to find her dream dress and leaves empty-handed.
Bethany thinks the second gown she tries on is the one, although her family likes the first gown more. Keasha asks Nicole’s opinion of the two dresses. Although Nicole likes the first gown, the second one has the “wow” factor. Although sister-in-law Katie doesn’t look too pleased at being overruled, she does ultimately seem happy for Bethany.
Bethany’s lakeside wedding is beautiful as are the bride and the gown.
Can anyone tell me what designer made the fluffy floral dress that Nicole tried on that everyone thought was over-the-top?
Posted by: Emma | 09/19/2009 at 10:37 PM
Does anyone know the designer for the two dresses that Bethany tried on?? Especially the first one??
Posted by: Brynn | 09/20/2009 at 10:54 PM
Does anyone know who designed the second dress that Hillary tried on (before she put the embellishment on it)?
Posted by: sarah | 09/21/2009 at 08:04 PM
Does anyone know the designer and/or name of the dress that Nicole tried on and ended up buying? I just love it!
Posted by: Amber | 09/21/2009 at 11:06 PM
Does anyone know where Bethany's wedding was. I think this was her families venue, but what is the name of it?
Posted by: smw0107 | 09/25/2009 at 10:40 AM
Akilah should not have been having a big wedding. She's already got kids and is living as a married woman! What a waste of money. She should have gotten married at city hall and put the money into a college savings account for her kids. The dress did not look good on her anyway.
Posted by: Beth | 09/25/2009 at 05:04 PM
Does anyone know the designer of Sarah's ( the girl that works at Klinefeld) dress? Or where I can find a similar one?
Thanks
Posted by: Jessica | 09/25/2009 at 07:16 PM
Does any one know what dress Lindsey Curren buys?
Posted by: Melayna | 09/25/2009 at 09:19 PM
Can anyone tell me where I can find a picture of Sarah's (the consultant) dress? Im looking for something similar to that dress and need the picture of it to help me.
Posted by: Tiffany | 09/25/2009 at 11:45 PM
Any info on Lindsey Curren's dress??
Posted by: Cris | 09/26/2009 at 02:14 PM