The Dress Part Deux

Even when the carpet's bad and the sales team is hardly inspiring, you still have to remove your shoes.  Even if you think they might not be there when you're done, you have to leave your footwear by the door.

So Mom and I started the hunt for the $350 dress on Hastings Street in Vancouver.

I've already warned you, this was not the Kleinfeld's experience, although the girl at the first boutique could have been from New York, just maybe the Bronx.

I tell her, "no more than $350". She pulls what she has, and disappears.  I can't do it up.  I call for help. When she returns, she snaps her gum, straps me in and rolls her eyes.

Ma and I settle on a dress...one that 'will do'.  I want the night to think about it.  I return the next day with my Best Woman C.

I try it on and C isn't sold.  A gown catches my eye, and yesterday's sales girl challenges me with this: 'it's out of your price range, are you gonna buy it?' 

C had me out of there so fast, I almost forgot my shoes.

Here's the thing.  If I had tried it, if I had loved it, I would have taken it.  As much as we're determined to stay on budget, sometimes, every once in a while, we stray.  This time, thanks to the manners of a little urchin, I would more or less stay on budget, just in another store.

Thank heavens for The Koreans up the street.

Actually we almost turned around and walked out before the door even had a chance to close us in.  Dinner was on the stove in the back room. While I love ethnic food, the scent of dried fish stewing, overwhelmed us. 

But we persevered, drawn in by the big pink sales tags on every dress, advertising slashed prices and huge savings.  Three Korean women (family as far as I could tell), ran the show.  One built like the Buddha, with the same sweet smile, would make me feel better than a princess.  She made me feel like Barbie.  

There were two other brides in the fitting room with me.  One must have been in her 50's - dead shy, a little low on self esteem, but with this killer body.  Bride #2 was a tougher cookie. We figured she and her fiance had their matching Harleys out back.  Three women, three totally different experiences,  at the same crossroads in life, all in the hands of Mama Korea.

We had the winner at dress number three. 

Now we had to tackle that $550 price tag! There are some things that get harder to communicate when you don't speak the same language - bargaining is right up there.

Mama Korea called in hubby for negotiations.  Just as much of a ham as his wife, we whittled our way down to $400...plus tax.