I Tried on Every Price Range & This Is the Dress I Chose for Our Beach Wedding

Okay so let me just start by saying I tried on SO many dresses. Like, an embarrassing amount. I ordered probably 6 or 7 from different places, cheap ones and expensive ones, and nothing felt right. Either the lace felt cheap or the fit was weird or I put it on and just thought… nah. Then this one showed up and I put it on and I was like oh. Okay. This is it. I didn't cry or anything dramatic, I just knew. No regrets at all.

The Dress That Finally Felt Like Me

The only thing I changed was the cups. The ones that came with it were like a nude color and they showed through the lace a little, so I had my seamstress swap them out for white ones. Total game changer. Made the whole top look so much cleaner. If you get this dress and you're fair-skinned, do that. Trust me.

I keep going back to the dress though. I really did look at everything. I went to a bridal boutique and tried on dresses that were $2000+ and they were beautiful but I didn't feel like me in them. I felt like I was playing dress-up. This one? I felt like myself, just… better. The lace is gorgeous in person, the long sleeves are so elegant, and the fit hugs in all the right places without being tight. If you're shopping for stunning lace wedding dresses that don't cost a fortune, this is the one. And for the price? It's insane. I keep telling every engaged person I know to at least try it.

That's another thing about this dress — it has stretch. Like, real stretch. I could walk, sit, dance, get dipped, whatever. A lot of wedding dresses feel like a corset that you can't breathe in, but this one was comfortable the whole day. I wore it for like 6 hours straight and never once thought “I need to get this off.” The fit-and-flare silhouette is honestly one of the most sexy fit and flare wedding dresses I've tried on, and it comes in a range of sizes too. I was worried about ordering online without trying it first, but the sizing chart was spot on.

Yes, I Put My Wedding Dress in the Washing Machine

And here's the thing nobody tells you about wedding dresses — you're supposed to treat them like they're made of glass. I get it, it's your wedding dress. But we got married on a beach. There was sand. Everywhere. In my shoes, in my hair, definitely in the hem of this dress. So after the wedding I just… threw it in the washing machine. On gentle, cold water, nothing crazy. Hung it up to dry. And it looks exactly the same as the day I got it. I was fully expecting the lace to be ruined or the shape to be gone but nope. Brand new.

The washing machine thing still blows my mind though. I told my mom and she gasped. “You put your WEDDING DRESS in the WASHER?” Yes, mom, I did, and it's fine. I think the key was cold water, gentle cycle, no dryer. Just hung it up on a hanger and let it air dry. The lace didn't snag, the shape held, nothing shrank. I'm not saying go do this with every wedding dress, but this one handled it like a champ. So if you're worried about buying a dress you can only wear once because it'll get destroyed? This one survived a beach wedding and a washing machine. Don't hesitate to buy it. I mean it.

Our Ocean City Beach Wedding

We got married in Ocean City, NJ. I grew up going down the shore every summer so it just made sense. We didn't do a big venue or anything. Just us, the kids, my best friend, and an officiant who was actually so nice. The weather was perfect — not too hot, there was a breeze coming off the ocean. I was worried about my hair all week because if it's humid my curls just… die. But it held up somehow.

I did half up half down with this little floral clip thing, and the rest just fell in loose waves. My makeup artist did a really natural look — dewy skin, neutral eyes, just a little liner, and a peachy lip. I almost went with a bold red lip and I'm so glad I didn't. Wind + lipstick = disaster. I wore these long drop earrings and that was it for jewelry. No necklace because the neckline on this dress is so pretty, I didn't want to cover it. And obviously no shoes. Sand and heels don't mix. If you're planning a shore wedding and browsing casual beach wedding dresses, just go barefoot. Trust me on this one.

The Kids & Our Little Ceremony

My husband — still feels weird saying that — wore a white button down with a dark grey vest and black pants. And white sneakers. I know some people would be horrified by sneakers at a wedding but we were on a beach. He would've been sinking in dress shoes. It looked good, honestly. Casual but still put together.

Our son was so handsome in his little navy vest and bow tie. He had on white sneakers too and he thought he was the coolest kid on the beach. He kept running ahead of us and then turning around like “hurry up!” during our photos. Our daughter wore this cream-colored floral dress with spaghetti straps, barefoot of course, with a little headband. At one point during the ceremony she just walked up and grabbed my dress and wouldn't let go. The officiant just laughed and kept going. It was perfect.

The ceremony itself was maybe 10 minutes long. We wrote our own vows and mine were way longer than his, of course. He got through his and I was already crying by the second sentence. The wind kept blowing my veil — oh yeah I wore a simple fingertip veil, nothing fancy — and it kept hitting him in the face. He kept trying to subtly move it away and I could tell he was trying not to laugh. After we kissed, the kids ran over and we all just stood there for a second, the four of us, and that's when it really hit me. Like, we're a family. This is real.

My Best Friend Was There Through It All

After the ceremony we took photos for a while. There's this pavilion on the beach with a metal roof and wooden posts and string lights, and we did a bunch of shots there. My best friend was there — she wore this long floral maxi dress, like tropical print with pink flowers and green leaves, and it had a slit up the side. She has these tattoos on her ankle and they were showing and she was like “is this okay?” and I was like girl you look amazing.

We got a photo together standing by the dunes and it's one of my favorites from the whole day. She's been there through everything — bad boyfriends, bad jobs, me panicking about wedding planning at 2am — so having her there meant everything.

The Moments I'll Never Forget

We did this thing where my husband dipped me back like we were dancing, and my dress just flowed in the wind. I was so worried I was going to fall or the dress was going to rip but it was totally fine. The skirt moved so beautifully — I've seen so many elegant long sleeve wedding dresses that look stiff, but this one has movement. Real movement.

Oh and the photos of us walking on the beach with the kids — those are the ones I'm framing. We're all holding hands, walking toward the water, and the sun was starting to go down so the light was golden. Our son is looking back at the camera, our daughter is between us, and you can see the ocean behind us. I didn't even know the photographer was taking those. Those candid ones are always the best.

I will say, if you're planning a beach wedding, just embrace the sand. It's going to get everywhere. In your dress, in your hair, in your snacks. You can't fight it. And the wind — I had bobby pins in my hair that I'm pretty sure are still somewhere on that beach. But that's the stuff that makes it real, right? If everything is too perfect it feels like a photoshoot, not a wedding.

Final Thoughts

Anyway, if you're reading this because you're trying to decide whether to buy this dress — just do it. I was the most indecisive bride on the planet and this was the easiest decision I made during the whole wedding planning process. It's beautiful, it's comfortable, it survived sand and saltwater and a washing machine. What more do you need?

Our wedding wasn't fancy. We didn't have a big reception or a DJ or a five-course meal. We had the beach, our kids, my best friend, and a really good dress. And it was exactly what I wanted. Sometimes the small ones are the best ones.