Etsy love
Monday, May 09, 2011
I had big plans for this weekend. It was going to be a weekend of writing, crafting, contemplation. I was going to emerge from my creative cocoon armed with an endless supply of witty, beautifully-written blog posts that would be the Best Thing I Had Ever Written and I would be inundated with book offers, sponsorship requests, maybe a few marriage proposals...
Funnily enough, it didn't quite work out that way. Instead, it was a weekend filled with friends, family, eating, drinking, more eating, a half-arsed attempt at running, a Brothers and Sisters marathon and oh my goodness would you look at that, it's 10.30 on Sunday night and I have accomplished precisely nothing. (I did get a late-night guided tour of Cumbernauld town centre, though, so it's not like the weekend was completely wasted.)
One thing I did manage to squeeze in was a bit of etsy browsing, after I developed a sudden and inexplicable urge to buy a frothy tulle vintage party dress. I don't need one for a specific event (I'm not even sure what kind of event would require such a dress?) but damnit, I need some tulle in my life and I need it now.
Unfortunately, it seems that women in the 50s all had 24" waists and my obsession with tiger bread is not compatible with wispy-waistedness, so my prowl around etsy didn't bring home any spoils. I did, however, come across this listing which has stayed with me ever since, so I wanted to share it. Who knows, maybe somehow this post will find its way to the person who is waiting to buy it, but just doesn't know it yet.
It's not often that an etsy listing makes me well up. In fact, I'm pretty sure that's never happened. I have occasionally felt traumatised and perhaps a little sullied after spending too long on regretsy (if you're not familiar with regretsy, you really should check it out. It's utterly bizarre. There are some seriously weird people in the world America), but the only time I've wanted to cry when shopping on etsy is when checking the waist measurements on some piece of retro fabulousness and comparing them with my own. Weep.
However, in my futile search for the perfect party dress, I came across this stunning vintage William Cahill lace wedding dress. The dress itself is absolutely beautiful. Corded lace, flowing chiffon, empire line, sheer lace sleeves (take that, Kate Middleton) - it's gorgeous. But the story that accompanies it is truly special. From the listing itself:
"This is a very special wedding dress that I am hoping will find its way to a very special bride. I'm going to tell you a short story before I give you the sales pitch, so please keep reading...
Not too long ago, I was contacted by the bride, Pat Logan, who originally wore this dress in 1969. She really wanted her dress to go to another bride who would treasure the dress as she had. She informed me that 40 years later, she and her husband, Steve, were still happily married. (The way I see it, this dress is loaded with good marriage karma!)I agreed to sell the dress on consignment, so Pat shipped me the dress and sent me a photo of her wearing it on her wedding day. (Check out the last photo...how sweet is she?)Sadly, Steve sent me an e-mail a few weeks ago to let me know that Pat had passed away just before Christmas after a brave battle with breast cancer...just one week shy of their 41st anniversary.
After talking to Steve via e-mail, it felt right that we donate all of the proceeds from the sale of this dress to the Susan B. Komen Foundation in memory of Pat Logan.
It is my sincere hope that there is a bride out there who will see this dress and fall in love with it...knowing that not only does this dress have a rich and loving history, but also the potential to give another woman a rich and loving future through the donation it will generate."
Isn't that just the saddest, sweetest story? You can see why it's lingered in my mind.
The dress is very unique and certainly not to everyone's taste, but if you know any brides who might be looking for something a bit vintage, a bit different (and a bit of a bargain at $675), please do pass it on. Forty years of marriage is an amazing achievement (especially in light of the divorce statistics for marriages from that time, which I now know all about thanks to my current APW book club read).
I'm not a big believer in karma, but I can't help feeling any bride would be lucky and blessed to walk down the aisle in Pat Logan's dress.
All images via the etsy seller, BrassPaperclip.
5 boats moored
What a lovely listing and a lovely dress. I'm sure that gown is going to find the perfect bride for it very soon, as it deserves to be worn again and give another woman 40 years of happiness!
ReplyDeleteMan! What is UP with the universe? I blogged about my dress on Friday, Lauren blogged about hers today, YOU're blogging about someone else's ...
ReplyDeleteThe dress really is beautiful, and it has sleeves! Sleeves are so hard to find these days. I am terrified to buy a dress I have not tried on and, uhm, have you read my blog? I have enough issues without buying another one.
This one really is lovely though. Did you contact the seller and tell her you blogged about it? Also there's a charity out there called Brides Against Breast Cancer -- I think it involves dresses too, perhaps you can connect the two?
oh it is a very nice dress (it is oh so royal wedding too!), and the story totally made me well up. I just found out two days ago that someone rather important in my life has stage 3 ovarian cancer... and suddenly it's like everything cancer related has popped into sharper focus. Really what is up with the universe?
ReplyDeleteA beautiful dress with a sweet story! Melts my heart. I hope this dress finds a happy Bride & grants her the same marriage karma.
ReplyDeleteOoooh. So lovely.
ReplyDelete