Running of the Brides

Now that I've partially recovered from the craziness that is "Running of the Brides," I think I can write about my experience. This was the first time that the semi-annual Filene's Basement sale was held somewhere other than the Downtown Crossing store. Hynes Convention Center proved to be a good replacement, though.

Preparations started on Thursday, when my mother flew in from NC to be a part of "Team L-Boogie." After picking her up from the airport, we made a Target run to get all the necessary supplies -- hats, shirts, blankets, and posterboard. Although I had initially anticipated getting everyone pink shirts, I couldn't resist the green "Everyone loves an Irish girl" shirts. So, green became our official color.

We were a small team -- just me, my mom, and bridesmaid Erica -- but it's all about quality, not quantity. We arrived bright and early at 6:15, and yet there were still about 50 people in front of us. As my mom held our place in line, I went in search of coffee and doughnuts. Thankfully, there was a Dunkin Donuts nearby. At 7:00, they allowed everyone inside, but not to the actual room of dresses. Although I think we lost a few spots in line due to the "dual" escalators up and a few weaseling cutters-in-line, we still managed to be in the first third of the line.

At 8:00, the doors open and we made a run for it. Erica and I managed to secure about 15 dresses between us (they're heavy!) and a space in front of a mirror. Unfortunately, in the process, we lost my mom. After trying on a few possibilities, I set out in my undies to trade the "no's" and find my mom. After about 10 mins of hunting, I located her by her tall green hat in the middle of the store. She had a few dresses and had been waiting on us to find her.

Reunited, we spent the next 2.5 hours trading dresses and holding onto our "maybes." Erica almost got into a fight after some "poachers" tried to take some of my dresses. She may be small, but she's fierce! Overall, though, it was just way too overwhelming to find anything. Since both Erica and I had class at 11:50, we decided to leave empty-handed, but with a great story!

As it turns out, my mom and I decided to go back in the afternoon. It was MUCH calmer, with all the dresses back on the rack and very few people milling about. And, I actually found a dress! Granted it's only a "maybe" dress, but a $4000 Henry Roth gown for $500 is hard to pass up. Even if I decide to go with another dress, I'm sure that I can sell it for at least that much.

In the end, I'm glad that I went to the actual "Running of the Brides" for the experience, but if you're actually looking to find a dress (a "the ONE" kind of dress, that is), then you should definitely wait and go after the crazy mad dash is over.