Ok, to warn you: this entry is all about me obsessing about a gown. So, if that bores the hell out of you, feel free to skip this entry. I'll still like you, and that way you'll still like me, too!

Hi.

Faithful readers may remember back in January when I was obsessing over wedding stuff, especially the one gown I'd found and fell in love with that was WAY out of my price range (the Maggie Sottero Savannah in ivory/ blue). It retails for over $1000, but even the discount internet price of $700-something is way more than I can afford.

So, today I was googling and I found this on ebay: Copy of Maggie Sottero "Savannah" designer gown!. In Ivory/ Blue. For only $199 + shipping.

In a size I am not yet.

There are no bids on this yet, but it just went up. I have 9 days to decide whether I can drop 3-4 sizes in a year (well, a little over a year, as the wedding date is tenatively 10/1/2005). The price is half what I have budgeted for my gown. It's nearly perfect - - I hate the way their blue roses look, but the shipping boy Richard has promised to either make me or find me appropriate fabric-sculpture accents to replace them with. The bodice is perfect. The corset back is perfect. The skirt is nearly perfect. I will probably lose that much weight by this time next year -- I've been good for more than three months and in that time have lost 1/4 of what I want to lose. And Maggie dresses are notoriously forgiving because of their corset backs -- the size of my hips doesn't matter (it's a ball gown) and the waist/ bust size is adjustable up or down a size.

I can always re-ebay it if it doesn't work out, but then I'm stuck without a dress. I suppose I can set a deadline, and if I'm not X size by X date, I give up and order a different dress....

Sigh. So, any opinions on this? Am I mad? Is loving this dress for 7 months already no indication of whether I'll love it for another 15 months? Should I try to try a version of it on in a bridal store before I buy? And where am I going to find $220 in the next 9 days before we leave for vacation in North Carolina?

Gah! Help?