I have very little evidence to support this claim, but I’ve decided that Carmel and Randy are feuding. Unfortunately for Carmel, every hand raised against the power of Randy Fenoli will fall. There can only be one Supreme.
Caitlin is 24 years old and having a military wedding in Fort Monroe, Virginia. The time to give this girl literally any advice has come and gone; she and her fiancé already eloped in Vegas before he was deployed to Iraq, and they’re only now planning a real wedding.
Caitlin is paired with Carmel, and she’s looking for a dress with a deep v-neck and a lace overlay. Carmel, who famously doesn’t work with budget brides, immediately goes to Dorothy for help. You have to pay to get lace.
These are the first two dresses Caitlin tries on. Despite the fact that this is exactly what she asked for, Caitlin and her family all think that she looks frumpy and old-fashioned. Dorothy correctly senses that Carmel is frustrated and goes to find Randy to try and bail her out.
Carmel is super annoyed about this, because Randy immediately takes over the appointment – there’s a specific Romona Keveza dress that is in Caitlin’s budget and that he thinks will be perfect. In a very funny moment, he tells Caitlin that she will look like Audrey Hepburn and she has zero idea who that is.
Randy picks up on Carmel’s frustration with him, but absolutely doesn’t understand where it’s coming from. In a confessional, he says, “I feel like I have a great advantage over just about anyone in bridal. A consultant may work with 5 brides a day, but I can work with 50-100 brides a day.”
Randy is not wrong. But I would be annoyed if I was his coworker.
Anyways, the bigger problem here is that no one knows where the “perfect dress” is.
While Randy and his small army of unnamed consultants go searching for the dress – and eventually steal it from another bride’s dressing room – Carmel puts Caitlin in a couple more dresses. She does not come out in any of them.
Carmel is also very upset that Randy is the one who finds the dress. Unfortunately for Carmel, Caitlin really likes the dress.
If Caitlin doesn’t seem enthusiastic, that’s because she isn’t. I honestly cannot tell if she actually likes this dress, but she does say yes. So I guess that’s a win?
Meanwhile, we’ve got recently-engaged consultant Sarah dealing with another second-time bride.
Lee and her husband Stuart got married three years ago due to visa complications (Stuart is Welsh.) They’re throwing a big reception now, and Lee is looking forward to having a real wedding dress. Stuart, who is also at this appointment, is looking forward to having a bachelor party.
Lee wants “pizzazz, tulle, and glitter – but nothing too cake topper.” She is describing a cake topper, but I digress.
Dress 1 is rejected for being too over the top. No one likes Dress 2, and everyone but Lee herself like Dress 3. I personally find all of these dresses ugly, but I agree with Lee’s family that the third dress is the best one.
Finally, Lee comes out in this dress. She loves it, and she thinks her body looks amazing in it. I think it’s fine, and so does her family. Lee surprises her whole family by saying that she is buying the dress. Okay! This is a weird episode!
Let’s go down to alterations.
I only included this photo because I love it. Also, I used to use this kind of sewing machine when I worked at an industrial shop and it rules.
We’ve got two alterations brides today, and two opportunities for my queen Vera to work her magic.
Stefany’s whole thing is that she lost weight and wants her dress to be as tight as physically possible. Vera is concerned that Stefany cannot physically move, so she makes her sit in a chair before signing off on the alterations.
I don’t understand wanting to look like a swaddled mummy on your wedding day! First of all, you actually do have to walk down the entire aisle. What is your plan, Stefany?? To take the tiniest steps in the world?
Our other alterations bride is Jennifer.
She isn’t wearing a bra on her wedding day, and her dress is having some bust-related fit issues that Vera fixes with a hidden wire.
I agree with Randy that Vera is a wizard who can do no wrong.
Final Score:
- Entourage of 5+ people: +3 points
- Bride has a “bridal moment”: +5 for Caitlin, +5 for Lee
- Bride starts with a very specific vision and picks something entirely different: +8 points
- Manager Intervention: +5 points
Total: 26/100
Bye beautiful!
