Halloween 2006 - part three

The morning of the party I was quite nervous, soon enough I would be crossdressing as a bride in front of all my friends. I had planned pretty well what I would need to do and when that whole day. I spent the morning shaving my arms, underarms, chest, legs, and trimming up my bikini area. I knew no one would see anything to revealing but I wanted to play the part well. After a light lunch I was off to the nail salon. I didn't go overboard and get a full set but I had been growing my nails out a little and asked for a french tip look. I did get a couple of weird looks from other nail salon patrons, but it was Halloween. It took longer than I had expected and only had 45 minutes before Angela would be there to do my makeup. I did get a little overzealous with my razor and nicked up my face a little just as Angela arrived. That wasn't too big of a deal though as there was plenty to do. About fifteen minutes after Angela showed up Zoey stopped by with a camera. Zoey was one of my bridesmaids wives that I had e-mailed on Friday. I didn't know she would even be there but was glad she did stop by to take pics for me.

For the next ninety minutes Angela worked her magic. Concealer, makeup, eye shadow, eye liner, mascara, blush, lip liner, lipstick everything in her arsenal. I will admit that the makeup I had done on my London trip was better but they had experience with crossdressers. Nevertheless, Angela did a very nice job. Zoey kept taking pictures when I reminded her, she was actually pretty enthralled with the whole process. She kept saying thing like wow, you have really great cheekbones or your lashes are so long. I'm sure the makeup is what brought those features out but it was fun to hear those things. Angela spent quite a bit of time on my hair getting the clips in to blend well and creating a fun updo. Eventually Zoey had to go collect her kids from daycare and Angela had done all she could. I did get a couple of pics with Angela and quick put on the dress so she could see the final product.

I had to wait about forty minutes for my bridemaids to arrive and they thought the makeup was very funny with me in boy clothes but well done. They didn't do any makeup at all, had pretty cheesy wigs and Mark didn't even shave his goatee but I was grateful I had a little support via a group costume. They spent a little time getting thier dresses to hang right and then it was time for me to get dressed.

I walked back to my bedroon where everything had been all laid out. I took off all my boy clothes and proceeded to dress in my lingerie with my two friends just down the hall. First I stepped into the panties and drew them up my legs. I hooked the bustier around my front and shifted it around my torso until the cups were properly positioned and slipped in a couple of fillers for the cups. I sat on the edge of my bed and took out the brand new pair of stockings and slid them up my freshly shaved legs, the elastic holding firm against my thighs as a slipped a garter with a blue bow up my right leg. I slid my foot into the white satin bridal shoes and took a quick glance in the mirror. So far, so good. As I stepped into the dress I enjoyed the sound of silk on nylon swishing over my legs and torso before zipping the gown into place. It fit perfectly. The straight bustline filled out well but didn't gap, the waist was tight, the dress allowed for me to sit and walk but showed off my hips and legs well like the mermaid design was supposed too. I added a few final touches, like pearls on my neck, wrist and earlobes all of which had been my moms which I kept after she passed away.

I opened the door to my bedroom and walked out to meet my friends, the swish, swish of each footstep was very loud announcing my feminine garb. Art and Mark both greeted me without laughter but with wow's and a very nice. I love Halloween!

Just as we were getting ready to leave Zoey called and asked if I had a veil. I said I didn't and I was afraid of covering up Angela's work. Zoey said she would lend me her veil which clipped on the back of your head. It was official, that made for old, new, borrowed and blue. We all drove over to Mark and Zoey's where their three kids saw me and their father wearing dresses. The babysitter was also impressed with the lengths at which I was willing to go for Halloween. Zoey clipped the veil in place and I was off to the party.

The party was a fun as always. I got some wierd looks and some praise. I was surprised that I received more weird looks from girls than from the guys. My favorite part was when Kayla saw me passing by her and caught my profile. She said, "Wow, who knew you were so slim." What a lovely thing to say to a bride. After midnight most of the partygoers had left and only the hardcores stayed on for a little game we play involving passing a bottle of vodka around. By the end of the bottle I was in no shape to drive so I stayed the night at the hosts along with a few others. After taking off my makeup, so as not to leave an imprint of my face thier pillows I slipped out of my dress and climbed into the spare bed.

The next morning I must have looked like a wreck with no makeup, tons of hair spray holding some curls in place but the rest of my hairdo unclipped from my head. I didn't bring a change of clothes so it was back on with the dress and upstairs. Kayla and Ted's house was very old and each step squeeked as I walk up the steps, the dress swishing louder than ever in my lightly hungover state. I had planned on sneaking out but Kayla heard me, which isn't too hard to believe if you had heard the dress, and let me out. That night had brough a frost and the morning was bright with frost reflecting off of every tree and blade of grass. I had to walk in just the dress about three houses down and scrape the frost off my windshield before I could be on my way. At the time it was cold and I felt very conspicuous but it does mae for a great story whenever I get to tell it. The girls just love the morning after story.

So that is my great Halloween adventure for 2006. As I write this I am already planning something big for February of 2007 but that is for another time.

The Wedding Dress

It didn't take too long before I hit a lull and didn't write something in a while so here is another episode of Real Adventures in Crossdressing. I enjoyed writing about my hair coloring adventure and I thought I might enjoy writing about another adventure of mine. Writing helps me remember the event in more detail than just looking at the pictures. The adventure is the fun part.

I had just ordered my first wedding gown off of E-Bay. Yes I said my first. There's a little foreshadowing for another Real Adventure. When it finally arrived, I immediately had to try it on and was a little disappointed when I couldn't get the zipper to stay up. I eventually found the back hook closure at the top of the zipper and just like that, the zipper stayed in place and it fit like a dream. The bodice was off the shoulder with long sleeves, there was a full skirt with layers of soft tulle that puffed out nicely with the hoop skirt I had ordered with it.

At the time, I had been attending night classes at the local community college and had become familiar with the Japanese Gardens on campus. Since it was around Halloween when my gown arrived I naturally put two and two together and thought, "Wouldn't it be cool to have a bridal shot with such a lovely background." and I could always blame getting caught on Halloween. I decided to scout it out one Saturday evening and as I pulled into the parking lot I discovered I was not the only person with this idea. There was an actual wedding happening as I drove up. I made a mental note that Saturday afternoon/evening was not a good idea and decided I would try Sunday morning.

That Sunday I woke up at 6:00am and started to prepare for my wedding shot. After makeup and getting dressed, I loaded my car with my camera, a set of emergency male clothes, I even had a tupperware bowl with water and a washcloth if I needed a quick clean up. I put the hoop skirt in the back of my pickup and climbed into my truck. If your looking for a challenge, try to get a full length gown situated behind the wheel of your car. It's not as simple as it might sound. Every now and again I get a glimpse of what a real girls world is like. Now I know why brides rent limosines.

When I finally pulled in at 8:30 there was a single car in the parking lot but it was parked right at the Gardens. I decided I might take a few shots on the walking path from the back parking lot to the school proper. It was a nicely wooded path where I could have some privacy. Much to my disgust I found an early morning tennis match taking place and had no way of discretely donning my hoop skirt and taking my camera off to the woods without the people playing tennis seeing me.

I looped back to the Gardens and found the lone car was pulling out of the spot leaving me all alone in the lot. I pulled my vehicle into the closest spot, quickly scanned the area and hopped out. After grabbing my camera, tripod and veil, I went to the bed of my truck to get my hoop skirt from the back and slip it on. Just as I stepped into it, I saw a big pickup pull into the lot. I quickly jammed everything back in the cab, including myself in my full gown and now hoop skirt, backed up and pulled away. Remember how hard it was to fit in the cab with just the dress, now I had on a hoop skirt. Anyways, I made another loop through the back lot and back to see a construction worker setting up to do some work on the sidewalk right by the Gardens. Come On!!! Construction! On a Sunday morning!?!?

I drove back past the tennis match and out to what is affectionally known as the Back 40. This was the overflow parking lot that was way out there from the college building. I managed to set up up for about five shots, it was really windy and the sun was too high in the sky so my eyes were all squinty and the shots look over exposed. I packed up my things and returned home with a failed mission. I immediately decided to try again the following week.

That next Sunday, I woke up at 4:00am to prepare for my day. After loading up the truck with the same gear as last time, I got all dressed up and pulled out of my driveway in the pre dawn light. An uneventful drive took me to the Gardens with the sun just brightening the day and the parking lot all to myself. I took out my camera and tripod, this time I just grabbed my underskirt and veil and decided it's now or never. I left the relative safety of my truck behind me and walked the hundred yards to the entrance of the Gardens. I saw that the large wooden door was closed and I breathed a sigh of relief as I discovered the latch was not locked. I felt a little better closing the door behind me but still felt very exposed in such a public space.

I managed to step into my hoop skirt make a few adjustments and get my veil in place before I wandered the Gardens to take my photos. There were so many little places to take a great photo. There was an arching bridge leading up to a small pagoda, a long wooden bridge over the pond and a grassy little knoll with a small waterfall behind it. I managed to walk around for half an hour taking lots of photos before I decided I had pressed my luck enough for one day. I also managed to to make it back to my car without encountering a single person. All in all it was quite a fun little adventure.